Guest Hosting a Yoga Retreat for her business at my Airbnb House

[Jordan152]

I have an upcoming guest that is booked for a stay over NYE weekend. Her initial message to me was:

"I can't wait to stay at your space for a long NYE detox weekend with my group. We are coming to have a quiet holiday retreat without the booze and noise that comes with NYE. Your space looks lovely."

I did some research and I see she is charging  her group members $300-$620 for the weekend depending on what type of sleeping arrangements they prefer. During the weekend, she is teaching yoga classes, meditation classes, teaching the group how to cook plant-based meals, etc but also charging them to stay at my house at the rates above.

Sounds like a real good time : ) My wife and I aren't sure how to feel about this. On one hand, this sounds like a pretty ideal group to have at your house for New Years Eve (no drinking, partying, etc). But we are bothered that she wasn't 100% truthful in her intentions and I am assuming this is illegal to use a residential house for commercial use like this?

Has anyone else dealt with something like this before? Any advice on how to approach this with this guest?

[Emiel1]

@Jordan152,

I don'tknow  if it is illegal to use a airbnb accommodation for a commercial activity, but it is clear they are not the average guests. She booked a house and is charging the other guests a certain amount. I think this amount should be the same as what guests normally would pay per person, without profit.

Charging the guest for the lessons etc. is another topic, it is her business. But if she also acts like some agent, "re-pricing" your accomodation for her clients is IMO not in line with Airbnb standards.

[Jordan152]

Thanks for your reply Emiel, appreicate your insight!

[Kath9]

@Jordan152, interesting situation! I don't know either whether it is illegal or against Airbnb policy to do this. Presumably the $300-$620 cost is for the entire package, so it is difficult to say what proportion of this is for the accommodation and what proportion for the classes etc. I guess if they are not breaching your house rules, it should be OK (would this be considered an 'event'?). But she should have been up front with you about her intentions - that would have been the right thing to do.

[Jordan152]

Thanks for your reply Kath!

[Susan151]

For me this would be an event. I would require that she have an insurance policy with you or your LLC as the beneficiary. She would need to prove that she is fully insured in case one of her people gets injured while doing the activities she has planned, etc. etc. etc.

[Jordan152]

Good point Susan. I am going to call my insurance broker now.

[Susan151]

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@Jordan152 wrote:

Good point Susan. I am going to call my insurance broker now.

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The BOOKER should provide the insurance; not you. And you should be the beneficiary of those policies. This is standard practice for groups that book for events.

[Jordan152]

Agree Susan, I also want to run this past my broker as well for his insight. Defintely a unique strange situation. 

[Helen56]

Your house rules say no parties or events, this sounds like an event to me.  I hope you had increased your prices for NYE... looks like she will make a lot of money!

Now you need to organise a yoga retreat, charge the same and hire a teacher.....

[Jordan152]

Haha, great idea Helen!

[Suzanne302]

I agree with everyone else. The liability would be the biggest issue for me. This is not simply a group of friends as she is charging people to come to your property. There really needs to be some sort of insurance policy or you could be held liable if something happens to one of the participants.

[Jordan152]

I will defintely ask her for a copy of her insurance policy Suzanne, good idea.

[Linda-And-Richard0]

Your listing sleeps 14.  Do you increase the nightly rate according to the number of persons in the group?  And yep, this sounds like an event. 

[Jordan152]

I don't increase the rate depending on guest head count but will consider in the future. She did however list this event to host up to 25 people!