Things you wish guests understood about Airbnb

[Laura2592]

Having hosted for a few years now, I have noticed some trends of "informational holes" in guest perspectives. These are some things I wish guests knew. Maybe I will write an article! Curious to hear from others. 

-ABB is NOT a regular old vacation rental. There is such a vast diversity of spaces-- from the professionally managed caravan in a beach town to the spare bedroom in an urban apartment shared with the owner. Guests need to really understand the rules of the spaces they rent. They may fall in love with a listing but be unpleasantly surprised that they cannot treat it like a hotel or commercially available vacation rental chain. Hosts set boundaries based on what they are comfortable allowing in their own homes. Because these ARE people's HOMES in many cases. Rules in each space will be different and may differ still from that hotel you stayed in or beach cottage you rented from Craigslist.

-Extra guests are not cool. Again, these spaces are not a free for all. There are guest limits in place. When booking, guests should be very clear on the max capacity of each home. Hosts typically do not allow exceptions nor should a guest assume they will be okay if they are within one or two people of the max. Kids are included in these counts. 

-Visitors may or may not be cool. There are liability issues in place. Guests might love to have family over for dinner but again, they need to be 1000% sure the is okay with the host. Guests should never assume that the space can be opened to anyone who is not on the reservation.

- Leaving the place a big mess is never okay. Airbnb is not a hotel. Yes, you pay a cleaning fee, but that doesn't give guests the okay to leave lots of trash, spills, odors, pet waste, etc.  Wipe up that soda that you knocked over. Take the trash out. Don't cook fish and leave the container inside.

-Ratings are serious. Hosts depend on good ratings for income and to stay on the site. If you have a problem try to resolve it with the host instead of airing your grievance in the rating. Understand that ABB sees anything less than a 5 as a host's failure whereas guests can have very poor ratings and still continue to book.

- Some hosts are selective. Your booking request may be rejected if it is clear that you don't understand or seem to respect the terms in the listing. Do not automatically assume because you have sent a request it will be accepted. Your communication is very important. If the host asks for certain information, include that in your message. Put yourself in a host's shoes-- would you welcome someone into your home who didn't even have the time to read what will make them a great guest?

- Pets are not welcome unless the host says it explicitly. Do not assume that your tiny dog, cat, goldfish or bird will go unnoticed. Pet-friendly listings will STATE that. You can filter for places that allow pets. Don't try to convince a host that your pet is special if they don't take pets. Move on to another listing. Understand that even if a listing is pet friendly, there may be limits on the number of pets or sizes/breeds etc. You may also incur pet fees. You will always be expected to clean up after your pets and monitor their behavior.

- Parties are not welcome unless the listing is "suitable for events." The vast majority of ABB spaces reject parties vehemently. You can absolutely expect a poor review if you use an ABB as a party and it is not allowed. You should also be prepared for charges for damages and extra cleaning. 

-Anyone who is not staying in the space can't book on your behalf. Even if you are a mom trying to surprise her daughter by gifting a honeymoon stay,  you can't book if you are not staying. This is called third-party booking. In addition to having implications for insurance, hosts do not want to give access information to anyone who is not paying to be in the space. ABB can make a great getaway gift IF you are also going on the getaway. If not, you should not be booking.

What else would you add?

[Sarah977]

@Laura2592 

After you check out and go to leave a review, be aware that what you are reviewing is the host and the property.

A guest's failure to read the information the host provided is not relevant to the ratings and review you leave.

If you didn't properly follow the check-in instructions the host sent, and therefore had a hard time getting in, that doesn't warrant a lower star rating on "Check-in".

If you decided to follow Google maps instead of the host's directions, and ended up lost or stuck in heavy traffic, that isn't something to grade the host on. 

If you expected a full kitchen because you didn't bother to read that there is only a microwave and an electric kettle, you can't mark the host down on Amenities.

If you booked a place that said it was 4 blocks from the beach, you can't give a low Location rating just because you wished it had been oceanfront.

Hosts are responsible for providing what they say they provide, and being responsive to guest's questions or legitimate issues. Guests must take responsibilty for anything that they failed to inform themselves of or were inattentive to, not factor that in when reviewing.

And it is not acceptable to leave bad revenge reviews because you were called out or asked to leave for breaking or blatantly ignoring the house rules. That is extremely rude and childish.

[James2566]

You nailed it. A lot of the guest experience could improve if they just read the listing, the rules and the instructions. 

The pandemic revealed to me how few people read listings and only book based on photos when they message me asking if they can quarantine here (the first sentence of the listing literally says “Not a quarantine facility”.

I’m able to spot people who don’t read now and they make me nervous. They’re the ones who will have their taxi driver CALL me frantically cause they didn’t read directions which say “This address does NOT appear on GPS devices”. The non readers are the ones you have to be on call about the whole stay. 

Sometimes they’re worse than messy guests cause the whole first 24 hours they’re blowing up your phone usually with endless “Found it!” messages. You know the ones who walk in and text what’s the wifi code before noticing it’s right on the counter beside front door, with the welcome package. 

I need a break 😂 

[Sarah977]

@James2566  It's the "just Google it" mentality. People used to have to read, ask questions, and do real research to familiarize themselves with something. Now they just type it into a search engine and they get pages of answers. So they are mentally lazy. They would rather google you (as in call you at 1am to ask where the hair dryer is) than open a few drawers and look around or, god forbid, actually read the house manual.

And the age of the internet, texting, etc. has also lessened people's attention spans. Being presented with constantly changing images leads them to find any other type of presentation boring, therefore they immediately lose interest. 

And if the way you are used to communicating is in 5 word, acronym-laden texts, reading anything longer than that becomes challenging.

I used to see this even before the high tech age we live in. I never had a TV in my house. My kids had tons of board games, puzzles, art supplies, books. One of their favorite things was for me to put on a story tape (back in the old cassette tape days), and they would draw or paint while listening to the story. They could do this for hours.

I could always tell which of their friends were kids who spent most of their time parked in front of the TV. Those kids got antsy and bored with the story tape/doing art activity within about 5 minutes. 

[Pat271]

@Sarah977  

And the age of the internet, texting, etc. has also lessened people's attention spans. Being presented with constantly changing images leads them to find any other type of presentation boring, therefore they immediately lose interest. 

---

So true! I almost feel like I have to keep things at 140-character Twitter length, and to break up paragraphs so that each one has at most 1 or 2 sentences.

Also, even in person one-on-one, I will start to say something, and you can see the eyes start to wander around the room within 5-10 seconds. I used to think it was me, but I’m pretty sure that being online excessively has disturbed people’s ability to focus for any length of time.

I find this a disturbing trend. There are times in life when you really need to focus.  Like when  driving a car, for instance.

[James2566]

Don’t move furniture around. If the furniture layout doesn’t suit you, stay somewhere else. 

Understand that moving furniture is a two person job. My housekeeper cannot move furniture back into place alone. If I need to come in to help her, or call someone to help, you’re gonna pay for that person’s time. 

Sun loungers should also be put back in place, this isn’t a resort with strong maintenance crew to sort out the poolside furnishings and umbrellas. 

[Edith158]

When I first discovered ABB as a guest, I was thrilled to find a non-traditional accommodation in a neighborhood. I loved the idea of living like a local and I found it enormously appealing. But I would like guests to understand that this includes the quirks of any neighborhood. Water mains break, internet can vary, neighbors WILL be mowing their lawns/building decks, neighborly relations MUST be honored, parking restrictions must be respected,  unnecessary noise is unacceptable, etc. In addition to what everyone else wrote!

[Anonymous]

@Edith158   Excellent point!  For Airbnb corporate, "live like a local" is just a marketing slogan. But for hosts, it's a plea. 

Locals have to work in the morning.

Locals don't care that it's your birthday; they still have to work in the morning.

Locals come in races, classes, and living conditions you might not be used to, and that doesn't make them any more "sketchy" than you might seem to them as an unfamiliar outsider.

Locals aren't here for your entertainment. Unless you've hired them for it. Somewhere outside of the Airbnb.

[Imelda2]

You said it all. Very well said. Much appreciated 😌

[Jenny838]

If a listings states that a property is not suitable for infants or children... do not ask to bring your children, or just bring them and expect it to be safe for the kids and okay with the host. 

[Christine615]

Great post. Airbnb should invest as much in training guests as it does setting "standards" for hosts forced to take them. I am not a cheap hotel alternative for people wanting to split the cost 10 ways. Nope.

[Chuck155]

@Laura2592   Please consider adding guest traveling with pets must provide host with proof of current vaccines, treatment for flea and ticks as well as a copy of the rabies certificate.

[Anonymous]

@Chuck155  Woooah that sounds pretty unusual for an Airbnb. Definitely not something I've ever encountered from a rental that claims to be "pet friendly."  Not sure how it is where you live, but everywhere I've ever been with a pet, pre-emptive flea/tick treatment is optional and not universally advised for all animals.

[Sarah977]

@Chuck155  I don't generally travel with my dog, but she's 13 years old and has allergies to commercial flea and tick treatments. I use natural things like tea tree oil spray and tea tree oil in the dog shampoo. So no way would she ever have a "treatment" with some kind of documentation.