Check-in: meeting guests vs self check-in

[Mike1034]

Most of time I personally greet guests for check-in. Occasionally I asked guests to do self check-in when I am not available. In either case, most of time there are little complaints about the check-in.

Recently I had a guest complaining about the check-in because I was not able to meet her at check-in time. She rated me 2 for Check-in and 3 for Communication with the same complaint because of self check-in.

Here is what she left in private message at review time. "It would be nice if you greeted your out of town guests personally. I had a lot of trouble with opening the lockbox, which was extremely overwhelming, especially since I was a visitor and no one was there to greet me."

I sent her self check-in instruction one day before her arrival and I also texted her about 15 minutes after her check-in. In my self check-in instruction, I mentioned that call me anytime if there are any questions. But I did not receive any phone calls and she told me that everything was fine after she received my message 15 min after her check-in.

For added security, I do have three locks on my house doors. Two locks with the same key on the steel door. And one keyless entry lock. For a self check-in, I put keys (house door key and bedroom door key) in a lockbox which has a code. Therefore, there are two codes and two keys for four locks on three doors. It could be difficult for guests who is not fluent in English. But for people who are educated in the US like this guest, it should not be an issue if she could read the self check-in instruction carefully. Or she could just give me a call if she faced the difficulty. She just hit me with  very low ratings in Check-in and Communication category. Not sure why she rated low in Communication when she actually mentioned in her public review "... He checked on me periodically throughout my stay...".

In her feedback for Check-in rating. She wrote "Thanks for being a great host. It would be nice if you greeted your out of town guests personally. I had a lot of trouble with opening the lockbox, which was extremely overwhelming, especially since I was a visitor and no one was there to greet me."

In her feedback for Communication rating. She wrote "I would appreciate being greeted by the host when visiting from another state. Not doing so makes it not as welcoming, as I wasn’t familiar with CA. That makes for a more personal experience. Also, without the host to let me in the lockbox instructions were very confusing and the door was too difficult to open."

I would like to hear from other hosts about your check-in experience with your guests.

(1) Do you prefer self check-in or meeting the guests?

(2) How much effort/attention do you put on door locks for security purpose? 

(3) What kind of door locks do you use? 

(4) How many locks do you use?

[Yadira22]

@Mike1034  Also add pointed out by @Amy1129 @a good idea would be to leave the bedroom keys on the bedroom lock (especially if you have no other guests) this way if take away any guessing for which key belongs to the steel door. Just a thought 

[Emilia42]

@Yadira22 great instructions. I do think that people respond better to steps/lists than they do to complete sentences. 

@Mike1034 I have one listing that has a tricky door handle so following my directions is necessary for locking/unlocking the door. I send the guests instructions but I also printed and laminated the 3 step directions and taped them right to the door. This way the guests has no excuse but to stare at the instructions while they follow them. Obviously, the directions mean nothing to someone who doesn't have the code or key. So it has worked really well so far. You could put something like this on the door/lockbox when you are expecting a self check in and remove it when you are there to assist. 

[Mike1034]

@Emilia42  Great idea! I will print one out with bigger font and space the steps out, and tape on the door. Thanks!

[Lisa723]

I prefer self-check-in as a guest— but it must be easy. Wrestling with luggage and a difficult check-in after a long trip is a real mood-wrecker. We do self-check-ins at our vacation rentals and quickly learned the hard way that if it is not utterly smooth and fail-safe guests will turn sour and you will hear about it in the review. 

[Mike1034]

@Lisa723  So far we just had one complaint in the review. It probably because we meet guests at check-in to explain how to lock and unlock doors most of the time.

Without loosening the security, it is hard to find a self check-in approach which fits most people. Younger generation seem have less issue with handling lockbox and digital keypad while older people have more difficulties when we explain to them.

[Mike-And-Helen0]

@Mike1034 we like to check guests in ourselves but occasionally use a lockbox.

I've removed the lockbox as an amenity since some guests think it means "check in when you like".

Its one key and one lock for us, though.

[Mike1034]

@Mike-And-Helen0  It is similar to what we do. But we have two house doors, and one bedroom door, which have total three doors with four locks. 

There are a lot of more security with a lot of more work to unlock doors and lock doors.

[Pete69]

(1) Do you prefer self check-in or meeting the guests? More often than not I never happen to meet my guests at any time. My private suite is advertised as a self check-in stay with no shared interior space and my guests seem to LIKE having their privacy and independence. Nobody has ever asked for assistance in checking in. Just in case someone can't figure out how to use the lock box, I always give them the location of a hidden key. I change that hidden location after each guest. 

(3) What kind of door locks do you use? 1 dead bolt. Since they're only $10 + $3 for some duplicate keys, I change the lock periodically.

[Mike1034]

@Pete69  Your way to handle self checkin does help those people who never used lockbox and coded locks and those who are lazy to read instruction. It does sacrifice security a little.

[Mark116]

I guess we are a dying breed, I prefer to check guests in, not only can I answer general questions for them to prevent future failures/problems, but it gives them a sense that yes, they are in someone's actual house, not a hotel, so I feel it improves chances of things being taken care of, and it allows for some reiteration of important details like recycling and now not to break the stove.  We also so far stick to old fashioned keys, as I find that the more tech options you give people, the more options there are for problems.  

[Andrea-and-Francis0]

We like checking in new guests if we are home & available as I find its more warm & welcoming but we also offer self check in for those that need a later check in or we aren't available. 

[Alice595]

@Andrea-and-Francis0  It is similar to what we do. We welcome guest whenever we can to avoid any potential issues.

[Amy1129]

I only do self check-in with a lock box that holds the outside door key. The key for the inside door is sitting in that door's lock. This eliminates dealing with two different keys. That might help, if it's possible. 

I had one guest comment that she had a hard time opening the lock box, so I added more detailed step by step instructions to the message when sending the lock box code.

Some day I will switch over to a keyless lock systerm for the outer door.  Most of the time I am out of the home when guests arrive so greeting them personally is not an option. 

[Mike1034]

@Amy1129That is the good idea. I did not do it because I have a key chain to put two keys together. I did label each key. The issue the guest encountered is not keys. The major issue is reading the instruction to figure out complex relationship of two keys and four lock plus the lockbox, and the way to open lockbox and digital keypad.

Thanks for your response.

[Luana130]

I usually meet all my guests for check-in, I think it's safer this way... You can see if it is the right number of people, the same person that booked, you can clarify any doubts you or the guest might have.... But I do have a lockbox system in place just in case I am not able to wait.

If I am not able to meet them I leave the keys at the lockbox. The first key is to the main gate. Then I have an electronic lock on the main door, and a key for the apartment. The only thing I can see the guests having a problem with is the main door, so I put a sign next to it with pictures showing how to operate the lock.