Pack n play crib - do you provide sheets, extra mattress?

[Susan1188]

Hello all, 

Do you provide an additional mattress for your pack-n-play bed?  Or do you use just the mat that is provided to wrap the travel bed in?

Do you provide sheets?

I do not want to provide either, for hygiene reasons and for safety/liability reasons. 

I want guest to bring own sheets for the baby.  And I never even thought about providing an extra cushion.  Until today a guest was surprised that our pack and play bed was provided without an additional softer crib mattress.

Is a guest justified for getting furious,  because I did not have an extra cushion on hand?  He demanded I deliver one immediately. 

I'm a Mom of 2 grown kids and I remember it was not recommended as safe to add soft mattresses for babies to sleep on?

And when travelling, my kids always slept on the travel bed mat which is indeed quite hard but this never bothered them or any of my other guests.

What do you think?

[Susan1188]

@Colleen253 

I'm learning a lot from this thread!  Here is what I discovered if anyone is interested and please correct me if I got anything wrong.

So I just went searching my area as if I were a guest travelling with a baby.

First off: you cannot filter for "crib" or "pack n play" or any other baby equipment when you are searching for a property.  You have to click on the individual property and then find the amenities and then scroll down to see if they have a crib.

I am relatively sure most guests will not do this.

Proof: people coming with children do systematically ask me "do you have a crib" every time.

Second:  I did a search for 2 people + infant.

Airbnb proposed to me in the top of the search results, 2 apartments with NO family amenities.  No crib (!!).  

Therefore, the fact that I put "pack n play" in the amenities has no impact on who my listing is being shown to.

Airbnb is proposing to people travelling with an infant, properties that have "no children" clicked, and no family amenities, in the top results.

Third: trip request and your IB message

This was an eye opener to me.  In my IB message I clearly state if you are coming with children, do not instant book we must have a discussion first.

=> Since he was booking within my advance notice window, his instant book becomes a "trip request" which I can accept or refuse.

=> Since it is a "trip request", it seems the guest is *not* shown the IB message!  And I think this might also be the case if you send a special offer, or pre-approve the guest!  Maybe someone can confirm this. Airbnb considers that you had time to vet/chat with the guest and therefore does not show your IB message? True?

I have now put into my quick replies, a replica of my IB message that I will now manually send whenever I get a trip request or make a special offer or pre-approval.

My error here was managing expectations and not specifying exactly what I had on hand, especially for a new young father of a 4 month old. 

When I get a last minute hasty booking, I know that there is very limited volume of information the guest will pay attention to. And my focus was getting agreement on the check in timing and other house rules such as no smoking.

This booking did have several red flags but  I accepted this guest because of his glowing, prior reviews describing him as "easygoing and gracious".

It's a learning experience every day!

[Colleen253]

@Susan1188 My experience is that you can filter for baby amenities. But to be sure, a pack n play is not a crib. Regardless, if you are fine accepting bookings from guests with infants and children even though you are listed as 'not suitable' for such, then all is good. I was just puzzled by that, especially as it seemed to result in an issue for you. I tend to decline bookings from those who are asking for things outside of the parameters I've set. We all manage our listings differently.

You are correct that the IB message is only shown to IB guests. This is because with IB there is no ability to communicate prior to a booking, such as there is with a request. 

[Emilia42]

@Colleen253Filtering for baby amenities is not an option for me. I was recently looking for an Airbnb with a few friends and one of them has a newborn. I could not filter for a "crib" (even when I indicated an infant in the guest count.) I could filter for a "high chair" which is useless for a newborn. It's wired how we have different filtering options as guests. What is the logic?

[Susan1188]

Thaaank you @Emilia52  !

Perhaps the Airbnb filters depend on the market!  Or "AI" wisdom!
I could not filter for crib or other baby amenities in my market.
So @Colleen253  it seems not everyone's experience is similar like all social media platforms airbnb alters your screen, your view, your filters, depending on your market and perhaps your profile.

I could also not filter for crib or pack-n-play.  I had to drill down into the individual listing to see the amenities (which pretty sure 95 % of guests don't do).

I have the pack-n-play for just this situation, trip request (not inquiry!!! he paid!!!) with an infant for my no child suitable property.  My principle is to not refuse a trip request.  So I have a pack n play.

But thanks to this discussion I might remove it from my amenities list, since now I know people probably can't filter for it and having it on the list is apparently a liability!

[Colleen253]

@Susan1188 “My principle is to not refuse a trip request.”

I’ve been reminded here that we all have different hosting perspectives. My comments were coming from my perspective, which is the exact opposite of yours. Where you refuse no one, I’m selective and am more than happy to refuse one that isn’t a good fit, because they are always going to be problematic enough not to be worth it for me. 

Good discussion and learning comes out of sharing different perspectives. Thanks for letting your thread veer off track a bit so that could happen. 😊

[Helen744]

Helen @744 . No but there is ample time to communicate before they arrive. That is what instant  booking hosts do every day? Cancellations are still possible if it is not a very tight time frame. instant books can be for a month away H

[Sarah977]

@Susan1188  "This booking did have several red flags but  I accepted this guest because of his glowing, prior reviews describing him as "easygoing and gracious".

I guess he's easygoing and gracious as long as everything suits him.

[Laurelle3]

@Susan1188 This topic has brought a lot of interest of for and against. My answer to your question is yes I do provide an extra mattress because when I looked at the Pack and Play/travel cot there was no mattress and the wrap around cover that goes in the base was a thin plastic would be hard for a little one.  I thought I wouldn't like to put my child on it. So looked online and found one which folds up and one side has a plastic cover on oneside for waterproofing for accidents.

When we first listed our cottage was suitable for families and had no travel cot on the listing but was asked twice by families if I had one answered with a no. I then thought about it, priced them, then looked at getting a 2nd hand one. But eventually got one of facebook for free, my thoughts if not good enough I could just put it in the rubbish. But, I was lucky I got one in good condition and gave it a terminal clean as I was a nurse and had worked in childrens ward and everything gets cleaned top to bottom.

The travel cot does add to your cleaning time. When families book with infants I ask them do they want to uses it and then we asemble it for them making sure that it is secure in case of accidents.

Your second question was about supplying sheets, yes I do . I made 2 sets to fit and supply a small pillow with covering. But, I do tell them to bring their special blanket and have (2 in case they happen to forget). not had to use so far.

What the travel cot highlighted to me was what if a child sleeping in the single beds has an accident and would the mattress protector (not fully waterproof) if they wet the bed.

So now I put a dispossable padded waterproof sheet on the travel cot under the sheet and leave a couple of spares. I also put a couple on the single beds and mention to the parents that children get tired while being at the beach and they sometimes get disorientated in different bedroom and could  have accidents.

All the parents have been very considerate and have put them on the bed, left the unused ones intact and not taken them home. To me this is less costive than having to treat the mattress.

I hope these answers help you with your research on the topic of supply a mattress and sheets. Also you could say to the person when booking that the travel cot has the basic mattress supplied by the manufactures and you may need to supply your own mattress along with the sheets and bedding.

I feel that Airbnb want us to upgrade every aspect of accommodation but the more we take on, the time and money, cleaning is added onto the hosts. it was also mentioned that you could refer them to an equipment hire place and it becomes their responsibility.

[Susan1188]

Last minute hasty booking guests cannot be expected to be so organized as to reserve child equipment ahead of time.

In any case we are in a major international resort and no baby equipment rental service will bring you "IMMEDIATELY" what you ask for!  Probably 3 day lead time!
This guest could not have hired baby equipment within 24 hours of arrival, but he could instant book my place without reading the listing.
CQFD as we say in French.

[Susan1188]

@Laurelle3 

Thanks for taking the time to provide such great details!

My niche is "adult couples and adult families" not babies or children as such I provide no special child amenities.  But often new parents flash on my photos, want to book regardless or actually do book like this person without asking first, and don't realize the burden of the new baby and just expect to be able to travel as before!

In this post-covid market in Andalucia Spain, we are handling everything last minute and this guest was clearly already in the vicinity and booking - next day - instant book - travelling with an infant.  It is not possible to hire baby equipment right now on that notice.  Why was he booking within 24 hour arrival with his newborn baby?  Maybe already booked a non-child-friendly place and wanted to change? In my opinion if you are travelling with your 4 month old and looking for same-day or 24 hour last minute discounts you should be prepared to "make do" a tiny little bit with what you find!

Most importantly: My own children were at risk of SIDS and as such we are highly aware of safety recommendations, I would please recommend not providing a *pillow!* in any kind of baby bed.  If parents want to supply their own cushions, toys, pillows that is one thing but I do not believe it is recommended to add anything inside a crib for a baby.  Especially a soft pillow.  

[Sarah977]

@Susan1188  You are correct- there should be no pillows, stuffed toys, etc. in a baby crib for an infant. It's fine once they are older, 6 months old or more,  and can easily push something away from their face that is interfering with their breathing, but there isn't supposed to be anything loose in a bed for a small infant. 

[Ann72]

I have a portacrib at my family listing @Susan1188 and two sets of sheets.  I use this one - https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LVMSU0S/ref=asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 - and I note that while several customers talk about getting an extra mattress, the manufacturer replied with the following:

"For the safety of your child we do not recommend using any after-market mattress or extra soft buntings in our playards. Unlike cribs which have rigid sides, the playard has flexible sides and playard mattresses are specially designed to prevent suffocation. Using a thicker or a different sized mattress/pad may allow a child's head to get between mattress/pad and the side of the playard causing suffocation.  --  Graco Consumer Services"

To be extra safe, I even recommend that guests set them up themselves!  I don't want to be blamed for a collapse or anything like that.

[Susan1188]

Absolutely.  Thanks for this.  My kids were at risk for SIDS and that is what I've always been told.

[Sarah977]

@Ann72  Of course safety instructions are designed to cover a company's butt and account for the fact that many people are ignorant and have no common sense. There isn't anything wrong with a homemade baby mattress if the foam is not thick, is quite firm, and fits snugly. 

But those packnplays, as they have soft sides, aren't designed to be used as cribs for a baby to sleep in all night in the first place. They are really supposed to just be a safe place to put a baby and maybe for them to have a nap, with the parents close by or with a baby monitor next to them so they can hear and see the baby.

[Ann72]

@Sarah977  Of course, but the point is not - never make a mattress - it's - you don't HAVE to make a mattress.  A baby will be perfectly comfortable sleeping on the one provided.  I'm sure you're right about the product's intended use - after all, they call it a playard, not a play crib - but you can't instruct a baby not to fall asleep in a certain location (just as you can't instruct a baby to fall asleep when you need it to!).  So it has to be safe enough to cover that possibility.