Eating on beds

[Julie4249]

I am new to hosting.  We have hosted 5 separate guests.    2 out of the 5 have ate all over the beds, this last one, their child peed and they remade the bed to cover it up.  I have currently washed the comforter 2 times and dried it and there are still stains on it from the greasy food they ate and wiped ALL over it.  I have 4 beds I have to wash because of this.  (Obviously it is washed everytime, but I hope you follow!)  This is time consuming and hard on the bedding and my washer.  We have a studio so two beds are right next to the table!  Is it unreasonable to put not to eat on the beds?  If I have to replace the comforters, is that a claim I can send to Air bnb for them to get from the guest?

[Mary996]

@Pablo629 so pleased to hear this. But perhaps as Andrew suggested the Guest agreed to this sum? Its good news though. Honourable people. Well done! 

[Pablo629]

@Mary996  I've heard that, but its an additional option, anyway if guest dont want to pay, the case is analysed by 3rd party airbnb for final  decition, and thats the point where maybe its easier to take money from deposit than doing papers with insurance.

it worked for me, so my best suggestion than doing nothing.

warm regards

[Mary996]

What a gorgeous space!

And its huge.

What I would do would be to remove the TV altogether... Hate the anti social things(!!) OR instead (if considered vital.. Are they vital? We attract thoughtful people by not having a TV)... install on mounting in the kitchen where it cant be viewed from the beds.

Maybe some screening between beds and table might help? And proper comfortable dining chairs?

Or as suggested sofabeds which fold up easily xxx It is a lovely place. 

[Colleen253]

@Julie4249 You’ve gotten great advice. 

On another note, you are listed as pet friendly but have the clarification in your rules “Only service pets with documentation are allowed to stay” (note that service animals aren’t ‘pets’) Since you’re “pet friendly”, guests can and will bring pets. You should familiarize yourself with Airbnb’s assistance animal policy, because your rule isn’t in line with it. 

https://www.airbnb.ca/help/article/1869/assistance-animals

[Julie4249]

Thank you for that information.

[Sarah977]

@Julie4249  Another thing that's at odds between your house rules and your description wording is you have No parties or events (which is definitely important) but in the beginning of your description you say "great for bridal parties." 

[Julie4249]

Our Air BNB started out of a need for lodging for our Bridal parties, which is what people in the wedding are called, for our wedding venue on site.  

[Sarah977]

@Julie4249  Okay, I understand that. But any invitational mention of "parties" on Airbnb isn't a good idea. It would be better to refer to them as "Wedding participants" or something like that. 

It seems that you live onsite? If so, you likely wouldn't have problems with guests throwing wild, destructive, parties, but if such a thing were to occur, and you looked Airbnb for assistance, they would focus on the word "party" and take the tack that "Well, you allow these parties, so what do you expect".

[Mary996]

@Julie4249 'wedding participants'  seems a great description....and perhaps will help to signpost the specific guests who you wish to serve in the main? ( "Our private wedding attendees") Or some other description which accounts for the layout for a larger number but who you will have communicated with separately to Airbnb guests with differing expectations. 

[Anonymous]

@Julie4249  I don't find that Airbnb is a good platform for homes that are meant to be offered specifically in conjunction with a whole other thing that's not on Airbnb. It delivers more bookings than a lot of its competitors, but if your home isn't optimized for the diverse array of other purposes those guests will have for the space, you'll find yourself constantly bemoaning the state they've left your home in and making the tough choice between eating the damage costs and accepting damaging ratings and reviews.

If you're OK with that, I guess you need no further advice 🙂

[Colleen253]

@Julie4249 The concern is that you run an increased risk of having your listing suspended if your description contains mention of 'party or event'.  

https://news.airbnb.com/airbnb-announces-global-party-ban/

[Mary996]

Aha...!! How wonderful @Julie4249 that you can offer such a facility to your Bridal Guests. Perhaps for those groups your arrangements might be suitable? But with sofa beds that fold up instead of the two large doubles?

But that you otherwise advertise on Airbnb as 2 doubles... in the bedroom (revealing the sofa beds off the kitchen only to your bridal guests...???) as these folks might be more respectful perhaps being the equivalent of a private party?? 

[Laura2592]

@Julie4249 I am honestly confused by this listing. 

You have a lovely space but beds in what should be a living room. No wonder people are snacking on your comforters. It reminds me of a restaurant I went to where there were 2 toilets with no stall or divider in the ladies room. If you want to maintain an upscale feel for what looks to be a space finished to high standards, you need to stop trying to shoehorn guests in and give them a more typical living space to relax in.

Please re-think your capacity. Put one king bed in the bedroom

 and (if you must) a nice sleeper sofa in the living room. Limit capacity to 4 and keep your pricing the same. This thread might help you:

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/New-to-Hosting/Headcount-How-many-guests-do-you-want-in-your-spa...

[Anonymous]

@Laura2592  Strangely, I was also at a restaurant once where the men's room had a dining table and two chairs just sitting there in the corner, facing the toilet. I'm sure it was just an unconventional solution to a storage problem, but the rest of the meal I couldn't help but think:

"Where would they have seated us if we didn't have a reservation?"

[Laura2592]

@Anonymous My thoughts went to two places when I saw the double toilet action:

- This does not speak well of the cuisine if one needs to avail themselves of more than one toilet at a time; and

-The Love Toilet sketch from SNL.

Neither mental image enhanced my dining experience.