Horrible guest. Bad review?

[Nuno60]

i have been hosting on airbnb for quiet sometime and have nearly 200 reviews overall i have great reviews but there as been a few exceptions that someone rated me 1* i really dont wanna sound racist or anything but more or less my bad reviews plus 1* rating were from french guests ... do other airbnb host have the same experience ? i really try my best but they are impossible to please i have instant booking so i dont screen my guests bt everytime i get a booking from french people i double my efforts to please them but its overwellming impossible any tips?

[Marzena4]

Not really, @Nuno60. If I were to judge my guests in this respect, it would be other nationalities that are the most troublesome with their expectations and subsequently reviews for me.

[Kimberly54]

@Nuno60,

#1:  Cheese.  There are something around 450 distinct varieties of 'les huit familles de fromage'

Just a bit... even just one might make the difference... with a fresh baguette. (slice of their bread).

#2 If you up your rates, include Champagne, but you can't skimp on some 'sparkling wine.' 

Good luck!

Oh, and are you holding out on that Irish Magic?  Beer, fairies, leprechauns... interesting music? 

Best,

[Paul154]

Sorry I can't add any tips, just a suggestion for attitude adfustment.

I too  think think French people will leave me a bad review. So I'm not being superior, just reflective.

1.  It could just be random. Maybe the French people you got were stinkers and the next French guests will be wonderful.

2. Maybe you are unconciously telegraphing your disappointment with French people.  I know I cringe inside when some European dude brags about having months and months of paid vacation (meaning he has a fixed amount of money spread out for more vacation days...)

3. Maybe you serve bleu cheese and tell them it's the same as roquefort? 

Just stop thinking of the French as different and don't double your efforts to please them. It just sets you up for disappointment.

[Rene-and-Zac0]

@Nuno60 @Paul154 I too think it’s a matter of “perspective “. If you can “double your efforts” for a French guest , are you giving EVERY guest your absolute best? Are you saving 4th gear for just a French guest or would it be better to go through all your gears for every guest? Imagine the guest that is “not expecting” extras or this “going above and beyond” stuff and BAM! They are blown away by you “4th gear” that you’re saving for the French! So now this “everyday Connor McGregor” gets a ride in your machine and you’re flying through all the gears you have, this guest is blown away by you running through all your gears in the shift box and raves to everyone (reviews) how awesome you drive. Now picture Jean Luc, he owns a Lamborghini, your 3rd, 4th nd 5th gear are not impressive to him. Does the French guy deserve “more”?, no, everyone deserves your “top gears”. Everything is a competition and I go hard on ever chance I get. I don’t take for granted anything. I want to be First, every time. I track my competition like a hawk. I want to know every single thing about my competitors and what I have to do to win. If my competitors get a new couch, I want to know about it. If my competition drops their price, I want to know. To compete in my market, you have to be fast and good. I’ve ven posted myself to survive a protracted price war with my competitors. Every guest gets all my gears, I don’t hold back anything. I despise playing “coulda, shoulda, woulda”. This is my business at the end of the day and I’m directly responsible for it performance, point blank. Ten reviews claiming you are a rockstar and1 review from some guy that would probably surrender if you yelled “Boo!” Keep pushing forward and always be improving your business. 

[Kimberly54]

Hi all @Nuno60@Rene-and-Zac0@Paul154@Marzena4, I'm going to jump in one more time on this one:  They're not traveling to Ireland to be French, right?  So why does anyone come to Ireland?  Or any place, for that matter?  It's somewhere different, for whatever reason!  It's the differences that are curiously attractive... otherwise, we'd all just stay home!

And to be fair, you have to cut the French a bit of slack in that there is NO WORD IN THEIR LANGUAGE to express 'liking' something.  They don't have the word nor do they have the concept.  They only have 'love.'  Sure, you can love something/someone more or less, but it's love and only love.  This is cultural, and it runs the way they think/breathe/live.  Kinda cool, eh? 

Every culture has their own 'specialness.' I'm talking about the things you might observe, slightly shocked, and think, "Oh My...."  Right?  To walk into a host Japanese home without automatically taking off my shoes?  Never thought twice about it until I SUDDENLY realized that I'd been hit with an invisible bucket of cold water!  Of course, to them, I was a complete idiot/barbarian; quickly forgiven, but probably never truly forgotten (oh, and I lived there for a YEAR as a student--and that was not my only mistake!)

As for the French, my husband has a categorical disdain for 'them'... that war-stuff... whatever... but I lived/worked in the middle of Paris for nearly half a year and had the most amazing experience of my life, with people I still keep in touch with now, 10 years later.  Can't think of one bad thing to say about 'them' except to occasionally smile at some of their very peculiar ways... not my ways at all, but I adore them. 

[Marzena4]

As for nationalities, in another thread in this forum a host from the very Far East pointed out that it's not their nationality in the first row that defines what guests are like, but simply manners and respect for others. In Europe there are a few nations that feel somehow superior to others. Just an hour ago on the tram I witnessed four Spaniards without tickets being arrogant towards ticket inspectors. And in my city, beside drunk Britons, they are the second to be pointed out - noise and dirt. 

On the other hand, myself visiting other countries I sometimes felt like not giving a sign from where I am - especially in the UK. And after China and Spain, it would be the country with gave me guests I would like to forget about.

[Kimberly54]

@Marzena4,  you are so right.

What I didn't do such a job explaining was that 'manners' and 'respect for others' (drunkenness aside) was that some people (I have to include myself here) might not even know what is a bad manner or even disrespectful.

Me walking into my host-family's house with my shoes on?  Yes, filthy, dirty, disrespectful... I had absolutely no idea.  And there was absolutely no humor about it at all.  Aside from apologetic body language (not even sure how THAT might have been interpreted!), I did not yet speak but a few words of their language.

And really, silly things?  You do not EVER stick your chopsticks straight up in a bowl of rice unless someone has just died.  Nope, some of this cultural stuff is serious business, and the Japanese are not exactly known for their sense of humor.  Right?

Oh, and females are really never to smile without covering their mouths with their hand... certainly never laughing outloud... really, not much expression is condoned at all.  A Mona Lisa smile is about all you can get away with without seeming...  is this making more sense?  

And I had at that point, lived within four different cultures--one in particular was pretty extreme at times, but nothing as repressive--my definition--as this. 

[Adrian171]

Hi Nuno,

I completely understand how you feel as we have recently experienced the same and it feels horrible.  Unfortuantely both me and my partner don't speak or understand French at all well.  I just replied to say that I was really sorry they felt the way they did and that perhaps due to our lack of being able to clearly communicate, we couldn't properly ascertain their expectations.  I suspect we couldn't have pleased them no matter what we did.  You can't always please everyone!  It is a bit sad but we have had some lovely guests from France and have received some lovely reviews.  We're just running a little guest house for the owners in lieu of being able to live in the house rent free so we're working super hard not to get bad reviews.  Good luck and the remember the lovely guests that make you feel you're doing great  🙂

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Nuno60

ah French.... ah... at the same begining of our hosting experience we got instant booking for new year period 4 months in advance when I still didn't adjust hollidays prices. I didn't want to cancel so I let them stay . After they left they rated me low for value , imagine.... And I could have rent my place for double the price! 

Then we also get booked from young lady which cancelled the booking when she realized our parking in the backyard is not available and she has to park on our other parking place just 5 min walk away. It was to far for her and she was angry.

I don't know what's their problem but they are obviously very unhappy people.

[Geraldine60]

Hallo Nino,

I am Irish and and my apartment is in Nice where I also live.  I totally agree with you that they are the worst.  You just can't please them no matter what you do for them.  They would break your heart.

[Ardis-And-Teresa0]

Some of the most delightful and charming guests we have ever had were an elderly French couple, who spoke no English.  They were visiting their granddaughter in graduate school.  On the other hand, we've had many unpleasant experiences with another nationality, which shall remain nameless.  So much so that I cringe when I get a booking request from there.  I'm sure others have had good experiences with this group.  I'm convinced there are wonderful people and pains in the neck wherever you go.  Throw a bunch of multicolored marbles on a table, and a few of each color may accidently group together.  That doesn't really tell you about blue marbles, just the blue marbles on your table.  

[Kimberly54]

@Ardis-And-Teresa0, Oh, I do wish you'd spill the beans!  I have found this thread SO amusing!  With your errant guests, was alcohol involved?  In some countries, the culture is such that if a MAN (not woman) has a drink, his behavior is immediately excused... surprised that the Japanese didn't end up on the list along with the Chinese, Spaniards, Britans (I thought they only drank tea!  Kidding!), and wow, the French have really taken a beating, which I find surprising! 😉  I would still gladly host someone from France, but really appreciate everyone's feedback.  One Japanese professor we hosted when I was still a kid ended up being one of our closest family friends for over 45 years until his death.  My experience with drunken Japanese men (when I was a guest) was absolutely horrible. 

One thing I think I've learned on this thread (and the one before with Paul the Mad Irishman was that if I ever host anyone from Ireland, they have to register ANY fairies or leprechauns coming with them, and I think I'm going to charge extra for leprechauns. ;-))

Alcohol is an interesting addition to the equation... might start a new thread on this so we don't get too side-tracked?  Any of you savvy level 10-ers, has this been discussed before?  Don't want to beat a dead horse...

Best to all,

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Ardis-And-Teresa0

je, je... no stereotypes, all colors of Beneton etc .... but the fact is that Korean guests tend to leave the bathroom floor wet, house smells of curry after Indians, chinese women like to rearange the furniture, Americans can't survive without AC and water cooker , south America don't leave reviews and Franch guests are always unhappy.... :))))

[Kimberly54]

@Branka-and-Silvia0, LOL-hilarious!  (My step-mother is immigrant-Korean of nearly 40 years! ;-))) ) 

If I could have given you more than one thumbs' up, you'd get 'em!  (And not because of the step-mom-thing!)  *)

Cultural differences are IMPORTANT to understand for us hosts (OR if we are guests!!!)  Makes things a lot easier.

More education is BETTER!  Amazing topic, and anyone who has traveled much or hosted much, you've gotta be smiling and giggling!  

Thank you!

PS: what is a "water cooker?"  A microwave?  Surely it's not a simple pot, right?  Wow, you lost me there!  ;-))))

Best always and also the group,