Right, thats it! No more two night stays.

[Alexandra199]

In January, February and March the weather isn't great in the UK and for the last few years I have reduced my minimum stay from three nights to two in the belief that it might encourage a few extra bookings. This year, however, I seem to have had lots of problem guests who tend to be two night bookers. I'm pondering 'Why is this?'

Is it just the post pandemic enhanced expectations, or are people just generally more problematic and unfriendly? 

I've had rude guests, guests leaving the cottage in a mess, guests demanding discounts, guests hiding damage, overly sensitive guests, guests leaving less than good reviews, overly critical guests and a large majority seem to be taking up the two night option. I've reverted back to three night minimum now....I just cant take it anymore! Are any of you wonderful lot feeling the same?

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Alexandra199 We have always had a 3 night minimum stay and actually raise this to 7 nights with an enforced Saturday changeover  in the Summer. Anything less is just too much cleaning work let alone the fact that, as you suggest, shorter term guests seem to be more difficult.

[Carly142]

I don't know about the length of stay, but I have noticed guests getting way worse. I echo your concerns in seeing a rise in rude, messy, sensitive, critical, and entitled guests in the past year or so.

[Elaine701]

@Alexandra199 

I've found that guests who pay the least tend to be the most problematic. 

But one or two night stays at a cheap price is hardly worth whatever you can squeeze out of it. All of your preparation costs (laundry, cleaning, your time & energy) are spent on the first night. If your price is already cheap, it's unlikely you'll profit at all. Second night you actually put some money in your pocket. Third night, more ... And... And... 

In my case, summer is minimum 7 nights, autumn 5, winter 5, but if bookings are slow, I'll reduce to 3 nights, but only in special cases. 

[Stephanie1933]

@Elaine701 we found that too! Now we have put our house at a high price and if it is empty for a couple of days so be it! 

[Maxine0]

Alexandra199  Alexandra, I hear you. My minimum has always been two nights and very rarely do I encounter the problems you have encountered directly - however, I do acknowledge that behaviours, expectations and sense of entitlement has risen since COVID - whether that's due to travel ban where prior holidays included resort service staff or anger at the world in general but where hosts are easy targets .... who knows - 

I kill 'em with kindness, personalise their stay, make sure they feel welcome in my home and City. I am in Brighton. 

Maybe because it's Brighton we get more laid back, less critical guests ?

Not sure but I try to let everything wash over me or with rude guests, I give them the option to leave immediately - that has only ever happened twice in 8 years hosting.

Hope that helps xx

[Maia29]

@Alexandra199  I feel you. I used to do one night stays and I refuse to do that anymore. The one night stays were often the most problematic. My minimum is 2 days now and it's worked out a lot better for me, and it's a lot less stressful.

[Christine615]

I raised my rates, charge extra for each person over 2 people and went to 2 night minimums. Much better experience. Less cleaning. 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

We always had 2 nights min but this year I set min 7 nights and max 14 nights and longer on request. It is off-season now but I've earned more this way than with a few short stays in previous years. There are fewer tourists but more digital nomads, and those who come to town for business or school, or hospital treatment. They often book through Fb and directly so I can give them some discount and take security deposits which is great.

I've noticed a long time ago that guests who arrive unhappy (because of their personal problems ) will stay and leave unhappy and their review will be bad.  People are generally unhappy since covid restrictions, they have fewer options to have fun and they stay more indoors, get bored and notice things they wouldn't notice before.

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 @Alexandra199 @Christine615 

I am still happy with one night and 2 night stays. It is less cleaning, more fun, and no  damage to our fragile house. They get just enough of a taste and feel like they want more, so they leave happy, and wanting to return. I'm good with it. 

[Huma0]

@Kitty-and-Creek0 

I get it RE damages, but I'm interested to know how it is less cleaning. Surely, having turnovers every one or two days requires way more cleaning than doing it every 7-14 days, even if the latter requires more hours each time. 

When I used to have a two night minimum I almost never stopped cleaning!

[Mark116]

@Huma0  We get a lot of 2 night stays and they tend to be less cleaning.  Most of those guests don't cook at all, so the stove only needs a quick surface spray.  Some 2 night guests don't even seem to eat or drink anything, so often there are no dishes used and no food or leftovers, hardly any trash. Cleaning after most 2 night stays is basically cleaning an already clean space, so it only requires a light touch on everything.  Very different than if people stayed for a week and cooked/ate in the apartment frequently.

I have considered raising the minimum to 3 nights, but that would mean the weekend guests would need to take off at least one day of work, and I'm not sure how that would impact bookings. 

[Huma0]

@Mark116 @good points. Yes, for sure it's true that guests who aren't cooking cause far less mess in the kitchen area. They also have less of a chance to 'settle in' and overtake the space and are more likely to out and about. However, I also used to have lots of two night stays where the guests did cook and used every amenity they could. Travellers in Europe were often on longer trips but city hopping so they still wanted to cook (to save money I guess) and would often arrive with one or even several loads of dirty laundry they wanted to wash.

@Elaine701  Yes, I always clean the space thoroughly after each stay no matter how clean the guests seem to have been. That means dusting every surface, polishing every mirror, cleaning under the beds etc. etc. And then there is the laundry and making up of beds which, for me at least, was the most time consuming part. It also requires more resources = more money.

I have hosted hundreds of short stays. I actually started with a one night minimum and then quickly switched to two nights when I realised it simply wasn't cost or time effective to have guests stay for just a night. However, it really turned into a full on job, especially as I couldn't find decent cleaners at the time so was doing everything myself. Add to that a job where I frequently had to travel and no co-host, and it just became untenable. I very intentionally switched from that to long term hosting. There are definitely pros and cons to both though.

@Kitty-and-Creek0 Yes, I get the appeal of the one night stay where guests are barely in the space, but you still have to do all the laundry and cleaning anyway. With the prices I charge (my listings are of course only private rooms in my own house), it just wasn't worth it.

[Elaine701]

@Huma0 

I don't know either. Obviously, particularly messy guests require more cleaning, but even when they're really clean, we still have to go through everything and make sure there's no dirty or poorly cleaned dishes in the cupboards (it happens often, even with clean guests) and of course, there's sanitizing and laundry - bedding, towels, etc. 

We need to do this whether the guest stays 1 night or 20. And especially in the low season when prices are lower, doing this every day or two would be intolerable. It just wouldn't be worth the money. 

But then, it's expectable that hosts in some regions and circumstances wouldn't get 3 or 5 day bookings and would otherwise sit empty. Still, you don't know this until you try. If you're just assuming you wouldn't get bookings, then you might give it a shot. You might be surprised. 

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Huma0 

An overnight is fewer hours here, less opportunity to settle in. Spills and stains don't have a chance to thoroughly dry and penetrate. Same theory as fewer guests is less of a mess, less wear and tear. I do the same deep cleaning after every stay, it just seems easier. It is harder on the bedding of course, as I am washing it constantly.