Guest asking us to cancel another guests reservation

[Lauren3569]

We have a guest that is staying for 7 nights and just asked to extend their stay for another 8 nights.  The issue is we had somebody else book a 2 night stay as soon as the first guest's original stay ends.  The guest in the house right now asked us to cancel the other person's reservation so they could stay the additional 8 nights.  How do we handle this situation? 

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Lauren3569 

Ouch! How tempting, right?

I would thank the current guest for loving our home, and offer to assist them in getting a 2 night stay  locally while honoring the incoming guest. The current guest could then return for six of the eight nights they requested. I would not cancel the incoming guest.

[Joelle43]

Hello @Lauren3569 

I would definitely not cancel because:

a) You will get fined by Airbnb for cancelling your incoming guests and your ratings will be hard hit

b) Your dates will be blocked so the one who wants to extend wouldn't be able to book through Airbnb anyway

Good advice from @Lauren3569 

All the best

Joëlle

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Lauren3569 You have to take the rough with the smooth. To let down your 2 night guest would be really unfair to them and I would go so far as to say you should be removed from the platform if you do so. 

But putting ethical considerations to one side the current guest would need to extend their stay off-platform which opens you to risk as Aircover would be invalidated for the whole stay.

[Helen3]

By letting the guest who wants to extend know it would be unfair to the guest who booked the two night stay in good faith to cancel and that Airbnb would impose financial and other penalties on you.

say they can.book the other nights with you and find another listing for the two nights should they wish @Lauren3569 

[John5097]

@Lauren3569 Thank them for asking and you wish there was more flexibility, but that Airbnb is very strict and only guest can cancel reservations. That your listing would be at risk of being removed from the platform if you canceled a guest reservation. Don't even consider it or worry about what guest thinks. They always understand.  You also don't know if the guest who wants to extend their stay will also cancel. There is already enough stress hosting, I wouldn't make more. 

[Lauren3569 · Accepted solution]

Thank you all for your responses!  We extended the current guest 1 night so they now checkout the morning of the 2 night guests' check in.  New guest will check in in the afternoon.  We informed the current guest of the airbnb policies about canceling.  We told them we would welcome them back after the other 2 night stay.