they had a strong policy that they never would override the superstrict 60 day payout. …and until covid they stood by that
I had a really stupid guest send a request blocking my calendar and "telling me he would checking in at 12am which is not offered in my home. I also have a house rules that you must return by 12am because the dead bolt will be locked after than time. I told the guest he would not be able to check in at midnight and my check in time range is clearly listed. And proceeded to argue and argue about it instead of withdrawing his request like I asked saying he would be returning at midnight when he would be initially checking in. I finally just called airbnb to get the request removed so I would not be penalized for denying request. Guests like this are disrespectful starting out are certainly a nightmare if they get into your property.
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My check in is between 3pm and 9 pm, with lots of people coming from less than 3 hours away.
However, last night a guest was flying here from CA, one of his flights was delayed several hours, he missed his connection so rented a car in DC and drove a few hours to get here, around midnight.
What are you going to do, things happen.
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Absolutely. I learned this the hard way with the guests from Italy - he, expat American - started off poorly and it only went downhill.
That’s completely understandable and I waive my late check-in fees for those folks and wait up with the kettle ready for tea or a bottle of wine in case they need to wind down.
But the guests who start off with “I’ll be arriving at 11am and leaving at 8pm” who are hosts! and read that they would be charged 2 nights extra for that if I could accommodate them, are the problem.
In my experience, those asking for discounts are invariably the most demanding-and critical- guests.
Good call on your part.
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For sure, part of being in the hospitality business is doing our best to accommodate certain situations that are outside any fault of the guest’s.
Although I have a super flexible check-in time of 11am-11pm, I got up earlier than I like to for a guest who was arriving at 8am because she was supposed to arrive the previous afternoon, but her flight was cancelled due to mechanical problems and all the passengers rebooked on a red-eye.
And stayed up til 1am to greet a guest whose flight was delayed by 3 hours.
Both kept me informed as to their delays and new arrival times.
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I’ve been co-hosting for the past few days.
Every.single.booking request. Asked for early check-in and/or late checkout. Every one!!! A few asked for discounts.
One wouldn’t let it go.
About late checkout: “We can’t accommodate late checkout. Someone is checking in later that day & the cleaners need time to prepare it for the next group:
“Can they check in later?” Response: “ The cleaners are scheduled to arrive at 11:00. They clean several units. That is our slot.”
“We are very clean. They won’t need to do much. Can’t they come later.” Response “The service cleans several condos. 11 am is our slot, we cannot change their schedule”
“Can they clean some place else at 1100?” response in my head “No!!! What part of NO do you not understand?!?”
IRL “you booked in peak season. The cleaner’s schedule is set. We cannot accommodate late check out. “
Those “how to get a longer Airbnb stay” or “how to get a free Airbnb stay” groups are going to ruin it for everyone.
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That is really quite unbelievable to me.
Haven’t had one person in over a year at this place ask for early checkin, late check out. 75% of bookings here are weekends and I do leave 2 days between so I could in theory allow this, but in practice, forget it.
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@zillacop
You are fortunate.
I haven’t had anyone ask this summer either but my clientele is older adults who don’t follow the YouTube, TikTok & other trends
At least you kept it in your head! I’m known for saying it out loud or typing it in a fit of pique.
“No, the schedule is set and we will not accommodate a late checkout. Please follow the checkout instructions and vacate the condo at or before 11am. Late fees will be assessed per the HR if our cleaners have to start cleaning with guests still in residence.”
Seriously. I’ve had 5 in the last set of now-past reservations and one of them wanted a full day’s stay for 8pm checkout and didn’t understand why that constituted an additional day’s rental.
Ugh.
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The age range here tends to be younger. Almost everyone is way younger than I.
In AZ the town I was in was Snow Bird/birder central so tended to be older adults.
I get these requests regularly. I had one guest who showed up at 10:30 am despite telling her the day before that early check in is not possible.
I took care of her and a few others in the review with a 1* for communication and respect for house rules.
Such entitled guests should book a hotel. The real value of Airbnb would be if they can keep these weirdos off the platform and send them to hotels. But I’m day dreaming.
I have now added a pre booking message now that asks guests to inquire first if they need early check-in. When I get the inquiry, I will send the a special offer with cost of an additional night.
And the hosts who are willing to entertain 10 am check in and 9 PM check out requests.
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It’s one thing for a guest to have a sense of entitlement and ask you to bend your rules or policies for them, but IMO it is truly a sign of a weirdo to show up at 10:30AM when they have been specifically told that an early check-in can’t be accommodated.
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My usual response is to say will call / message them as soon as the house is ready…usually that closes down the conversation