Hosting while on vacation

[Tania308]

Hi,

My husband and I have been running 5 units for some time now. We are wondering how others have handled going on vacation as we'll be on honeymoon soon. Our main cleaner will also be on vacation at that time. We are just worried we'd have no one in case of emergency.

Thank you!

[Helen3]

Normally hosts will have a co-host you use for times when you can't be available @Tania308 .  You can see if there is a local superhost available to co-host, or you can train up a local family member/friends.

Ask your cleaner for a person to clean while you are away.

[Tania308]

Thank you for the suggestion. It does seem to be the best way, though having never worked with a co-host that wasn't my husband, I have another question. Do you expect the co-host to be available at all times for emergencies? It feels like asking too much and a high risk that they may be sleeping when something happens.

[Helen3]

If you have negotiated this as part of your contract with them,  then yes @Tania308 . Most would ask for a call out fee for the number of hours they would need to be out.

How many emergencies have you had at your apartments that have necessitated you and your husband going out to them in the early hours?

[Gordon0]

Sod's law is prevalent in these cases. Get a co-host? 

[Tania308]

Well i just learned a new term, thank you! Do co-host typically make themselves available at all times for anything? How do you set achievable expectations in terms of when they should be available, what happens if they're sleeping and there's an incident? I'm just asking because this has happened before and we now work in "shifts" with our cleaner to ensure someone always is up for an emergency. 

[Helen3]

@Tania308  these really are all areas you need to think through. Obviously if you want someone on call 24/7 it is going to cost you more. 

Alternatively just block your accommodation off for the time you are away.

[Jennifer1586]

EXACTLY WHAT I DO! It’s better just to block off your days than trust someone with your hard earned money and ratings! They are not the ones as I understand it that get negative feed back it’s you it regardless of the issue or person hosting! I just take the stress and issues off my plate when hosting like suggested! Btw! Good suggestion! Who needs the drama while your on vacation worried about your units!? Not me!! The whole point is to RELAX! 

[Paul1255]

@Tania308  work something out with your co-host that will work for you both- if you want them to be available at all times when you are away, make sure that whatever you're offering in terms of payment/potential payment if the situation arises is attractive 🙂

I work as a full-time co-host, I am available 24 hours for hosts that I work with on a full-time perm basis, but for those hosts who use me on a pay-as-you-go basis, such as when they go on holidays or away for a weekend I offer emergency cover at a hourly rate and with transport costs on top.

Emergency situations/incidents are rare, and I would never be awake waiting for them- I keep my phone next to my bed and if a guest or host calls me I am up straight away and able to support.

[Etty3]

Hello All;

We are Airbnb owners and have encountered an issue that many of you may have as well. Whenever we go out of town we have two options, since we manage our Airbnbs and have not hired a full time management company.. We can either block off the dates we are out of town or ask family or friends to cover for us; something that neither family or friends are ever too enthusiastic to do.

As a result, we have come up with a solution. It is called AwayBnB (www.away-bnb.com). Basically for $10 a day we and our team of professionals will be there in case your guests need immediate attention or if somethging goes terribly wrong; think busted water pipe, furnace stopped working, cleaning crew didn't show up.

Baically it is an insurance policy that everything will be yaken care of should you ever leave town. So you can leave town stress free and not have to give up Airbnb income.

Please let us know if this is something that you would be inertested in. Visit our site and drop us a note. We currently serve the Chicago area and are growing rapidly.