For guests that are booked during Christmas do I decorate with a Christmas tree and lights? I had a friend who rented an AirBNB in Hawaii once, during the Christmas break, and she was very disappointed there wasn’t a tree for their visit.
My concern is, what if my guests arent Christian? I normally avoid any form of political or religious expression in my guest house, but is Christmas, or should Christmas be an exception?
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Why not just ask the guest that will be there on Christmas Eve/Christmas Day? Save yourself some time and trouble if they don’t want it.
If you’re thinking about keeping it up for weeks like a lot of people do in their own home, then I’d say no to that.
We have small a pre-lighted tree in the storage room in our listing that we can put up quickly if the guest wants it, and I put up a white holiday lights on the fascia board across the front of the house that I can simply unplug if a guest doesn’t want them.
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@Rachaelanderberg I guess I would say that if your listing photos show that your place is decorated with a Christmas tree and lights, then you should decorate. If not, skip it because your guests might not be Christian.
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We don’t.
Exactly.
If they want Christmas trees and baubles, stay home.
JF
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I would not go to all that trouble. If they celebrate Christmas just buy a really nice Christmas wreath for the front door. If you have a fireplace mantel, add some garland and Christmas decorations to the mantel and simply skip the tree.
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Absolutely not.
I don’t know where you are but if you’re in the US, then the US seems to be a particularly religious country (and a Christmas-celebrating country).
Although I’m in the US, most of my guests are not American. I never do any sort of Christmas decoration.
Somewhere along the line though, and I know not how, I acquired a Santa hat. I hang it from the headboard when guests are going to be staying throughout the Christmas period.
They can see that as Christmas decor if they wish, or otherwise…
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Depends on the nation and the rental. As far as I’m concerned, xmas is a lovely holiday and I always have lights and decor because I live here. There isn’t anything in the Airbnb room because…well because… this will be the first year of 5 I’ve had a paying guest in the room. But there are lights just outside their room.
Christmas isn’t Christian. It’s a celebration of the gross excesses of western capitalism. And the tree is pagan anyway. So I say do as you please unless a guest expresses a particular interest.
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Oh yes. I tend to refer to Christmas as ‘the buying season’. Consumerism gone mad.
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Bet I can make a damned good guess.
JF
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Our house is decorated with lights, but the detached cabana listing is bare.
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I have a small fake tree with lights and a few Christmas throw pillows. I add candy canes to treats. Contrary to the hype, I don’t think anyone is actually offended by Christmas. However, I don’t think guests should expect Christmas decor unless it is a higher end seasonal rental. There is a host in my region with a castle, and they nclude the Christmas decor in the photos and charge a holiday premium.
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I don’t have them because I don’t like killing trees. I use small branches from mature trees in along with tall dogwood branches.
I use all blue lights to give a nod to a Chanukah bush!
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Thanks for all the responses. I think I’ll compromise by going light and fun with it. Appreciate all your suggestions :).
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I decorate the outside of the house with lights, wrap the palms with lights and I put a mini Christmas tree with lights on the Airbnb porch. No decorations inside the room. I love lights and I put some up for other holidays too. I don’t have crosses or a nativity scene though, just decorations that are more pagan.
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Our guests who will be there over Christmas asked if there would be a tree or if they should bring a small one. I confirmed that a small tree with some twinkle lights and a few ornaments would suffice and they were very happy with that as an option. So I also asked the guests checking in before them if a tree would be OK and they were very excited. I do plan to take it down as soon as the Christmas guests check out.
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I always offer a Christmas tree and in my market - snowy Upstate New York Mountains - folks mostly expect it. But I always tell people booking that I have historically offered a tree and ask if that will that be a problem for them. Every renter over the last nine years has said they would be thrilled to have a tree. This year’s tree:
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We had mainland Chinese guests for a week this time last year, a mother and daughter. We’d decorated the house but we weren’t going to put a tree up - we don’t normally - but at their request we bought a small tree and they helped decorate it - mom even hand-made some decorations for it.
We have a number of (very devout) Muslim friends and last month they decorated their houses with lights to celebrate the birthday of the Prophet, peace be unto him. We visited them as normal, and we wouldn’t have dreamt of being offended by this. And we put up decorations to celebrate the birth of Christ. In what kind of world are we living now where some people deem this to be offensive and say we shouldn’t decorate our homes in case it “offends” those of a different religion? Where’s the spirit of tolerance - peace and goodwill, etc.? It’s all rather sad. Personally I’m a devout atheist, but I’m not going to be offended by any religion that anyone practises (unless it involves human sacrifice).
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We do what I’d call “secular” winter holiday decorating.
We have a lighted wreath on the front porch. Inside, several things: First, a small tabletop Christmas tree that has lights on it—no ornaments. A mantel decorated with small Christmas trees, lights, deer, and a cow (don’t ask). Another small tabletop tree—all tinsel and lights. Poinsettias by both fireplaces. A silver deer bowl on the dining room table.
Just enough to say “seasonal.” Not enough—I hope—to be offensive to anyone.
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This exactly. I have guests staying over Christmas and I would have just asked them if they had not specifically told me they were coming for Christmas. I set up a mini tree on the dining room table, a holiday throw pillow, and a wreath on the door. None of this is particularly religious anyway, but I would have been happy to decorate however my guests wished.
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On a related note, I just got a glowing review from a guest that highlighted how I put up Christmas lights for her.
I usually put up lights on the fascia board on Thanksgiving weekend, but I try not to bother our guests and we were booked Thanksgiving week and every weekend since. This particular guest did not say why she was coming, but when I talked to her face-to-face, she told me that she came with her husband, brother, and niece/nephew-in-law to visit her daughter, grandchildren, and great grandchildren for an “early Christmas” because the family wasn’t able to get together on Christmas day. I offered to put up the lights on the front of the house and she was thrilled.
I was planning to do it right after they left because the next guest is coming to celebrate Christmas with his family, too, but she thought I did it just for her.
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