Basic essentials

[Davide665]

Do you think a good host in a [luxury] property should provide basic things like toilet paper, bin bags and possibly clothes washing powder (assuming machine is included). When I go to a hotel, I don’t expect to provide those things so why shouldn’t a host expect to provide (and factor the expense in the rental price)? I am not expecting something for nothing but rather wondering if an AirBnB holiday experience should be like a hotel or like a bare bones type experience.

[Davide665]

Thanks - I think from all the replies I have hit on the nub of the issue - is it more like a hotel style hospitality service or is it a more basic service. @Michael5047lists the essentials for the first few days and then you have to go and buy - it seems that is the “Good” standard for AirBnb hosts. From a renters perspective I think that is not good enough and I think there should be a hotel level supply for these sorts of things - i am renting for 2 weeks and have to go and buy a load of essentials - it’s not the money as it’s only about $20~30 but its more about a sense of feeling on holiday or in a serviced home rather than just like being at home. So that is my suggestion to the hosts reading 😀

[Anonymous]

@Davide665  My suggestion to fellow travelers is that if you need hotel-style services to feel like you're on holiday, you should stay in a hotel. 

I don't mean that just to be snarky - for that "serviced" experience, hotels are a legitimately better choice. Home rentals occupy a totally different niche, and they're a better fit for travelers whose idea of a holiday is more about experiencing the destination than receiving service. Airbnb's motto used to be "Live like a local," so making guests feel like they're just at home is actually baked into the hospitality style. If I'm staying somewhere for 2 weeks, I know I'm going to be making a lot of trips to the local shops to pick up food and supplies anyway, so what's the big deal if I also restock toilet paper and bin bags while I'm there?

[Ted307]

Hi @Davide665 

Even though our maximum stay is 14 days, I might not have stocked as much of these things as some guests consume. I tend not to have more than 4 rolls of TP in the bathroom, for example. Since I live on the property, guests could ask for more if they run out. I used to keep all the supplies I needed stored in our bunkhouse kitchen and bathroom, but there have been times when a weekend guest has taken all the provided supplies home with them, even the cleaning supplies and trash bags under the kitchen sink. So, I no longer stock more than I think they ought to use in the time they are with us. It also caused us to have to raise our rates, and since we charge more now, our supplies have stopped walking away.

I find that our guests who stay 2 weeks have not asked for more supplies. I have offered to change the bedding and towels after 1 week, and never has a guest taken me up on my offer of this service. It seems that the majority of our guests like to shop for the products they prefer, and want privacy and independence instead of full service. Every host is different in these areas, but you might prefer to spend your 2 weeks at an all-inclusive resort than in our humble bunkhouse.