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I have not yet been subjected to this “feature” but when I am I will just ask my guests for their phone number when they arrive.
Has this been rolled out yet?
I was able to text my incoming guest this morning
RR
Hmmm. My hamster wheel is turning… Maybe a sign, right on the door TEXT (my number) for entry.
Or since I am a software connected host who will soon be stuck paying the guests service fee a big sign inside telling them to text me directly to save 15% on future bookings… Or both.
The AI will flag any attempt to message guest for this information I am sure they will make it hard to do.
Ok, I figured out the hack I think will work 90% of the time.
A small sign inside: Free late check out may be available Text my number to check availability.
I have a too early 10:00 check out and lately I have been texting most guests to take their time and feel free to check out as late as 11:00 anyway so no real change for me:)
RR
No problem. Just make a new WhatsApp account for each guest! 
??? Most of my guests already have whatsapp accounts. But if Airbnb is going to block exchange of phone numbers even after a booking is confirmed, it won’t be possible to communicate with them by whatsapp.
In our patch, my experience is that at least 50% of guests ignore messages on the Airbnb message system, or it can take days until you get any response (if any).
That’s why WhatsApp is important. It’s difficult to ignore messages and people are very familiar with it. They use it every day.
I have not yet met one guest who doesn’t prefer to communicate by WhatsApp. Not one. They all seem to be happy that we’ve chosen to communicate with WhatsApp.
I don’t use it to go around Airbnb and get direct bookings. And if a guest booked on Airbnb, I surely wouldn’t agree to a cancellation to get the booking direct. There’s nothing in it for me …except maybe avoiding the dangers of Airbnb customer support shutting me down for some false claim of the guest. But I’ve learned to effectively screen guests and so far haven’t had many problems with scam guests.
But, if this actually happens globally, unfortunately, I’ll have to close my listing on Airbnb after nearly 2 decades.
I feel your pain I guess, but the only person who will be affected by this is you and whoever else benefits from your relationship with Airbnb.
Sadly, I see this all the time on forums with disgruntled hosts vowing to leave the platform, and I can almost see them in my mind’s eye, shaking their fist to the sky as they do it, as they’re thinking ‘that’ll show them’. Inevitably a Greek chorus of guests or sometimes other disgruntled hosts reply with their stories and commiseration.
I can’t imagine how their leaving Airbnb is going to make life better or improve life for any of us hosts - did they think that one of the board members will read it, clutch their pearls, and run into the next board meeting breathlessly telling everyone what’s happening? Or maybe it’s the accountant in the ‘Airbnb world headquarters’ building who will burst out of a side door and run down the hall with a long trail of computer print out, like it was a 1980s movie, yelling “stop! Stop, this madness has got to stop”?
In reality, the sad part of this for people who feel bad enough to make this threat on a public platform is that when they leave the platform, their leaving actually creates a better competitive situation for the other hosts in their area. We host secretly cheer when the neighbor a few blocks down decides to leave Hosting for whatever perceived failing of Airbnb. It means less competition and probably increases our bottom line.
And yes, I’ve been told that venting is good for the soul, and I’m sure that the venter feels great after they vow, but let’s put it into perspective - there is no way to change Airbnb policy by shaking our fists at the clouds.
Oh, I’m under no illusions. Airbnb wouldn’t even know it if I closed my account. Or care.
But I do have a business to run.
It might pay to be proactive in this, & contact Air to get ahead of any issues. I wouldn’t be surprised if they have a work around, as many hosts pro have the same insurance requirements. And, as we ALL know, their customer service is top of the line…. 
Any thoughts on the future? At one time in my message to guests I asked them to text me directly to my phone number. It was a great way to get their actual phone number in my hands as the phone number listed on Airbnb is many times outdated. Plus, it’s obviously a great way to know how to directly contact a guest.
Now, I’ve removed that requirement for my message and ask them just to affirm that they agreed to everything within the messaging app. However, I’m still thinking they need a way to contact me directly and me them or at least me directly. While I’m home much of the time there’s always that odd time when I’m not one suggested from chat AI was to put my phone number on a welcome card saying something like need help with anything for quick support with devices or comfort settings. Text your host… For general questions please message via Airbnb. Does this sound like I’m complying with the Airbnb need to not go off platform? Does anybody have any ideas how to do this if it does?
Just because Airbnb is going to hide guests’ phone numbers doesn’t mean it’s forbidden to communicate off-platform, as long as you aren’t doing it to make side deals which cut Airbnb out of the equation.
I certainly plan to ask guests for their phone numbers if they are hidden in my area. I have had a few bookings over the past couple of years where the guest’s profile said “Phone number not available”. When I queried those guests about that, pointing out the reasons phone numbers may be useful or even necessary sometimes, they were surprised that their number wasn’t showing, they had no recollection of checking anything that would make it so, and readily gave me their number.
I have also been in the habit of asking guests when their booking is confirmed, to check to make sure the number showing is current, after having a few guests who simply forgot to update their profile when they got a new number.
I’ve updated my check-in message so that it now goes through Airbnb’s messaging thread instead of my personal phone number. That keeps everything compliant—but it also means I lose access to the guest’s actual phone number, which could be critical in an emergency.
While Airbnb’s call routing system seems reliable in theory, it’s still vulnerable to real-world issues—like internet outages, platform glitches, or even malicious interference. If something goes wrong, I need a direct way to reach the guest, and vice versa.
Posting my number on a sign at the entrance (e.g., “Questions? Issues? Call Rolf directly at [xxx-xxx-xxxx]”) is one option, but it’s passive. It doesn’t guarantee the guest will call me, and it doesn’t give me their real number unless they do.
One idea I’m considering is asking guests to text my real number upon arrival to “activate their smart lock” or “confirm check-in”. That way, I get their actual number in a natural, non-promotional way, and they get immediate support. It’s not about moving communication off-platform—my guests are mostly repeat business travelers, and I have zero incentive to circumvent Airbnb. It’s purely about ensuring reliable contact in case of emergencies. However, it is one more step in the arrival process and could be irritating for a guest - we have seen here so many times how guests go absolutely crazy if something is asked of them that is unexpected.
I wonder how this will be rolled out. I think it was supposed to start at the end of September.
I just checked my messages to the guests and my initial message asks them (among other things) to provide their cell number they will be using while on Maui.
But I also give a lot of numbers in my messages, like for our security guard / registration. A couple of rental car agencies. The front office. Will all these numbers disappear from my messages?
We are on-island contacts for a few other properties (for mainland owners) and I know the owners give our number out to their guests in case of any issues at the unit, such as lock-out, AC instructions, etc. and I’ve had to contact each guest during wild fires and tsunami warning a couple months back. They are not my guests, so how will I be able to communicate with them?
I have written this to Airbnb in a survey they had sent after an issue was resolved that was unrelated, but since they gave me a large text box, I thought I’d tell them what I thought about this change. Not sure anyone really monitors things like that though.
This is horrible for my situation. I am remote but have a local manager. I don’t trust the local manager with every-day communications because they are too strict on small inexpensive items like a $10 hand towel. I never want them to communicate normally. But several times a year we have some hurricane electrical outage or internet outage. The manager needs every possible way to contact them but I will never want to add the manager to Airbnb to my regular conversation. I hope someone sues Airbnb when their temporary phone button causes some emergency situation to get worse.
Interesting experience…
I always send my mobile number to the guests so we can set up the meet and greet process and they have it for any issues.
My phone number was literally wiped out of the message thread…there wasn’t a number for the guest either…
This could cause serious problems for both guests and hosts and I and really concerned as under my permit I HAVE to supply it
Yes, same is true here. We are required by law to provide our phone number to our guests. OK, the phone number is shown in many places in the house, so technically, we conform to that law.
The big issue for us is coordinating arrival, and promptly responding to guest questions or requests for advice about local attractions, restaurants, taxi, etc… We need realtime messaging. Many guests do not use the Airbnb app. And even if they do, the messages can take a long time to arrive.
WhatsApp is extremely popular here, everybody uses it every day, it’s hard to ignore messages, so it’s the logical means. Airbnb should actually embrace it. Lots of other businesses do.
They are trying to “own”;the guest and their information……they don’t want them to have a great experience and then book direct, to avoid the fees……
After their first stay, guests will know how to contact the host directly anyway. Unless of course, the host goes to a lot of trouble to hide their contact information, which would be of no identifiable benefit to either the host or the guest.
So, going to all this trouble to make things more difficult - in the interest of preventing something that is unpreventable… Is like banning artichokes to prevent shark attacks.
Here’s a novel idea: How about making it more beneficial to take bookings through Airbnb than directly. Say, make it more secure and guaranteed to go smoothly. And safe, too.
I know, wishful thinking, right?
Maybe this is just in advance of the (probably inevitable) complete roll out of all hosts globally paying all Airbnb fees. When hosts start raising their prices 20% to cover the additional costs, there will be proportionally more guests trying to negotiate cheaper rates, on and off platform, and unmonitored communication channels make that so much easier to achieve. I’m not sure that Airbnb cares a jot about host legal/licensing responsibilities or the need to be able to communicate fast and reliably in whatever method works best locally.
Sorry, but unless the hosts raise their prices more than 15.5% to cover the commission, guests won’t see any difference in the price. That’s what they’d pay anyway.
But hosts get a 3% increase in payout. So you could, for example, only raise your price 12.5%, effectively giving the guest a 3% discount, and still receive the same payout you received before.