Is there a need for a checkout guide?

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

Over the years I have stayed in quite a few Airbnb as guest and along the way I have noticed that different hosts have varying styles of how they would like their guests to checkout. There are some important pieces of information which are needed, such as where they should  leave the key once they leave.

I wonder do you have a specific process that helps you make it as simple and friendly as possible for you and your guests?

Do you like to personally say goodbye to your guests to ensure that everything has been the way that they like it? Do you provide useful information on what to do with the key or what to do with the linen perhaps?

I look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,
Lizzie

[Angie29]

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@Lizzie wrote:

Thanks @Rebecca181.

Personally, I'm a bit of a fan of a binder of information when I stay somewhere. I then know what I need to do when I leave. 

Do you usually direct people to look at your binder via an email message too or when they arrive?

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I agree.  I provide a dosier with hard copies of the House rules/Additional rules because although the same thing is typed on the listing and on the guests' itinerary people don't read it.  Heck!!  They don't even read my hard copies, but at least it's there.  

[Susan899]

Hello. 

Question- what screening features do you build into your listing? I message with questions to at least figure out “who” they are, but some do not even respond. Thanks. Susan 

[Sigrid56]

Hi, I'm a host since October 2015. Since I first started, I have learned many things from my guests, what they like and what they don't like. And that has given me the opportunity to make changes, upgrades along this line. A day or two before their move-in I either call or message them, wishing them a safe and pleasant trip, reminding them of the check-in and check-out procedures, asking them to contact me once they have their rental car as I will be at the property to welcome them and show them around. I do have a guest book that details key code, Wi-Fi, location, license, rules and regulations, shopping, sightseeing and some sheets in the back for guest's notes. Many of my guests left sightseeing brochures which I make available to any new guests. I have a security system which I’m able to monitor from my cell phone. Most of my guests leave the house almost as clean and orderly as on their move-in day. I try to personally say 'Good-By' and if that fails, I send them a message or text thanking them for their stay and hoping they will come back again. I'm now thinking to ask for their home address, phone (if I don't have it) as well as contact in case of emergency.
I care very much for my guests, stay in contact during their stay as I want them to have a wonderful, relaxing vacation.

[John47]

@LizzieI'm a bit different from many hosts as i have a seasonal summer cottage colony of six units rented weekly (with NO linens supplied) that has been in the family for decades so Airbnb is now used to fill in gaps left by existing customers, and I'm on site so interact with guests sometimes daily.
I don't have anything written now, but i used to have a two page list of instructions that some felt was too picky. However, that was also prior to when I had a hired cleaning crew so people were expected to clean up after themselves back then.
I now just give them a quick verbal summary of what I expect, with "Take ALL of your stuff, but NONE of mine!" being the most important. The most common issue I have is guests moving items around and not returning them to original location/room or even close to it.  Playing bedding 'hide and seek' in a 3 bedrm unit isn't fun and can take 20+ min. In most cases, my Airbnb guests have been better than my other regular ones so it's been a decent five years or so.

[Lizzie]

Aw interesting to hear @John47. Do you find that people are more response to your instructions verbally rather than as a written list? 

[John47]

@LizzieIt seems more friendly that way, plus it gives them chance to ask questions as I describe it so they better understand exactly what i want, plus I can somewhat customize instructions based on their situation/family/etc.
I am planning on writing up some basic instructions and providing a printed pix of how beds look when they arrived so they may have better chance of at least getting the blankets for twin beds back in that room, for example.

The one area that many of my tenants don't fully get is my desire for them to leave any usable food for me to eat or dispose if i don't. I've seen way too much expensive food that I wouldn't buy end up in trash. Now many hosts maybe wouldn't want to use up leftovers but my attitude is that if i were invited to dinner/lunch with them, I'd be eating it so why should it be bad just because they aren't there, right?

[Jennifer1421]

@LizzieOur checkout process is very simple - we ask guests to leave the key in the door of the suite (the suite is inside our basement) and to lock the exterior door on their way out. This lets us know at a glance whether they've checked out, or if they've simply gone for breakfast or a walk.

We rarely encounter our guests face to face; our logic is that if folks book an "entire" place, they prefer NOT to be chatting with hosts, so we don't personally say goodbye. Depending on the rapport that's been built via messages, I'll often send a "thank you" message on checkout day. If I have concerns that a guest is going to be late checking out, I send the message just prior to checkout time.

[John1080]

@Lizzie, I send a checkout message to guests 24 hours before their scheduled departure time. I also had the same list posted on the fridge, but have just moved it to the door and also have started putting a check-list on the table next to the house manual.  

I've had to do this because many guests are not doing things I ask. Two weeks ago we had a very nice family in, but when they left, they left an upstairs window open and the baseboard heaters were set to 44 degrees F. It as 9 degrees F outside and by the time my cleaners got there, it was 45 degrees F in the cabin. 

I ask guests to:

~Please CLOSE and lock ALL WINDOWS. **VERY IMPORTANT IN WINTER-PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE ANY WINDOWS OPEN**
~Please DO NOT start any laundry, as it may mildew before the cleaning staff can come. Please place all wet towels in the downstairs bathtub.
~Wash and put away your dishes.
~If you've used the sofa bed, please strip the bed and put the linens in the downstairs tub. Please make the sofa bed back and replace the coffee table.
~Turn off upstairs baseboard heaters. Please set downstairs baseboard heaters to 60F.
~Put all trash nicely in trash cans or bags and condense trash. Because of issues with the landfill, we at this time ask that you leave no more than 2 bags of trash. If at all possible, please take your recycling with you.
~Check to make sure the wood stove door is securely closed.
~Lock all exterior doors. Note, to lock the main door, push and hold the word SCHLAGE until you hear it lock. Please leave interior doors open to help with air flow.

Most guests do follow most of the points, but because of safety concerns with pipes freezing and the house burning down, I have to make sure I reiterate them. 

[Lizzie]

Great list @John1080. Just out of interest, do you give much background to why you ask guests to do this and the safety risks if it doesn't happen?

[John1080]

@Lizzie, yes, I mention to guests the possibility of frozen pipes and the extremes in cold the mountains can undergo. 

[Emily352]

An important little ritual

In my home manual there was a paper that summarized all the things to do before leaving my house.

Only a handful of people even looked at my manual. Therefore, the day of the departure, I sent a message  reminding guests of the check-out time and the actions that will be performed:

° shut off the gas;

° turn off the lights;

° close the windows;

° take off the sheets and pillowcases and put them with the towels in the laundry hamper;

° put the garbage bags into the garbage cans;

° have a look in all the wardrobe, drawers and rooms not to leave personal effects;

° just leave a comment on the guest book, but remember to write your review on the portal no later than 14 days.

At this point do exactly what Kath of Australia did: give the guests an educational imput.

“Let me remind you that AIRBNB ratings are not like Tripadvisor ratings: do not compare my house to the Hilton Hotel!

The "Position" star rating should be interpreted as follows: "Did you like the neighborhood where Emily's house is located?" Let me remind you that the location of the house you chose has nothing to do with the host's behavior!

The "Overall experience" star rating should be interpreted as follows: "How was your stay at Emily’s house compared to your expectations?"

In so doing, you achieve two results: you invite your guest to leave a review (to keep the review rate above 50%) and "educate" him about properly reviewing his stay at your home in the town center or in the outskirts.

Check-out is the last chance to leave a nice memory of you. “Seize the day!” for real.

Before you call a cab, recommend a store where the guest can make the last purchases, give him a map of the route to take and a little souvenir.

I offered a small going-away present marked "Emily's house" to everyone, guests long and short, fat and thin, nice and unfriendly, clean and unclean: a t-shirt or a keychain or a pack of homemade chocolate cookies to face the journey home. A little teddy bear with my name  for tiny kids: this is a gesture that will surely bear fruit in the magic moment of the review.

On that occasion I took the opportunity to leave my card with my website and my cell phone.

The day after the check-out, I sent a message:

"Thank you for choosing my home. I hope you enjoyed your stay with me. I hope to hug you again in a long embrace. Have a safe flight home. I’m really eager to hear from you".

Maybe, this is the difference between a simple goodbye and a goodbye forever, after all: the longer it takes us to vanish on the horizon.

[Erik215]

I'm a new Host, only 3 completed guest stays so far, 15 more booked, and have a key pad entry system with customized code for each guest. I list a whole house that I don't live in myself.

So far, I haven't asked guests to do anything particular when they leave other than lock the front door behind them. And so far, it's working out rather well.

But reading this message string on closing out, I'm going to write up a new page in my guest book on what I'd like them to do - such as do the dishes, but leave the beds as is, bag up their garbage but no need to take the garbage out, take a second look for left behind personal belongings, write a review. For my operation, I'm thinking this is about all there is to it. This information would also be a good message to send them through the messaging system towards the end of their stay as well as have a written page in my guest book. 

Thanks for this discussion and its information!!

[John1080]

@Erik215, yes, I send my above message to them 24 hours before their scheduled check-out time and also include it in my manual within the space. Having them do their own dishes is very helpful and saves time and money, especially if you use a cleaning service. 

[Erik215]

Just to report back on this issue...I haven't yet created a page in my printed information book that sits in the house, but I have created a message within the Airbnb system that I send on the morning of their check out with a list of 4 or 5 things that i'd appreciate that they do. Such as bag up the compost, recycling, and trash (but no need to take it out to the bins), strip the beds and pile sheets and pillow cases on the bed, straighten up the place, do the dishes, find the remotes. That's it. So far, after 4 or 5 reservations receiving this message on check out day, it's gone very well. Everyone has been accommodating of the short check list. Great! 

[Donna240]

I try to make checkout simple. Upon checkin I ask if the guests need the unit longer than the 11:00 a.m. check out time, provided I do not have another guest coming the day they leave. If it's available they can use it until they leave for the airport. If their plane is late, they can leave their suitcases and enjoy the city another day, even if I have another guest coming.

On the night before they leave I ask for their preferred checkout time and tell them I'll be there 10 minutes before to pick up the key and say goodbye. If they ask what to do I tell them to leave the bed as is, I'll strip it, leave used towels on the shower floor,  and don't worry about the garbage, I'll take care of it. I don't leave cleaning products beyond dishwashing soap, so they won't attempt to clean anything beyond a dish. Even dishes and utensils get rewashed. My one cleanliness 4 star resulted from relying on the former guest to actually clean the dishes they used and put back. Spoons at the bottom of the drawer still had peanut butter on them.

I take that time to tell my guests why I appreciate their patronage and to thank them for their respect for my home. Most guests receive a hug unless I have not interacted with them much because they have neither needed my help nor asked for my advice. Those receive a handshake. I try to personalize their experience, as I believe that is a motivating factor in chosing a STR in the first place.