I had a poor review from a host who stayed in my suite. One reason they gave was they weren’t sure if they could use patio furniture since it was covered.
The house manual explained that they were welcome to use it, and they never asked me.
They were probably new to hosting? Or not aware enough of life to realise that furniture on a patio should be covered if there’s a danger it would be damaged. Or aware enough of STR to know that you’re there to help so asking questions isn’t bothering you.
I imagine that you’ve hosted other hosts who have been fine? So it’s not really indicative of host behaviour if the experience is of one host.
It’s amazing that covered patio furniture was so ‘bad’ that it brought out a bad review.
P.S. No one EVER reads house manuals - not even hosts. 
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I’ve hosted 3 other hosts, who were fine guests and left 5*reviews, but one asked if I allowed kitchen use, which I thought was odd as I make it clear that I do that in my listing description and amenities. Which she obviously didn’t read.
When did she ask? When she booked or when she arrived at your home?
I had to go back and look over the message stream with her. We must have exchanged at least 10 messages. First she sent an Inquiry with a few questions, not ones answered in my ad, more about what the weather was like here now, questions about using her US phone here, whether the walk was safe
I don’t mind answering those kinds of questions at all.
Then there were some questions about available dates, because there seemed to be some kind of calendar glitch happening, or at least it appeared so to her. And she hadn’t actually booked her flight yet, so said she would do that and get back to me. So then she sent a request, as the pre-approved inquiry had expired.
It was in one of the messages after her booking was confirmed that she asked about the kitchen usage.
I know it would drive many hosts nuts to exchange 10 messages with the guest, especially if they have high guest turnover, but I don’t mind it when it’s just chatty and friendly and imparting info. It sort of sets up a rapport with guests which is beneficial when we are sharing the kitchen and other space.
The only time it bothered me was when another guest sent a numbered list of 20 questions, some of which were really off the wall, like “For business and entrepreneur hubs, where do you suggest?”
I don’t know where she thought she was coming, but this is a tiny fishing village turned tourist trap. I had my misgivings when I saw her profile photo- very corporate looking, suit and pearls. She turned out to be an okay guest, but a little on the entitled side.
It could be she was looking at various places and rentals trying to solidify her plans and at that point she couldn’t remember.
Using Airbnb as a guest can be challenging because every rental is different. And reading some listings is downright painful. Pictures and price might be right but then a few clicks in you realize you’re wasting your time. And if she was trying to decide between more than one location it’s worse. I spent hours looking for the house where I had my destination birthday in 2017 in part because even once I settled on Costa Rica I didn’t care which town I was in, I just needed the perfect one. I did find a great one but it was a lot of work. Also easier on VRBO than Airbnb.
I didn’t get the impression she was scouting around a few places. But she might have just forgotten and since she was messaging me about some other things anyway, just threw the question in there.
I have often thought that for guests who use Airbnb a lot, it must be a bit challenging to remember listing differences, especially pre-check-out instructions. It’s probably all in the house manual, but people are usually rushing to pack and check out on time.
So I can picture them madly flipping through the house manual to see whether this particular host wants them to strip the bed or not, put it in the washing machine or not, leave the used towels hanging, throw in the bathtub, or put in the machine, whether the host wants them to turn the AC or heat completetly off or set to a certain temperature, etc., etc.
I just tell my guests not to bother with anything before checking out except make sure they’ve got all their stuff, including chargers and USB cubes that might be in the plugs.
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As a traveling guest, I just go back and forth on Air to figure out the best one based on what I think I “need”. Think it’s rare I message a host with questions. Everyone I’ve ever stayed in has not been like my rental, but that’s part of the charm and helps one stay flexible in travel. I do think a lot of people are better suited to a Best Western where you know what you’re getting and there are no surprises. I also tend to stay at places for at least several nights then you get used to the space. I’m not into packing/unpacking on a daily basis, way too much trouble.
I’m currently in an airbnb, as a guest. I suppose you are correct in that I don’t get impressed, but then again, we all have our own unique situations to manage.
There’s only 2 pillows on our queen bed (this was a topic of discussion recently) and I had a laugh at that. all good, i travel with my own pillow anyway.
Mostly I glean tips from these stays, and usually chat with the host about issues we’ve both encountered. I personally hope that as a guest-host I have more sympathy, more understanding if things aren’t perfect.
@gillian, when you get prompted by Airbnb to review the Airbnb, could you post on the forum the current barrage of questions that Airbnb asks you? I’d like to know what they are now.
Can you explain further please? Our apartments are roughly double the price of the local Best Westerns so it would be great to understand the comparisons.
sure can. from memory (i’ve stayed in 3 airbnbs this year) it’s just asking things like ‘was there a hair dryer’ and other tedious questions.
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These thoughts were prompted by the most recent guest here leaving a long list of suggestions for how I could make my new listing better. A lot of her suggestions were more in tune with standard items you might find at a decent hotel individual soaps/shampoos, black-out curtains and seeming to fail to notice the fabulous garden and all the vases of flowers in the rental.
I like quirky personalized places where you often get to meet the host and find out ever so many things about the area. I like it more personal, not corporate.
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When hosts say a guest would be better suited to a hotel, I take that as not having anything to do with the price, but with the guest not understanding that every Airbnb and every host is unique, and they can’t have expectations of things that weren’t offered in the ad.
If they aren’t adaptable, if they stick to the Best Western, they won’t have any surprises, because they’re all the same.
Like people who are unadventurous when it comes to food and different flavors. Lots of those types just eat at McDonalds or some other chain where they know exactly what’s on offer and what it will taste like.
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I think blackout shades are a good amenity to invest in, and you don’t have to spend a fortune.
I actually bought some super cheap standard size ones that were on sale somewhere. I had to cut down the plastic header on one of them with a hacksaw cuz one of my window frames was a bit off, but no one’s the wiser.
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The curtains in my guest room are hung with clip rings, which I love, because it’s easy to just unclip them to wash the curtains. So when they installed a streetlight right across from my house (grrr), I needed blackouts. I just went to the fabric store, bought blackout fabric, cut it to size and hemmed it up and clip it in behind the existing curtains. So it’s like a double curtain, not attached to each other except when clipped in.
Uh-oh! We have a hair dryer in each bathroom tucked away in a drawer, but almost no one actually blow dries their hair in a tropical environment so I don’t know if anyone knows about them.
usually it’s listed in your amenities anyway. It doesn’t ask about things that weren’t there, it’s more to confirm that the listing is accurate, I assume.
I have shamp/conditioner bottles for my guests, previously I kept them in the mirrored wall cabinet to be tidy, but then guests didn’t find them, so now I leave them out on the counter. 
As I explained to the guest I was setting the space up during the winter and didn’t realized how bright the space would be. I should have realized since I have a lot of southern exposure and have ordered a variety of shades from this company. I put some in the rental, but they weren’t blackout. Have some coming soon.
This is my experience, too