Can we block guests from coming again?

[Donald28]

Honestly, there's some guests that I wouldn't want to stay in my airbnb again. They always say... "we'll be back when we are in the area". BUt, some people just aren't a good fit. Especially, the ones who leave bad feedback and less than 5 stars. Why would they want to come back and why would we as hosts want them back to leave us another less than great review? 

Airbnb really pushes hosts to use instant book but that feature leaves hosts with zero ability to prescreen guests. 

Is there a way to block people from instant booking? If there isn't, there should be. 

[Francoise113]

I was able to block someone today by going to the actual reservation and reporting the profile from the link on that page. 

[Janice146]

Does anyone know what happens when you block someone on there end. I just had a guest stay for the second time. They say nice things leave a nice written review and 5 stars in all categories but 4 stars over all. They did this both times they stayed. It’s not worth it for me. I don’t want them back.  They are nice people though. I don’t want it to be obvious that they were blocked.  

[Sarah977]

@Janice146  Do you explain to your guests how a 4* review affects hosts? Because if you don't, you can't fault the guests- Airbnb tells guests that 4*s means Good, they think they are leaving a good review, they have no idea that a 4* overall can lead you to lose Superhost or even get delisted. If you explain it to them and they still leave 4*s, that's another story. 

But I would never block a guest who was simply unaware. And they don't get aware unless hosts explain it. It's not their fault that Airbnb leads them to believe they're giving a good star rating. Most guests, especially someone who wants to come back, have no desire to harm the host.

 One of the first guests I explained the rating system from the host's end to, was a super great gal who had stayed at lots of Airbnbs. She said "OMG, seriously? I feel terrible now- I gave my last two stays a 4* Overall, and the places were fine and the hosts were nice, I'd definitely stay there again, I had no idea! Why does Airbnb lie to guests?  They tell us 4* means good, then they punish you guys for it?"

[Janice146]

I need to find a graceful way to educate people. Or add a blurb in my guest book or something. It feels like I’m just begging for 5 stars. Which I guess I am...  feels tacky, but until they figure out how to fix this system, the. I guess that is what we need to do. 

Thanks so much for taking the time to write back. 

[Betsy60]

Just don't use Instant Booking no matter how much Airbnb pushes it...life was so much better (and booking-controllable) when I ignored their pleas to turn IB back on. And the world didn't come to an end!

[Sarah977]

@Betsy60  I've never used IB from the start of hosting almost 3 years ago. And I've had consistently great guests.

[Betsy60]

Me too Sarah...also, if you forget to block an important date, like stupid me for my first grandchild’s due date, it’s just an inquiry. You accept or politely decline. No big deal, no getting nervous about it. (Sorry, can’t seem to turn off bold text)

[Alice595]

@Betsy60 I am not sure how much you can do without turning Instant Booking on because what you get is a first name with a few reviews when a booking request comes.

I have Instant Booking on. When there is a guest with bad reviews, it automatically send me a request for approval instead of automatically approve. Then, I don't have to go through the hassle to message the guests back and forth. Some guests may not have Airbnb app access all the time.

[Sarah977]

@Alice595  Never used IB and I don't consider messaging back and forth with guests to be a "hassle". I consider it part of my hosting business and it gives me a good idea about what to expect in terms of what kind of person and guest this will be. I've read so many stories here about guests who managed to comply with the IB criteria the host had set and then turned out to be horrible guests. 

[Peter1154]

How do you arrange getting a request for approval when  you have instant book on??

[Pete69]

Have you really put InstantBook to the test? Are you really missing out on business or that much business? 

I gave up on InstantBook on day one when I had a guest book with their wife's Airbnb account. She wasn't going to be staying and her place of residence was  thousands of miles from the husband's place of residence. It was a total headache trying to get that all straightened out with Airbnb.

[Alice595]

@Pete69 I have accepted requests from a wife who booked for her husband and vice versa, and daughter booked for her father. It actually turned out all good. After instant booking was confirmed in this case, I just sent message to the account holder to get the guests information.

If they do not provide you with the information you need, you could cancel the instant booking without penalty.

[Elizabeth1152]

Thanks so much for this thread!  Airbnb - if you are listening PLEASE put in a block feature.  I just tried calling Airbnb Superhost hotline and they told me to follow these instructions but they don't work!  Every so often I have a guest that I don't want to host again.  While they didn't break any house rules, perhaps they were unfriendly, put the AC/Heat very high or very low, or left my place messier than normal.  I would like to simply not have the option of them booking again.  I don't want to get rid of instant book - 99% of my guests are awesome and I don't want to loose business!  I think there is a glitch in the platform because these instructions don't work.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2020/how-do-i-report-a-message-or-block-someone-on-airbnb

[Josh9]

Same here! I think they must have removed the block option (tried it 6/20/19). Or maybe (hoping) they just block the person automatically.

[Air-Hospitality1]

block feature simply no longer an option...