The only unfair review!

[Cristina1252]

Guys, I am terribly disappointed about this last review of my apartament. Since I started renting the apartament, I have always received great reviews, but this last guests left me questioning my ability to host. I take great pride in how spotless is my apartament because i want do it myself ( i tried working with few cleaning ladies but i wasn't very satisfied on how they did their job).

So in this last review the guest first stated that the location is inaccurate- because the taxi driver didn't know the street ( ?! ). 

My apartament has a full beach view, with the sea just below the building. The following blame she left me is that the stairs to the beach are uneven and there is no handrail for the elderly people (!!!). How I am supposed to improve something that is public domain? Those are not my stairs and i simply cannot fix anything to them, I'm not the mayor of the city! 

The following topic is about the apartament itself: that I didn't cleaned the apartament very good ( while I was reading this, my face turned red instantly of fury). She wrote that after 1 hour of walking in the apartament, she saw that her white socks turned dirty. I mentioned above, I leave 20 meters from the beach- so if there is just a slight breeze of wind, it is extremely possible that some sand will enter in the house, if the windows are open. But before the guests showed up, i vacuumed extra carefully the entire apartament and then i mopped TWICE with like the best floor detergent. Next, she said that the bathroom rug was disgusting ( I just had cleaned in the washing machine, so I can't possible imagine why she said that, I swear). Then, that the faucet holder is not placed well ( i have to give her this one, I will fix this one of this days, but still.. ) . 

The following, she complained about the fact that the balcony was dirty ( I must mention again: i vacuumed and mopped it ) but it is just meters away from the BEACH! IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO KEEP THE SAND AWAY. And that the other balconies of my neighbours look bad. Like why?!? With what is it any of my fault?! The cherry on top was that she complained that in the neighbourhood she found a lot of stray dogs and cats. 

So this is it, guys! What can I do? Should I answer? What should I answer? I am mad because I know how much I worked to give my guests the best holiday experience and I am frustrated with this outcome that will probably affect the judgement making of potential guests. I couldn't sleep at all last night because of this review, it left me wondering if I should continue renting my apartament on this platform. Thanks in advance for your replies. Have a wonderful day, 

Tina.

[Hendrik47]

Hi Christina,

I read the original posting by your guest and it is interesting to see that this is by far the only bad review while all the other reviews are exactly pointing out what you said - a beautiful place while you spend a lot of effort to it. So maybe she just had a very bad day.

I totally understand that this review drives you crazy and it is unfair to point out so many facts that are not in your responsibility, but keep in mind that for most people a review is always a statement about the whole experience (including the host as well). 

Maybe you can discuss it with her directly as you did in this community center. 

Question to the experts in this board (I'm new here): Can I change a review after I already published it?

[Cristina1252]

Hey Hendrik, thanks a lot for your tips but I can't even think of talking to this guest personally on the phone, I think I would die of frustration. I totally understand that every guest reviews a place from their own perspective but I think some use this opportunity only to harm others. Anyway, I have to get used to it and move on. Thank you so much for taking the time to help me. Best wishes,

Tina

[Uwe56]

Hi Cristina, I had a very similar experience like yours but for the sake of our health, the best is to forget what happened and continue our way ob being.

Unfortunately we need some weird people in a society; unfortunately...

Enjoy life and don't lose your mind for someone that apparently lost her mind already.

[Cynthia475 · Accepted solution]

@Cristina1252   Unfortunatly we all get a less than stellar review eventually; it is frustrating especially since we take it personally.   But you need to put aside your feelings to write the best possible respnse to this review.  It needs to be one that is done without being the least bit defensive.Unfortunatly once a review is posted, it can not be changed.  Your only option is to write a great response to the review.

I would suggest something like:

Thank you for staying at my beachfront apartment.  I am sorry that you felt like you had less than a 5 star experience while staying there.  I can assure you that the apartment was thoroughly cleaned prior to your arrival.  I am sure that one of the many reasons you chose my apartment was due to the excellent reviews I received from previous guest  and its location right on the beach.  Having the windows open to appreciate the sound of the ocean will bring in sand that will result in the floor appearing to be dirty.  That just comes with being right on the ocean.

I will have a closer look at the bathroom rug.  It is washed prior to each guests arrival but perhaps it is starting to show some wear.   Additionally, you just confirmed what I had suspected, I will have that faucet holder moved to make it more convenient for future guests.

It is unfortunate that the taxi driver was not as familiar with our streets as he should have been.  The stairs leading down to the beach are public property so I am unable to make any changes but I will pass along your feedback to our City council.

[Cristina1252]

Omg, Cynthia I couldn't possibly write a better response to it if my life was in stake. I might have to pay you some copyright rights, 'cause I'll copy and paste this one :))

Thanks a lot & have an amazing day!

[Cynthia475]

My pleasure.   Glad that you found it useful.

[Sun-Valley0]

Hello everyone,
My name is Zlatan, I am from Bosnia and I started renting my apartment as of June this year. It was a great summer season, way above all of my expectations. 99% of my airbnb guests from all around the World were happy and satisfied, but there was a 3-star rating for cleanliness from my last guests. It is disappointing for me as my team and I put a lot of effort in cleaning. The apartment itself is brand new, recently built, and it does not take much to keep it nice, clean and neat. However, we have a checklist that we follow to include detailed cleaning and bathroom and toilets disinfecting. Unfortunately, this person left 3-star rating for cleanliness with public comment in French, saying something like "Put more effort in cleaning". 
I wish they told me what was wrong in person instead of telling me everything was perfect at their checkout. Or at least left a note in private feedback section. The only thing I can think about is a minor leak underneath the shower cabin (we have fixed it already).

My question to highly experienced Airbnb hosts: Should I post public reply to this person and what should I say? Or should I just leave it alone?

Thank you.

[Terry297]

Wow... I have only had 2 bad reviews. One from a pet sensitive couple. they entered my lake condo, sneezed then saw the pet art on the walls and realized they rented a pet friendly condo. I was traveling that week which is rare but I always answer my phone. They walked out and rented a hotel on the highway and gave me a 1 star rating. It is clearly noted all over my listing that my condo is pet friendly.  If they would have called me, I know all the other condo rental owners and I would have been happy to at least try to find an available waterfront condo on the lake, and transfer the money privately to the other owners. We work together like that. They did not give me an chance. I lost my superhost and because  bad reviews push you down the search list, I have had more vacancy and had to lower my price to try to climb back up to where I was. If you get one 1 star review , it takes about 10 5-star reviews to get  back to superhost. I called airbnb to complain that it is unfair that they gave me 1-star for being pet friendly when it is disclosed in several places on my listing. They would not change it. Therefore, most of my bookings are now coming from the other hosting site (guess), but I have more vacancy because of this unfair review. I would have moved them and transfered the funds to my friends who are owners of no pet condos. It was their mistake and they did not give me a chance to fix it.