Guests Who Stay in Their Rooms ALL DAY - Should I specify this in their review?

[Jeanne224]

By a stroke of coincidence, both of the spare bedrooms I list on Airbnb were booked by two separate guests checking in on the same day, one from Japan and another from New York, who never leave their rooms. They've been here for 3 days and have never left the apartment (I know this because I had a day off for Thanksgiving during which I spent the entire day cooking and the night hosting a dinner with some coworkers). The Japanese woman leaves her room only to go to the bathroom and to take 2 long full-on baths a day. She also keeps setting the thermostat to 86°F (30°C)! I asked her not to set it so high, but she completely ignores me. The other guest room has an ensuite bathroom, so I never see him come out of the room. I wonder what they are doing in their rooms all day and what they're eating if they're never leaving their rooms. I took a day off from work today to work on some personal projects and rest after my 12 hours of cooking yesterday and both of them, again, haven't left their rooms. I've had this happen only once before with an international couple and I did mention in their review (they were first-time Airbnb guests) that they were guests who kept to themselves and stayed in their rooms with the AC on all day and all night. 

The guy from NY is leaving tomorrow morning... I'm not sure what the purpose of his trip is since he hasn't left the room in the entire time he's been here, but the woman from Japan will be here until Tuesday. I'm afraid she'll set the thermostat to 86°F (30°C) while I'm at work on Monday and I'll come back to a scorching-hot house since she really doesn't seem to care even though I told her IN JAPANESE that's she's setting the thermostat too high. She keeps raising the thermostat while I'm asleep and I wake up at 3 or 4 a.m. because it's way too hot to sleep comfortably (I like to sleep, as science/research says, at the ideal cooler temperatures between 65°F and 70°F (18°C - 21°C) 

Would other hosts like to know these facts? I'm just curious as to what I should write in the review. I want to be honest and let other hosts know of my experience so they can make an informed decision as to whether they'd like to host these folks or not. One of my weirdest experiences to date. 

[Kath9]

@Jeanne224, yes I would like to know! What is it with these people who turn the heating up so high? I had a guest the other night who ran the space heater on high all night long - when I went into the room in the morning to clean it, it was literally like walking into a sauna! It was so unbelievably hot!!! How on earth they slept through that is beyond me. Anyway, that would have cost me a fortune in electricity (which is extremely expensive here) so, yes, I would like to know if I have a potential guest who is going to be unreasonable with heating.

I would also like to know if guests are going to be hanging around in the house all day - I work from home and would probably feel reasonably uncomfortable with a guest who never leaves the house.

[Rosemarie9]

I have to throw open all the windows and doors after some guests leave, there is literally condensation everywhere! It is so unhealthy, you would think it was common sense to open a window when/after showering. I even had one young guest give me the priceless advice of maybe putting in an extractor fan. There are two windows right above the shower! I'm glad it isn't just me having these problems, I thought I was going crazy.

[Helen427]

@Rosemarie0

May I suggest as you give an introductory tour of your home that you mention to your guests that the bathroom window should be opened either before or immediately after showering to prevent condensation and potential mould.

I've just had a guest who lives in a country where they have air-conditioned bathrooms and gas for water...I have neither, it's all about understanding & educating others and as Aibnb says, Live like a local...perhaps you should use that line when you introduce guests to your home...

[Rosemarie9]

I give everyone a tour, and even have the window open a bit hoping they leave it that way. Unfortunately common sense isn't always common, I  have to have the heating on quite a bit, and the double glazing can only do so much, many guests just seem to like the sauna effect. After three years of hosting I have made everything as easy as possible, and try to eliminate any problems, but I realise not everyone loves fresh air as much as I do! I've heard that a lot of people have heating or cooling on in their homes all year round. Give me fresh air and mild heating anytime.

[Jeanne224]

Ah, don't you love it when guests go beyond what is acceptable and tell you what to do with your own home? 😄 I had one guest give me 3 stars overall because he said I had too much "stuff" and gave me tips on how to redecorate and set up my own home! Honestly, all of my possessions can fit into 2 large suitcases, but apparently, that was still too much "clutter" everywhere! (I literally have one bookshelf with books in it and that's all... my place is very minimalist). 

[Rosemarie9]

He would hate my place, I love artwork, books and nic nacs!  I would never dream of giving unsolicited advice on someone's home arrangements. I had one guest early on who gave me four stars because he didn't like where the tv was mounted. We can all do without those guests.

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

Fortunately even though my listing is a shared home private room, we only host one single guest at a time so even if a guest were to stay home all day, it would not really be a problem for us.

With that said....... Henry and I always wonder....... why in the world would someone just stay indoors cooped up in their room day after day~ after traveling half way around the world to be in a different country? Especially in a city like Seoul? So much to see, do and eat~

[Huma0]

@Jessica-and-Henry0 

I also wonder this. I think my listings are fairly priced, but London is not a cheap city, especially when it comes to accommodation. Why would someone spend all that money on flights, Airbnb etc. and not see or do anything while they're here?

I've had this occasionally with guests. One time, it was some newly weds, so I think we can guess why they wanted to stay in their room. I had one girl stay for over a week and hardly leave the bedroom. It was the last stop in a two month tour of Europe, and she said she was tired and just wanted to relax. Okay, fair enough, but it seemed like a wasted opportunity, as well as a waste of money, given that she had never been to London before and ended up hardly seeing any of it.

Probably, it was the nicest room she stayed in during her whole trip (the room was underpriced at the time) and so it was easy to just laze about on the comfy, king sized bed. That's the danger in making a room really welcoming. A more recent guest, who did go out, commented that it was hard to motivate herself to do so. In her review, she wrote, "My room was spacious and very comfortable and I felt quite indolent with all the chandeliers, velvet seats and fluffy cats. Honestly I found it hard to drag myself away every morning!"

It has occured to me also, that sometimes (less experienced) single travellers might have thought it was a good idea to travel solo but then find they don't enjoy it that much. They might feel lonely, scared, intimidated, overwhelmed or just plain bored going out by themselves and end up just hiding in their rooms watching Netflix or whatever.

When I was much younger, I had a stopover in Cairo. I thought I'd see a bit of the city while I was there but soon discovered it was not such a pleasant place for a young woman on her own, so I decided just to stay in the hotel. I had a similar experience in Johannesburg when I was about 20. However, those were just one night stopovers en route to somewhere else and I have visited both those cities on other occasions when I had company. I can't imagine spending days in a foreign city and not going out!

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Huma0 @Jeanne224

My current guest is very nice, polite and great at cleaning up after herself and is respectful of our house rules. But except for when she has classes 2 days of the week she literally never leaves the house and eats all 3 meals at home. She went hiking 3 times and to the Han river park 2 times (out for half a day, during the weekend within the first 2 months she was here), she stayed out late exactly 2 times during the past 3 months. Even on days she has classes, she will come straight home to make herself dinner. She went on one extended weekend trip to Japan very recently.

Henry works from home, the study has an ensuite so when he's working he will barely leave to room  🙂 and one of my sisters is also a bit of a homebody so I get there are people who just like to stay put....... but still~~~ if you've traveled half way around the world for an exchange program to experience a new country and new city, don't you want to explore a bit????? Henry and I recently realized that if we exclude the 2 days when she leaves home to go to her classes, our guest actually stays home more than Henry does~!!!!! 

For her review, I want to mention that she's a bit of a homebody but I don't want it to sound or seem bad in any way.........I've started to think about how best to word it. I might have to put up a post later to get some ideas 🙂  

[Huma0]

@Jessica-and-Henry0

Yes, it's a tricky one. How to word it diplomatically so it doesn't sound like a complaint or criticism?

How about trying to make it sound like a postive, while still letting other hosts know she didn't go out much?

"Although young, X is not a party type. She was very quiet and spent most of her free time at home."

Or, something along those lines...

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

Not a party type! I like that one~ 🙂 Definitely on the list of potential phrases to use.

Thanks so much @Huma0

[Clara116]

@Jeanne224 YES, please let us know when you experience guests like this. I know you said you told her in Japanese - but, can it be she doesn't understand - I can't imagine a Japanese person not being totally polite and wanting to please you. Of course, that's my jaded understanding of a people group and most probably stupid on my part.

Well, I guess I could understand a couple that hang out in the room more than a single person - but, folks seem so focused on phones, internet and technology that the experience of traveling I imagine is way different than in my days of world travel. We would be out till we couldn't walk any more and were falling down cause we had exhausted our selves exploring. I think times are so different. 

Unfortunately, I think folks are happy to go, arrive, find a place for a great selfie, post em on Instagram - saying I was here ------------ that's travel today, I think. How sad that sounds.

Thanks for asking- yes, you can gently tell other hosts what the guests is like and how they managed staying at your place.........without tearing them up - and we will be so glad you did. 

thanks Jeanne,

happy hosting, Clara

[Jeanne224]

I'm fairly fluent in Japanese, so it's not that she didn't understand. She actually got upset and hostile when I told her my reasoning (about hot temperatures being bad for your health and not ideal for quality sleep). It's a stereotype to assume Japanese people are all polite. She was visibly upset and kept saying, something like, "OK, I got it, you don't need to tell me any more."

Yes, culturally, most Japanese are polite, but some are not. You get nice and mean people from everywhere in the world and I happen to be hosting someone who's not the nicest. I was quite surprised when I brought it up this morning and got such a hostile response. 

[Huma0]

@Jeanne224

It irritates me as well, especially as I work from home most days, but I am not sure if you can openly criticise a guest for staying in their room or mark them down for it. They have paid for the room after all and, unless you have something in your house rules that restricts when they can be at home, they are not technically doing anything wrong. I imagine it never occurs to them that it might annoy you as why would you be doing Airbnb if you didn't like having people there?

The heating thing is another matter, especially if you have something about it in your house rules. Even if you don't, you've asked this girl several times, and it's not reasonable behaviour in my opinion. If it was me, I would mark her down on observance of house rules.

By the way, is it possible to move your thermostat? Mine used to be attached to the wall in a hallway, but I took it off and moved it, not because of guests, but it does mean that guests wouldn't be able to adjust it even if they wanted to.They can, and do, fiddle with the radiator controls in their rooms (even though my house rules say not to), but at least that doesn't turn the rest of the house into a sauna!