Are people really that thick?

I feel I spend all the majority time waiting for guests to arrive. I have updated rules constantly, making them more stricter, I have it in my profile listing, I also tell guests please give me your arrival times in advance so I can be home for you. I tell them we work. We may have to leave work to come home for them…
It seems all i say is going unnoticed. It’s so frustrating. I have had 4 guests in a row this week, who have wondered in when they like, even though I explained the above to them in the booking. Now, this is no flight delays or major problems. This is guests who decide they cant be annoyed contacting me, that they’ll go to the pub, or they will do another tour. They basically checked in when they were ready. No advance warning. The longest I waited was four hrs. The less I waited was 2 hrs. Its unacceptable. It’s eating into my time. There’s only so much more of plumping up of pillows that I can do. I’m bored and frustrated at these selfish people. Off course when I meet them, they seem such nice people, I wonder why they had no common sense. Is people really that thick?

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Maybe time for a key box

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Yes, people are not accustomed to the fact that ABB is not like the Marriott…no front desk person, and yes, it’s rude that even though you advise them of this fact, they ignore it. I agree with @sylvainbg, may be time to reconsider the check in process because you are going to get so burned out it will reflect in how you deal with people.

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I agree. Unless you have a really good reason to not let them let themselves in you should get a digital lock or key box. I let people check themselves in and never had a major problem. My only 3 star rating was because they had some trouble but that was on them. I learned and moved on.

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A key box would be ideal. But we are in a building of over 100 apts and a few businesses, and there’s noway anyone could get in the building without someone letting them in. Even the lift you need a fob for security reasons.
Maybe I have just had a bad stint this week with guests. I pray it gets better

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There may be another solution, such as having someone else (a friend in the same building?) let them in. Regardless, the inconsistent arrivals is best addressed, since I can imagine how it takes the fun out of hosting.

In my case I face the same thing, check-in is at 1pm, they arrive 1pm-9pm, no problem. I tell them stop by where I will be (small town) when they DO arrive.

Hey Mearns, thanks for advice…I dont have anyone in the same building I would want to give responsibility to deal with guests.
Also I work all over the city, so never in one place. My only hope is guests get better in grasping how important it is for them to update me in advance with arrival times. I really do think airbnb is trying their best to make it clear to guests, but still people dont read or listen. I also stay in airbnb as a guest sometimes and I would never dream of not updating my host of my arrival time! _

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Couldn’t agree more, it is the epitome of inconsideration. Here in Belize, they place almost zero emphasis on time, or for that matter doing what they say, double whammy.

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The key box thing is not a bad idea. But I get the guest’s ID and contact information and write it all down in front them. And find out a bit about them while doing this. You can’t do that if you are checking in via a keybox.

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I’m afraid that there doesn’t seem to be anything hosts can do about this. It is one of our three house rules that guests must give us their arrival time so that we can be home and ready to greet them. Hardly anyone does. We had a recent guest who didn’t answer my email two days prior to her stay asking for her arrival time. When she arrived; she explained that, “It isn’t that kind of trip where we plan what time we’ll do things”. I was so angry as I thought that if that were the case she should have booked at a listing where the guests let themselves in.

Before everyone piles on me to tell me that I should have the guests let themselves in; our dogs will bark nonstop until we introduce them to anyone who comes in our house. Also, we’ve found that as everyone’s houses are so different many guests have trouble with the most basic things (window locks, turning on the stove, running the shower), so we need to give them a tour.

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What do you rate them on communication and do you mention it in the review?

Have you tried to mention to your guests that you are not waiting for them at the house and need time to get there to greet them ? That’s what I do . I have flexible check in time but always ask my guest 30 min - 1 hr notice so I have time to get to the place . I warn my guests if they not goning to notify me, I’m not responsible if they ll have to wait for me to let them in. So far it worked

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Weird. We haven’t had trouble with that. We have keypad entry, but the door sticks a bit so I have to be here to explain it to them and make sure someone in the group can manage it. I also have a walk-through I do, but have never mentioned it beforehand - just said I need to know when they expect to arrive so we can be sure we’re here to let them in. We had one really bad late-comer (by six hours) but everybody else has been reasonable. Maybe because we’re in Toronto and at least half our clients arrive by air…

I didn’t write them a review. I know it’s not a popular stance on this forum, but I don’t write reviews for guests who were merely annoying. Most of my guests aren’t very good about letting me know when they are arriving, so I’d be writing a slew of bad reviews. When a guest asks to book with me; I check the reviews they’ve left for past hosts. If they are too nitpicky, I decline their booking. I assume that guests do that too. I think that if I don’t want to be nitpicked, then I can’t nitpick.

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Lots of Airbnb property management companies are starting to use keyless entry technology for their properties so that they don’t have to wait for guests when they are checking in. The keyless entry systems also allow homeowners to determine who has access to their home and for what period of time. No more worrying about being home for guests! These systems are user-friendly and hassle-free for all parties involved.

I think one can write a factual review without it being a 'bad review." “Bubba didn’t let me know when he would arrive but luckily I was only an hour away when he let me know he was at my door waiting.” LOL.

I know if ABB incorporates the star system into the instant book filters I’m going to be wishing/hoping that everyone is honest with their stars. I don’t see how it helps anyone to gloss over problems but if you don’t want to support the review system I’m sure nothing I say will change it.

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I knew that I would be criticized for not using keyless entry so I outlined the reasons I need to greet my guests personally in a different post on this thread.

I used to leave the key in the room and tell them it was unlocked and they could go in whenever. Then when I began to collect tax in cash as well as have em sign a waiver for snorkel gear, I knew I had to greet them in person to get all the business done. It also helped so much to be able to walk them around and point out the main things I had concerns about. I had FAR less trouble when I could point out things!!! Best done when they fist arrive!

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When organising check in make it more that THEY are worried YOU will be there;
I say "please tell me you check in time so I am sure someone will be home to greet you, and alert me on delays"
In 5 years I have never waited for someone who didn’t have a legitimate reason (flight) and they always told me.

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Hey Sunshine1, is there a shop, restaurant or pub nearby where you could leave with the barkeep? something along those lines? Or maybe you could set up a key box in one of those safe locations? Good luck! I had similar check in issues but was able to get a key box.

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