First Bad Guest - Kind Of!

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Hi, new-ish SuperHost here! I need help/advice about writing my first bad review.

We’ve been renting two private guest rooms in our open air villa since last July. It’s 200 meters from the beach and 100 meters from about 1000 acres of jungle. This is all very clearly described in the listing, which directly tells guests in the description: “there WILL be bugs.”

It’s Costa Rica, y’all.

It’s currently the busiest vacation week of the year, Semana Santa, when all the in-landers head to the beach. It’s quite the party and everything books up, so I raised my rates to discourage the shall we say, more casual travelers…

I had a guest request that I bend my two night minimum so she and her husband could stay last night, as they had been expecting to be stuck working and now had a last minute opportunity to enjoy a night at the beach.

I had the opening because of the unique schedule of our previous guests and that price hike, so I said sure.

The couple checked themselves in without any trouble and things seemed fine until they messaged me at 10:30pm freaking out about bugs. I live on site, so I was at their door in one minute with bug spray - although it’s also supplied in each of the rooms.

Did I mention our tropical location? :joy:

They had come back from the beach, showered, and were apparently getting ready for bed when they saw the bugs; both the man and the woman were nearly hysterical because they “had to kill a cockroach and a bunch of ants!”

All I saw was a dead roach and like four ants… Situation normal, frankly. While I was talking to them a crab scuttled by the door and the woman jumped ten feet.

Claiming she had terrible allergies to insect bites and saying they couldn’t sleep because of all the bugs, they took off within five minutes and of course, demanded a refund.

Ironically, these folks weren’t gringos, they were Costa Rican and she kept saying “we’re from here, this isn’t normal!”

Uh yeah, Princess, it is.

(I lived on the second floor of the high rise next door before we bought this ground level house, and got the same bugs inside every day…)

Anyway. I don’t think they were scammers - I think they are truly just precious snowflakes - but how do write up a review for these folks?

DO I write a review for these folks?

They didn’t stay the night and they didn’t mess things up. They did take one of our “Costa Rica” souvenir towels that we supply for the beach, but brought it back the next day. They sent a refund request through the resolution center for a full refund, which I gave them because I honestly don’t want unhappy crazy people in my house.

They cost me a cleaning, a possible last minute weekend booking, and they were nuts… But they weren’t bad guests as in they didn’t trash the place.

I don’t know what to say other than “these people can’t read.”

Any advice? :pray:

Thanks and Pura Vida!!!

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The fact that they brought the towel back tells me they had some grain of sense, but complaining about anything crawling about in the tropics is peculiar. As other hosts often say, state facts and leave emotions out. If you bother to review at all on the last possible day, perhaps: Guests were put off by bugs. Please note that guests are advised of the occasional presence of insects and tropical creatures. I would have hesitated to refund unless Airbnb insisted. You should share with Airbnb the pertinent area of your description and documentation ,even if its just your notes, of every interaction to argue removal of any bad review by them. Sadly Airbn all too often sides with the guest.

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I keep seeing the advice to review on the last day, but don’t understand why when the other person isn’t shown their review until after both have posted… Can you explain?

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We’ve discussed bugs quite a lot here. My strategy is to have a contract with monthly exterminators who leave an invoice every time they visit. That way I can prove, if necessary, that I’d taken every precaution.

Please leave a review for every guest. That way, future hosts know what to expect.

I’d just be factual and concise. No emotion, no disparaging comments, no sarcasm.

I wouldn’t have done that but shown the exterminators’ receipt to anyone involved.

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ALWAYS REVIEW! Tico or tourist, we hosts need to know what you experienced; the review is more for us than for them. Don’t mess about with that last day nonsense; write your review and post it. Leave out emotion and be factual.

I would NEVER REFUND ANYONE unless AirBNB does It.

“Although Guest-name are native Costa Ricans, and were warned – in writing – that we have bugs here where the jungle meets the beach, they were shocked to discover a couple examples of the local ‘wildlife’ and demanded a full refund even though they did not stay, only used our beach access and the unit’s shower.”

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Love this response, Ken, thank you!

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Your yardstick for “not bad guests” is that they didn’t trash the place? That’s a pretty low bar. Yes, they were bad guests. They asked you to break your no one nighters setting, they didn’t read or heed, and they asked for a full refund. That’s a bad guest in my book.

I understand the concept of wanting to get PITA guests out asap, but refunding them just tells them this is acceptable behavior.

Leave an honest review, please. “Guests failed to read or heed the info about endemic insects, freaked out because they saw a few bugs, and demanded a full refund. Not recommended.”

What’s not to understand? Reviews are blind- neither party can read the other’s review until they are both published, at which point they cannot be changed, to avoid one party’s review being based on the other’s, instead of their actual experience.

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I’ve never had occasion to do this, but this tactic is used when the guest hasn’t already written a review. If you send in your review, they will be prompted to send one, when they may otherwise have decided not to bother. If you wait until the very last minute they will miss the window.

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To be honest, neither do I. I’ve been reading that advice here for years and I understand the logic. But if a guest has had a problem and the host has dealt with it professionally and amicably, why fear a bad review?

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Because there are guests who leave bad reviews regardless of whether the host has dealt with an issue professionally. And I think a lot of hosts can anticipate which ones that will be.

Or there actually weren’t any real issues, the guest was the type who just had endless complaints and fusses over absurd things. I don’t get guests like that, and I don’t think you do either, but there are plenty of hosts who do.

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Once they are notified of your review, they may leave a negative counter review that guests can read, and you may get a low stars rating. If you are worried about a negative review or your score, you should write it ahead of time and cut&paste about 3 minutes before the deadline. They won’t be able to respond in a way that it’s visible to the public, and it will be too late for them to give points.

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I’ve occasionally thought that it was something to do with the price point but if I remember correctly, you wouldn’t agree with that?

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If you mean the idea that higher prices attract better guests, correct, that isn’t true in my case. I have one of the least expensive private room home-share listings in town for what guests get, and have never had a scammer, complaining guest.

I think it partly has to do with the type of guests who are attracted to my listing, and guests seem to be more respectful in home-shares than entire house listings.

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Yes, that’s what I meant. I know it’s been discussed here a lot and at one time, I thought that it might be the case as my current rentals are just a little less expensive than the best local hotel. At some times of year, when there are special events I can at least double the price.

But when I think back to when I was in the UK (in-home hosting) I had one of the cheapest places in town, certainly the best value, I think.

I do expect my current guests to be civilised but I remember that my lower level price guests were too. Because of the area, the guests were usually young single men, and yes, I had to have a stern word with some of them from time to time, but there was never a bad guest.

So it’s not price point. If we can figure out the secret, @muddy, we could probably make a fortune.

:slight_smile:

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I think it can be price point, but that there are other factors involved- location, type of listing, hands-on or remote host, etc.

For instance, guests in different areas of the world can vary in attitude in general because of cutural differences. In some cultures, it’s considered foolish not to try to get a discount, or fairly normal to try to sneak in an extra 10 people to a listing suitable for 4. Some locations, which are known as party towns, like mine, can tend to attract groups which are loud and disturb the neighbors. I don’t have that issue because I only host one guest in a private room in the countryside, but entire house listings in town here do tend to have issues with partying yahoos.

I have read plenty of posts from hosts who definitely saw a difference in the quality of guests they got when they raised their prices, with all other factors staying the same.

The error is in taking one’s own personal experience and extrapolating it to all listings, i.e. making a statement that “low prices bring low quality guests”, as if that were some indisputable, universal fact.

All Airbnbs are different, in so many ways, including whether price has anything to do with getting bad guests.

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You make a great point there muddy.

I think that your point about hands-on is an important one too. I know that some people are successful remote hosts but I couldn’t do it unless I had a brilliant co-host.

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Gotta be you, Sarina! How’s my cat?:wink: I agree with everyone else, please leave an honest review. Ken said it best, reviews are for fellow hosts. I certainly wouldn’t want this pita staying with me! I wonder how she’d have reacted to a howler right off the patio?…

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Yes write a review. It’s for your fellow hosts, not the guests. Simple and effective to the point “Our listing clearly states we are located at the edge of a jungle by the beach and there WILL be bugs - despite bug spray provided and all precautions taken. Local native guests were afraid of the bugs and checked out quickly.” Someone here will wordsmith this better.

I’ve been to Costa Rica several times, staying in open air eco cabins, a tree house, and aside from the roach-infested dump in Puntarenas and the mozzies that loved me in Bocas del Toro Panama (over 50 bites in 1 day), I loved the wildlife. I’m blonde so the scarab beetles love my hair at night and they’re really cool. I’m amazed that a native would freak like that.

It’s a double blind system to keep everyone honest. Which means that you wait until the last minute to review them so they can’t retaliate on your review.

Agreed. They are locals and while they’re probably not scammers, and did return the towel, your listing was everything they wanted.

Make ABB earn their fees.

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the first time I jumped out of bed thinking someone was being murdered at zero dark thirty! My then-husband couldn’t stop laughing. then they threw mangos at him, so… payback.

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We have chachalacas here. Sort of a cross between a wild turkey and a pheasant. Crazy loud sound.

https://www.google.com/search?q=chachalaca+sound&oq=chachalaca&aqs=chrome.2.69i57j46i512j0i512j46i512j0i512l2j46i512j0i512.7580j0j7&client=ms-android-americamovil-mx-revc&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:b19c594e,vid:H0H8ZwFc8EU,st:0