Forced into a late check-in

[SandyToes]

I had a guest ask for a late checkout by 6 hrs. well into her stay. I could have easily let them have it gratis because the following day was clear but she kinda rubbed me raw in her 30+emails (never a friendly greeting or proper sign-off and never a thank you, even though I consistently did all of those).

So I decided no more Mr. Nice Guy and said there would be a late checkout fee of $70 (less than half the daily rate at the time) because the housecleaner would have to rearrange her schedule to accommodate it. The gal (sourly) agreed and paid it via PayPal. (ka-ching!)

[konacoconutz]

Push check in back to 1:30??? Cheeky!!!
They just never stop coming up with new ways to annoy us, do they?

[Chris]

@brook2adks

Exactly, this is the point…I’ve been burned so many times when guests tell me their plans, and I tell them the best way to accomplish them , and they totally ignore my advice, because they think they have it all figured out via google maps!

Haha, same here.
Millennials… think they know it all just by searching on the internet.

Guest especially from the US and Canada, have no grasp of distance and time needed to get from A to B around here.
They look on the map, and see 80km/50 miles (in a straight line), when I tell them it takes at least 2,5 hours to get there they laugh and think I am stupid.

[Astaire]

@Brittany_Anderson

How do you ensure that they don’t walk down the wrong hallway and come into my room? How do I ensure they turn off the front light? I have a lockbox I could use- but the check in offers a touchpoint between guest and host which I think is especially important in a shared space situation.

You could leave a dim light switched on in the hallway they must use, along with something similar in their own room, giving instructions they follow that path and turn the lights off. Like a note on their pillow saying Welcome, now please turn hallway lights off!
You could even lock your room from the inside - might need you to install a new latch, so they don’t get into your room.

I operated under the ‘touchpoint’ principle you mention for more than a year but then out of similar necessity implemented the automated setup (which I’ve said I only use in such scenarios) and it’s worked quite well.
So, while I don’t know the exact layout of your place, I’m confident something like this can work and down the line you’ll look back at this and think, or at least I did, ‘why didn’t I think of it before!’

Let us know how you managed to resolve this ultimately.

[brook2adks]

@daniellealberta

I like this idea of accepting reservation requests that don’t reply to messages and then leaving it up to the guest to adhere to your rules or cancel. How successful has this been for you? Do most of them show up, or have you been raking in extra money from no-shows?

Some have been within the time frame to cancel and get their money back, one showed up the next day after they were supposed to check in, I get no-shows at least 1-2 x per season anyway. My price is so low, that it’s obviously easy for people to blow off…happened just this weekend.

[brook2adks]

I have tried it–let the guests self check in late while I’m sleeping.

To clarify, when I say tour, I mean a simple "Hi, so to get to your room, we go through the living room and up the stairs, there is a light switch here at the bottom of the stairs, and one at the top so you can always have the stairway lit up. Here is your bathroom, if for some reason the plethora of towels I’ve left for your stay are not enough, there are more in this hall closet. And here is your room, feel free to use the right side of the closet to store your luggage and hang your clothes, as I’ve cleared that space for you."
Then I get to answer any questions on what to do, where to eat etc.

So, yes, I have tried letting people check in on their own, by leaving keys outside for them. Every single time, I’ve gotten dinged on stars for check in. AND it’s just awkward all the way around, for them, for me, to meet in the morning.

Not to mention the safety issue…I share this space with them. I want a good look at who is coming in my home.

Oh, and one time, I allowed an early check in (noon) with the self check in option. Was contacted by the guest a few hours later and informed the boyfriend had an “allergy”, and they needed to leave. I arrive home to find they have taken the keys to the home, the bedroom looked like an orgy had taken place (used condoms and wrappers on floor rather than either of the wastebaskets, bedding pulled apart), and they had taken showers leaving a total of 4 wet towels on the floor.

So, these people, who I never even met or set eyes on, used my home and took my house keys!!
I honestly can’t remember if ABB refunded them or not.
Edited to add: Just checked my transaction history…I did NOT get paid for that reservation, yet had to do all the clean up as if they had stayed, AND had the extra worry of them having keys to my home.

So no…I won’t do self check in anymore.

[Zandra]

Oh I get people trying to check in early as well. It happens at both ends of the spectrum.

[Astaire]

@brook2adks

Oh, and one time, I allowed an early check in (noon) with the self check in option. Was contacted by the guest a few hours later and informed the boyfriend had an “allergy”, and they needed to leave. I arrive home to find they have taken the keys to the home,
< snip >

Edited to add: Just checked my transaction history…I did NOT get paid for that reservation, yet had to do all the clean up as if they had stayed, AND had the extra worry of them having keys to my home.

This is a very unfortunate incident. Did you raise this issue with Airbnb, perhaps with photographic evidence of their having checked in and left like they did, what did they say?

I’d only allow a self check-in for after the check-in, no earlies. I’d give them the codes only around the standard check-in time, so they can’t get in earlier than that.

Regarding guests taking the keys, having a digital lock will eliminate that possibility. This could happen even without self check-in, say, with an early-morning checkout where the host doesn’t see them off in person.

[Astaire]

@SandyToes

So I decided no more Mr. Nice Guy and said there would be a late checkout fee of $70 (less than half the daily rate at the time) because the housecleaner would have to rearrange her schedule to accommodate it. The gal (sourly) agreed and paid it via PayPal. (ka-ching!)

Did that reflect negatively in her review in any way?

[KJC]

I’ve stayed in official BnBs and they have firm check in times. They’ll flat out tell you that they won’t take check ins after Xpm and if you can’t make it you’ll have to find another place for the night.

Also, there are BnB forums & you can read how the, “professionals,” handle things, if you feel doubtful.

Never labor under the delusion that your home is a hotel or that you’re in the, “hospitality business.” At most, you’re a landlord, this is your property, & you set the rules.

[SandyToes]

@Astaire
She didn’t leave a review (thank goodness) and I didn’t either.

[Eberhard_Blocher]

@konacoconutz

Sorry, have no idea what you should tell the guests except that check ins after 8pm (or whenever) will be turned away.

That’s what I state in my listing. Repeatedly! It is also in my welcome message, in my house rules, everywhere.

Arrival time 10 pm strict. No admission if you arrive later than that.

This is crystal clear. In fact, I had a guest, recently, who actually read my house rules. He arrived at my house late (11 pm) so he didn’t actually ring the bell. He wandered around town all night, and only checked in the next day. Boy, was he tired then.

[Astaire]

Sometimes that’s best.

[Arlene_Larsson]

Yes, this is one of the reasons I love digital locks, no lost, stolen, or accidental taking of keys!

[Arlene_Larsson]

Yes and she literally was just letting me know they’d be arriving early, at least most people at least ask. She just assumed it would be okay. I took a breath and nicely explained that we had guests checking out that day, and that it usually takes the entire window of time between checkout and checkin to prepare for the next guests. I told her we would let her know if by chance it was ready any earlier than 3 and that there would be no access to anywhere to “get ready” prior to official checkin. I haven’t heard a peep back from her. I highly doubt it will be ready a minute early as I have a couple with a 4 year old there for four nights prior, and that usually means kitchen use and messy everything.

[Arlene_Larsson]

Now I have to sort of chuckle, because literally as I was reading this I got a message from my current guest saying their plane was delayed so they’ll be leaving at 11:15 or so (checkout is 11:00). People really have a lot of nerve!! In this case I’m actually allowing her to stay till 11:15 but not a moment later. Then she says that’s okay, they’ll just wait outside. Not sure what they’re waiting for; sounds to me like their plane isn’t delayed, just their ride (they are visiting someone locally).

[Zandra]

No. Not a landlord, because if you’re a landlord your guests are tenants. We all know that’s not the case.

[LizinMN]

@Magwitch

With such restrictive check-in times as the OP has, I would re-iterate this in the initial message so it is super clear.

She did so. That said, I agree that it’s a very narrow window. Some hosts allow guests to check in later than expected but charge them for it. And that is written into their rules and intro emails.

[LizinMN]

@KJC

Never labor under the delusion that your home is a hotel or that you’re in the, “hospitality business.” At most, you’re a landlord, this is your property, & you set the rules.

I agree with all of this except for the idea that we’re NOT in the hospitality business. Of course we are. At least, that’s the way I see it. I’m not just letting people take up space here. I’m aiming for them to be in a lovely place and have a lovely experience here, whatever their reason for staying.

[konacoconutz]

Well this is the same subject of much debate on the Facebook pages.
I tend to think we are not in the hospitality business any more than we are landlords. We are quasi landlords, and yet not hotels. I don’t have a degree in hotel management. My career track is not hospitality. I am not a travel agent. I am renting a space for my guests to enjoy Hawaii at a price lower than hotels but I’m not a hotel. I’m a house. I’m not responsible, nor will I be, for the way the guest’s trip goes.

When I first signed up for Air eight some years ago… it was just a funky platform putting guests and hosts together. People didn’t expect anything except a place to lay their heads which wasn’t a hotel.

Now look at phenomenal growth of not just the company, but of guest expectations.

I kinda miss the old days.