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We almost always leave a day between bookings . We put 2p.m. as check-in time but we know that a lot of fights from Northern Europe arrive here round about 11a.m. Allow an hour for them to get their hire car, 20 minutes to us from the airport so many will be arriving around noon.
So in our message a week before they arrive we ask what time they plan to arrive, give them directions and say “As you will see, our check-in time is 2p.m. but if your flight will be arriving earlier, let us know and we will try to accomodate this.” As we’ve had the previous day to turn over, we nearly always can accomodate this earlier check-in - and this gives us extra kudos from the guests as they think we’re doing them a favour!
First, we’re not hotels. We’re home owners who allow people to stay in our homes for a fee. Second, many of us have regular jobs, so 4:00 is likely this host’s earliest available time. Third, you’re an individual like the rest of us, so what works for you is great but won’t work for everyone. And fourth, yes, it really matters if they’re early. It changes the host’s day, plans, etc.
My biggest pet peeve is when guests ask for an early check-in and then don’t show up early… This has happened to me a few times and I had gone out of my way to get the apartment ready. Now I only give early check-in if I’m going to have it ready anyway. I no longer make a special effort. I remember pinging one guest to see where they were and it was such a beautiful day they decided to eat lunch on the waterfront and take a walk around the lake… Otherwise they were great guests so I left them private feedback rather than ding them in the review.
We have a template for this type of communication and it comes from our remote lock. We’ve have 250+ stays with us and we’ve never had someone show up early.
Guests ask for early check-in … and we refer them to the AirBnB schedule. If there is no one before or after them … we allow an extended check out or early check in. In the high season, we are firmly booked and this never happens. In the off season, we’re happy to accommodate where we can.
The remote lock ensure we don’t ever wait and that the guest can check in at any time. We also have a detailed list of places that guests can grab lunch if their flights are early to the island.
Hope my template and experience helps
Dear < Guest Name >
Here is your access code for your upcoming stay with us. Our property is equipped with a keyless entry door lock for your convenience. It’s part of our commitment to providing you an easy and simple check-in experience as part of your 5 star AirBnB stay with us.
Access Code: XXXX
< insert address>
Access times: 09-30-2017 3:00 PM to 10-03-2017 10:00 AM
Access instruction: Hi there and welcome to our home at < address, province, country > . To unlock the door, enter the above access code followed by the “LockState” button. To lock the door, press the “LockState” button twice. Please note the check in time and manage your schedule accordingly. Your door code will not work outside of these times.
If you have any questions, please feel free to call us at XXX-XXX-XXXX or email at XXXXX@XXXXX.com.
@Helsi - this template is delivered automatically from our Lockstate lock. We’ve had no confusion with our guests on date format. Guests are aware of their own AirBnB booking dates.
This happens to me all the time. My check-in time is at 14:00, people announce they’ll arrive till 12:00 or 13:00 and then they almost never do. They’re not counting on the traffic… Most of the time it would really be great if they would come earlier as the apartment is usually ready by noon, so it would be great to greet them early and go about my business. People who really do want to (or in some cases, even show up early, unannounced) usually travel the whole night and arrive already around 7 or 8, which I simply cannot and would not accommodate. I don’t know why they simply do not book the previous night and enter the apartment first thing in the morning? It seems that absolutely everyone is too cheap for such an arrangement.
We had never sent check-in details a few days prior to a guest’s arrival until we started using @smartbnb.io. It never seemed necessary. Guests can see the exact same details on Air under the View Itinerary button. And up until the time we started doing it - no one ever had a problem getting here. So, it didn’t seem as if this would be helpful.
But, when we started using smartbnb.io - you can schedule automated messages to go out at certain times. So I thought I’d play around with it and just see what happened. I created a message to go out 3 days before a guest’s arrival that has the exact same information about getting to our place that they can get on Air. So, I was really amazed when guest after guest started arriving and as they walked in the house they said, “THANK YOU SO MUCH for sending that info the other day!!”
I guess even though it’s on Air, people just like to have something put right in front of their face at the exact time that they realize they’re going to need it. They may have forgotten it was on Air or they may have forgotten how to get to it. Whatever it is - a lot of people do appreciate getting this info a few days before they arrive. And smartbnb - makes it absolutely effortless to send!
Speaking of the devil - smartbnb just sent out a 3-day-prior check-in message to a guest who is coming in 3 days. Look at this message she just sent in…
“Thank you so much for the very detailed directions!
I tend to fly by the seat of my pants.
But I also have a bad sense of direction, so this is great.
I will see you Friday afternoon.”
We started with 2 Lockstate 5i locks. We’ve bought two mor since. The integration is a bit clunky and setup takes about 15 mins the first time and 45 seconds the next time.
The integration with AirBnB is solid and has helped automate our communication and check in process.
The event monitor helps to track activity of our cleaners … So we pay when they enter the door after a guest checks out.
It also helps to remotely open doors for guest who can’t read an email.
I don’t want to sound like a commercial for them but we won’t have another AirBnB without an IoT type lock like this.
Hope this helps but I’m happy to elaborate on the use case.
That is very helpful. I am a first time host and purchased the Schlage Connect because it seems to have most of the functions you mentioned but will much better reviews. Really looking forward to having the ability to set paramenters for when the guest-specific code will work.
When people travel there are a lot of details to remember, and AirBnB is not particularly good at presently info in their emails, so what you are doing would be extremely helpful to many travelers.
I had an Instant Book reservation this morning for tomorrow, which came with a “request” to check out “slightly later, at 4 pm” the next day. Our check in/out times are 5 pm/10 am! I politely told the guy that his “slightly” was six hours later than check-out, with check-in at 5pm, leaving me an hour to change over two rooms. I told him we could not offer this, that IBs cannot have conditions attached, in our HRs etc; please will you cancel.
His next message: “sorry, I should have explained; we just want to leave our bags with you early on Saturday, and leave them with you until later on Sunday. You will have access to your rooms after 10 am on Sunday”.
Grrrrrr. So now I have two conditions attached to his IB, devoid of specific times! I wrote back that unfortunately I do not offer a staffed concierge service, nor a left luggage facility ( except an unsuitable cowshed…); that we live here too and cannot cancel our weekend commitments to meet his needs, that I didn’t think we were a good fit for him so would he please cancel. I also called Airbnb and spoke to a lovely guy who cracked up laughing when he read the thread. We agreed I’d leave it for half an hour before I cancelled penalty free. I then got tied up booking a ferry for our lovely American ladies and forgot. He cancelled an hour later thankfully.
So thank you to all those threads from lovely folk encouraging us Freshers not to roll over and be bullied by people’s outrageous expectations.
They’re not counting on the traffic… Most of the time it would really be great if they would come earlier as the apartment is usually ready by noon, so it would be great to greet them early and go about my business. People who really do want to (or in some cases, even show up early, unannounced) usually travel the whole night and arrive already around 7 or 8, which I simply cannot and would not accommodate. I don’t know why they simply do not book the previous night and enter the apartment first thing in the morning? It seems that absolutely everyone is too cheap for such an arrangement.
