Help with review

[Lenore22]

I would like help crafting a review for a guest please. I am a newer host, so please be gentle with me. 

This guest has only 1 review: a stellar, glowing review from a stay with his family, in which they left the place spotless.

For my part, this guest made a reservation for 4 guests and didn't respond to my request for more details on his party until 3 days before check-in, when I ask to verify guest #s. At that point he said it would be 7-8 guests, so I changed the reservation to 8 guests (which increased the 2-night stay by 30%). He said he wasn't sure they would be ok with me "changing the price on them." He said he'd need to check with his friends.

I said fine- I'd rather they find a good fit and have a flexible cancellation policy, so he's welcome to find a more suitable place.

He got back to me saying 1 guest got covid-19, the other couple was afraid of covid-19 so there would only be 4 of them. Ok- fair enough. Changed it back to 4.

So, it looks like he shows up with 4. Then a 5th person shows up in another car after 10pm. I also see them smoking out on our balcony despite our "no smoking anywhere on the property" signs & rules. 

I message him, congratulating him that his friend was able to join after all and changing the reservation to 5 guests. He accepts the alteration and ends up communicating great from that point forward - getting local recommendations for hikes, etc.

I don't mention the smoking because honestly, I'd prefer they smoke outside than inside and they did leave the place clean. And  the cleaner says it doesn't smell like smoke. But it looks like I miscounted and he actually had 6 guests total, which he never mentioned.

My problem is I want to prepare hosts: they were not perfect guests, but they are fine for *some* hosts and I struggle to navigate Airbnb's overinflated rating system.

I'm thinking:

Communication: 5 stars,

cleanliness: 5 stars,

rules: 3.

Overall: 4 stars?

Suggestions for text? What do future hosts need to know, while still acknowledging they were generally respectful good guests?

Thank you for your guidance.

[Sarah977 · Accepted solution]

How do you see not responding to your request for more details until 3 days before check-in, and failing to inform you of 2 extra guests, when by that point he was well aware of charges for extra guests, as 5* communication? 

As you describe this booking, I can't agree that it would be "fine" for some hosts. Unaccounted for guests, smoking in violation of your numerous signs saying no smoking anywhere, and untimely responses to messages aren't things most hosts would be okay with nor consider to be respectful. 

You don't mention if they left the place clean. If they did:

"While XX was quite personable, and his group left the property clean and tidy, the no-smoking anywhere on the property rules were ignored (smoking was done outside and there was no odor indoors, though) and guests beyond the number indicated on the booking stayed. One extra was paid for but only because I saw another guest had arrived and contacted XX. Future hosts should make sure that this guest has read and is willing to respect the house rules, and understands that all guests must be accounted for when booking or the host notified if the guest count changes".

[Lenore22]

@Sarah977 thank you. That is very helpful!

[Lenore22]

Here is what I'm considering:
Cleanliness: 5
Rules: 3
Communication: 3
Overall: 4

XXX & friends left the house very clean, but had more guests staying (6+) than booked (4) even after confirmation on app. He acknowledged an (1) extra guest when questioned (I couldn't be sure at the time how many) and accepted the price difference without incident. Smoked outside despite rules of no smoking on the property at all. That being said, the house did not smell like smoke and they were otherwise respectful and left the house spotless.

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Lenore22 

If it were me, I'd give a 1 (or 2) for rules and overall a 3. 

[Sarah977]

@Lenore22  You had said that you saw a 5th guest arrive who you got the booker to pay for but when you inspected the unit after check-out it appeared more had stayed. How did you determine that? Bedding set up on the sofa or something? If you don't have proof that more than 5 stayed, (i.e. saw them all on camera or with your own eyes), you probably shouldn't state that as fact. 

[Lenore22]

The cameras picked up 6 people on the balcony at the same time (smoking) and the next day the front door picked up someone who was not familiar with how to enter using the keypad (the others had all been present trying to figure it out at arrival), so there could have been 7.

[Sarah977]

@Lenore22  Okay, well that sounds like proof, then.