well, sometimes I get novices with 0 reviews, right, send an inquiry for 1 person then send me a message “we will arrive at X hour …”. If he says in the message how many people there are I modify the reservation to reflect the correct number of people. If not I reply back saying that I charge something for extra people. In any case I dont give out check in info until this issue is resolved. In your case, I’d have changed the code right then and there and I’d have called air on the spot. You had the right to cancel the reservation before this guy got in because he broke the rule bringing an extra guest.
But you had to call Air. Never trust your guests in issues like these.
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Why? If they are using the same sheets & bed and no breakfast is provided, what is the purpose of the extra person charge?
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My comment was more about this husband suggesting that he and his wife were one person. Hence the co-dependency joke. E.g. wives are their own people!
For us, we the extra person charge is because we want to give solo-travelers a discount (I’m an avid solo-traveler) but there is no way to discount for less people in the Airbnb system, you can only charge extra for more. And I don’t think one person should pay the 2-person price.
One guest is not just 1/2 as easy as 2-guests but I’d estimate they 5 times as easy as 2-guests. One guest doesn’t make any noise, no loud cackling or talking or chatting in the hall late at night. One guest rarely cooks. One guest is almost always gone all of the time. One guest typically eats less snacks, uses less utilities, less towels, less toiletries, less paper products. One guest has never left a mess and doesn’t seem to stain up the sheets. I could go on and on, and of course there could be an exception but the generalization does fit here, and I am willing to take less money for 1 guest than for 2 (or 3 or 4).
Also, it’s rare that 2 guests only use one bed. We tend to attract couples who sleep separately.
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I have a small extra person charge between $4-8 and the room is $42-58 a night over the past year. I don’t have a breakfast but I do provide coffee and breakfast bars. Based on my 5.5 years/700~ guests I’ve noticed a few things.
2x guest use 2x more water. TP roll is much smaller. Surely more soap is being used though I don’t measure the bottles each time. Usually an additional bath towel to be laundered. In summer more A/C is used. They tend to be louder, check out later. The chance of a stain on the bed that I have to pay extra attention to is much higher. And though there is no way to measure things a lot of little things it’s still twice as many people, period. Now if I had a large space at double my current price I wouldn’t charge for a second person.
My personal preference is the solo traveler. Because I’m a solo traveler so often myself I tend to favor them.
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OK, I see your point. We have a place for families, so have never had only one person.
We also get groups and small families but they can and will pay more than 1-person. It’s a great way to diversify.
Yes! This too. So true.
Then you might lose the solo travelers! I keep them, even in my 2-bedrooms and it’s totally worth it!
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I have a large space at double your current price 
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I do too and I still get solo travelers because of my pricing. I would prefer to only have solo travelers but it doesn’t make sense not to diversify since I have larger places.
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Because they don’t want to pay the price you charge for families.
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I believe it really depends on your area, the type of listing you offer, and the type of guest it attracts. I have a budget-priced listing for my area, I only host one guest at a time in the private room I host, and in 3 years, I can honestly say that all my guests have been lovely. No complainers, no refund demanders, only one rule breaker, and 5* review givers. I tend to get veteran travellers, many who’ve used Airbnb extensively, adaptable and friendly people with simple needs. The best guests, rather than the worst.
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Sure, this does happen now and then. If guest wants to add an extra guest, I always tell them that there is a fee involved.
However, in your case, in appears that you were not physically present when guests tried to check in. You wouldn’t need a door code if you were. Therefore, you couldn’t simply have collected the extra guest fee in cash, or by personally asking for a credit card. So that’s what’s wrong, imho: you not being around.
Absolutely this.
That’s why it’s always helpful for hosts to clarify what kind of listing their advice is based on. My listing is a small room attached to my house but separate from me. I don’t need the guest name, I don’t need to vet guests, I don’t need to see their picture. If they have been rated poorly in the past that might be helpful info and I’ve canceled one guest out of 700 due to ratings I didn’t like the looks of. I’ve had other guests with iffy ratings who were fine here. Seeing the ratings and even the reviews they left for their hosts help me proactively avoid problems.
I care about two things: payment, behavior while here.
There is also the variable of the host’s needs. Every host is different. Some hosts clearly need that illusion of control. It’s “their home,” no one is going to stay in their home if it violates “gut feeling,” how dare anyone think they can book without “their permission.” The all caps “NO INSTANT BOOK!” host may have a system that works perfectly fine for their location and needs.
It seems to me that you and I while having very different needs and standards have had no or few problem guests because we have fine tuned our needs to our markets and listings.
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I think that another factor is the personal service they receive. If guests are greeted in a friendly manner, find everything they need and have a friendly relationship with the host (or co-host) then they feel more as though they were staying with family or friends. Much nicer.
This isn’t to say that remote hosting can’t work - it can - but I’d be no good at it, I’m sure.
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I love single travelers, I wish Airbnb would let us do a singles discount. I have my pricing starting at two with additional charges up to six because I wanted to attract more smaller groups.
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You can do one, it’s just more work. Put in your listing that you have an xx discount for solo travelers. Then after the stay is over use the resolution center to send the refund. I would do it that way so you don’t get burned by someone trying to book for one and sneak in the second. It also rewards travelers who actually read.
I’ve given a discount to multiple guests who were military or checked out extra early or were exceptionally clean. I just don’t advertise it in advance.
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They do really. You can start your pricing at one and charge even for the 2nd guest. I know it’s why we get solos. It’s not that hard to regulate it. Anyone who books for “1 guest” gets questioned about their number of guests unless they have specifically said, “it’s just me”. And most solos do tell you that they are solo, so it’s easy to see who you need to question , )
I don’t worry about people sneaking others in as I deal with it at the time they book. I send them a reservation change with the additional guests and let them know the price is going up and they can accept or cancel. I haven’t had issues but live in the same house and don’t tend to get trouble-makers, probably because of price-point and being onsite. However, your doorbell cam could have the same effect for you, depending on who you’re getting in your listing. Also, I don’t think it’s any more likely that someone books for one and sneaks people in than someone who books for two and sneaks people in.
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I do the same thing, my first message to guests includes getting a confirmation of guest numbers from them.
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I only host single travelers because the room is only comfortably large enough for a single bed. Also my water supply isn’t one where the water comes gushing out the pipes 24/7. When I first started hosting, I considered listing both my room, larger and with a Queen bed and the guest room, figuring I could vacate one and move into the other if I got couples wanting the larger room. But at that point I didn’t know how to link calendars, so it never happened and now I would only host solo travellers anyway- they tend to be more interactive, adaptable, friendly, self-sufficient and don’t take over the kitchen making elaborate meals, all positive attributes for a home-share host. Not to mention no sex evidence or stains on the bedding or having to listen to what sounds like a porno movie playing in the background.
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I wouldn’t call 20 minutes “early”. If I were really pressed for time, I might invite them in to stretch their legs. A little honey goes a long way.
A $40 a night room, however, is a budget price. I would charge an additional guest fee. He hoped to dodge it.
All in all, he sounds like a bottom feeder. But that’s the risk we take when prices are low.
Yes I have wondered about this. They book for two 2 and then use both beds / bedrooms, for me very annoying as double cost laundry etc. I only charge for 2+, $15 per head per night. Does it cover all costs? Not usually. But my overall cashflow is okay. Reading all of these it is frustrating to find the right balance. Great discussion.