“have you actually consulted Airbnb about how to improve your booking rate?”
- is this something Airbnb will do?
Not that I know of. But when @lordhunt said ‘Now they advise me that I should offer my place for $20 a night’ I wondered if there was a advisory service that was available to certain hosts. Or that it might be during an email exchange with Airbnb.
OH gosh, I would love to visit there! Your places look lovely.
I do keep my rooms spotless and my reviews reflect that. But tbh, I have a huge dog living with me, and there IS going to be dog hair on the sofa occasionally, no one has ever complained even slightly about it. I have kept my 5 star rating I think due to my interaction with my guests. I spend the time we have at breakfast chatting with them like we are old friends. As well as giving them loads of info about where to go and what to do here. I am an ex bartender so talking with people comes very naturally to me. I think a friendly and helpful host goes very far if other things are not 100% perfect! I certainly would never splash out for champagne, although I did try fresh flowers and fruit for a while. It honestly made no difference to my reviews of amount of bookings and just ended up costing me 10% of my booking fee! Some of the suggestions here are frankly ridiculous. There are insurance issues with picking people up, and that is what buses and taxis are for. Honestly, this is Airb&b, not the Four Seasons. I have had Superhost status for the last year, dog hair and all.
You asked what is good about my place -
I am available and I am perfectly by-lingual. I can make phone calls and reservations for them. They like the breakfast I serve with homemade coffee cake and fresh orange juice. Wifi works well. They love the views. They like the causal atmosphere. They can use the house as they like or stay shut up in their room and enclosed terrace. They pick the apartment for the location. Normally it is near their office or an activity such as buying at the two malls within walking distance. The apartment is surrounded with a wealth of restaurants. Most guests like cats and feel at home with mine. They are dog-cats they are so friendly and love a tummy rub but not bothersome. If the guest doesn’t pay attention to them, they don’t get near - they can smell it and respect it.
My last guest suggested putting the electric water kettle in the room with coffee, tea and matte and a fruit bowl. He even gave me matte and a bowl with a matte straw! Now I am waiting to see the reaction.
Thanks for making me do this exercise, perhaps I can improve my ad. I really am down as I get so few guests compared to when I started with Airbnb.
Susan
Susan, it sounds terrific! It sounds to me as though you should put your prices UP.
what do you suggest?
Your flat looks absolutely fabulous, and when I can start making more of a profit, I would love to go to Riga in Latvia. It looks so beautiful, <3
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I always get really good feedback from my Welcome Guide. I have a few pages of information about my listing, the house rules, how to use public transportation, getting to my apartment from an airport, and cool things to see and do that are walking distance from my place. I always email it to people a few days before their trip and then have a copy printed out for when they walk in. Because it’s beautifully designed and detailed, my guests always tell me how much they love it! I also provide some snacks next to the guide, too. If you want to know more, I made a blog post called The Ultimate Guide to Hosting on Airbnb, where I go through 6 steps of getting 5-star reviews and what has worked for me prevously!
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@anon5732054
Amen! My jaw dropped as I read this nonsense. I’ve stayed at the ritz Carlton and other high end hotels and never got any champagne or flowers unless it was part of a special package I PAID FOR! Who is this Jan person anyway? And it is more THAN not then 3 years. Oops I just had to do that it’s the professor in me lol
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At the moment I am drinking the champagne I bought for my guests this weekend for their anniversary. Is that wrong? 
This is why I can’t keep goodies in my house - I’ll just eat it or drink it before the guests even arrive.
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If drinking champagne is wrong, I don’t want to be right.
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I clearly didn’t buy the good stuff…it has an aftertaste of mustard 
Maybe it’s for the best that I’m drinking it for them.
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Yes you are saving them but you might drink it while eating a hot dog to go with the mustard. I on the other hand am scratching the lottery tickets I bought for the guests!
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I hope you win!! Going to look for hotdogs…
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Well if they win I’m not telling. Get a bun too!
Suite… 
Good one!!!
One thing that I wonder about is if I can’t make it Korbel or Dom will they think me cheap?
“Ugh, that Kona. Not only did she charge for cleaning, she left cheap champagne… We will leave two stars.”
Confession. I happen to really like Cooks extra dry…it’s usually under $6 but at least It’s one step up from Andre. 
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Right before I read this thread I was thinking of making a trip to town and champagne is on my list. 
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I am guilty of drinking the opened wine bottles my guests leave after their check-out 
, if they are good bottles. Last ones left some Saint-Emilion and Chablis . Previous guests left very good cheeses. I love this kind of guest.
@konacoconutz, try some Vouvray, most of them are at least as good as Champagne and way cheaper.
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I spent hours on the Guidebook. then they “improved” their formatting and the whole thing vanished.
Never again. We give our guests our tips when they’re in the suite. Honestly, I think it’s a better idea anyway since our guidebook could be used by anyone in our town,
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