Questions to ask to avoid parties before accepting a booking request?

[Teresa2271]

Hi everyone. I have a big house with a pool on Cape Cod that seems to attract many "girls weekends." Several have been bachelorette related.  I don't have instant booking, and always respond to their request with the below:

"Hi [Name], thank you for reaching out about your upcoming Bachelorette weekend! We're excited to potentially host you and your family and friends. However, I just wanted to share some past experiences we've had with Bachelorette parties to ensure we're a good fit for your group and our neighbors. Our neighborhood is a quiet, upscale residential area, and we've had some issues in the past with party noise and disturbances that have caused inconvenience to our neighbors. Additionally, we've encountered challenges with glitter, confetti, and extra guests. We want to make sure all our guests have a great time while respecting the property and the neighborhood's tranquility. That said, we'd love for you to freely enjoy the pool, BBQ, and firepit during your stay and keeping noise levels within reason, and enjoy the amenities responsibly. There are many party houses on the Cape, we are not one of them. If this sounds like the type of low key weekend you're looking for, we'd be happy to host you. Let me know if you have any questions and whether this is a good fit for you. I'm happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have."

Usually they respond in detail to the effect that they understand, will respect our policies/property and just want to spend time with each other. I totally support girls weekends because I do the same with my sisters and friends and we don't want wild, crazy parties, we just want time away from our kids/spouses and to chill by the pool. My bachelorette weekend was the same, so I'm a bit more open to allowing these.

With that said, I have a potential guest trying to book and she didn't respond at all, so I told her I was going to decline her invitation (before Airbnb penalizes me for not responding within a suitable time frame) and if she felt that low-key was her style, she could rebook. That same day, she tried to rebook. So I asked her again if she was intending on a low-key trip and her only response was "yes".

I'm not satisfied with that short answer and want to get more out of her before accepting or declining. Any ideas on what else I can ask or say? 

My husband thinks I should very directly state: "no loud parties, no one else on the property that isn't included in the listing, no glitter, confetti or party favors (they have clogged our pool filter in the past), no smoking, no pot, no screaming, no drunkenness, no skinny dipping (it's happened before), absolutely no loud noise whatsoever or we will terminate the agreement immediately." 

I think that's a bit much. Maybe there's a middle ground between his approach and mine? 

Some notes: In the description of the property, I state that we have security cameras around the exterior property (I'll reiterate that when I respond to her) and that we don't allow parties or loud noise.

We've had some great experiences, some comical "the truth is stranger than fiction" experiences and some downright bad experiences with girls weekends. I don't want to penalize the potential good renters because of our experience with bad renters, which have been in the minority. 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[Helen3]

Personally I would make it very clear what you mean exactly by your rules ie no use of swimming pool or outside area after for example 10 pm. Keep noise to a minimum after XX @Teresa2271 

No visitors who are not on the booking are allowed on the property.

No glitter.

If we receive noise complaints from neighbours outside stated quiet hours we may ask Airbnb to cancel the booking.

.

[Teresa2271]

Great advice @Helen3 , thank you!  Will definitely be super clear in my messaging going forward. 

[Kia272]

@Teresa2271  Honestly, for every non-responsive potential guest who doesn't read, there's another guest out there who practices common courtesy, reads, and communicates. I would pass on this guest with no regrets. Somebody else will come along, and/or it's better to have an empty property than a problem guest, who can cost you way more than a weekend of income. 

[Teresa2271]

So true. Thank you @Kia272!

[Emilia42]

@Teresa2271 This guest already has communication issues which is going to make you uneasy and second guess yourself whether or not the weekend goes okay.

I think your message is very clear, informative, and polite. There is no excuse why this guest can not give you the same in return. Pass on this one and wait for another guest who can effectively communicate with you. 

[Elaine701]

@Teresa2271 

I don't think it needs to be quite that complicated. 

We don't allow "parties", unless booked by a professional event manager (not the guest) and directly (not through Airbnb), as the rates will be very different, and the entire event plan must be submitted and approved in advance.

Having said that, what is the definition of a "party"? 

A "party" is when a group of a size substantially beyond the number of guests in the booking engages in a 4+ hour or all night celebration of any kind. 

Guests should be allowed to enjoy themselves. Have a birthday celebration (if that's supportable by your accommodation - noise, neighbours, etc), or even have some friends over for dinner. 

But only the number of guests booked can be allowed to stay the night. Hard rule. Violations are subject to eviction and fines (yes unenforceable, but most guests don't know that). 

Any more than x-number of additional persons on the property at any time (where x is a reasonable number considering the limits of your accommodation, which can be zero or say, 4), is a "party". 

So, your first stop is just to say "parties are prohibited", subject to eviction and fines. End of. Airbnb [should] support you on that one. 

But if it's just the registered guests having a good time, there's not much you can do about that. Yet it's wise to be a bit flexible about them inviting a few over for dinner. As long as it doesn't become a "party", which is prohibited.