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You’ve already gone above & beyond, baked goods, forgiveness for extra guest, and additional “orient & make guest comfortable” time.
As someone who frets over anyone not thinking my listing is perfect, I understand your concern about the review.
There is a point, let it go. They will leave a review or not. I doubt you can do anything more to influence them.
If it is a less than perfect review, you will be fine. If they complain about facilities in next building, at least those guests who look at pictures & read reviews & nothing else will be “warned”.
Lake girl here…what a beautiful spot you have, and home!
I read your description and this sentence probably needs to be broken into several: You will be just a few steps away from our home (my wife and I) with access to the shared bathroom, kitchen and dining room.
In addition to the excellent suggestions for a drawing, I’d suggest you work on the wording to be more obvious on what is IN the little house and what is NOT. And like others, your first message back once you get a reservation should remind the booker that the bathroom and kitchen are across the path, in the main house.
We are on-site hosts too and have a reminder in every booking that we are there, and there is an open stairwell between the floors, and that you’ll hear us, but not see us. At least twice someone said, wait, I didn’t know that and cancelled. And I was happy they cancelled. Problem prevented.
Agreed, this sentence is clumsy and I wouldn’t understand that the bathroom, etc. was a short walk away. No need for the (wife and I).
"The sleeping cottage is a few steps away from the private (to you) bathroom and shared kitchen and dining room in our main home.
I’m a shared home host and I always tell guests - I work from home and my office is on the side of the guest room. The connecting door to the hallway will be closed. If you need more privacy, let me know and I’ll move my office during your stay."
Only ONE guest complained. She complained about everything.
FTFY? The sleeping cottage is totally private - a separate building on the property. To use your private (to you) bathroom and shared kitchen and dining room, it’s just a short walk (outside) to the main building.
Asking for her help is a most excellent idea. Google the Ben Franklin effect, how the best way to convert an enemy to a friend is to ask THEM to do a favor for YOU.
Unless she is so frosted as to be avoiding you, I would show her your proposed floor/building plan drawing to clarify the location of everything to get her feedback, tell her she seems to have great design sense and ask for decor recommendations, can she help you advertise your place to the camp as she obviously knows all the important people there, etc.
“Do you mind if I ask you for some advice? You always look so put together and I bet you’re good at design. I was thinking of re-tiling the bath, and I’m having trouble deciding on style and color. Let me show you . . .”
I’m going to be totally off the wall and suggest that the first thing you should do at the end of this season is plan how you can open next summer with a cottage that has a kitchen, no matter how tiny, and a bathroom. You will be able to greatly increase your rates, and it will end all confusion.
There are very few places we would agree to book without our own bathroom. Barcelona for instance.
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A shared kitchen can be fine, depending. Our preference is for at least a mini-fridge and small kitchenette.
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You got great advice on how to handle the current situation. On the other idea, I agree 100% with @NordlingHouse.
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Much of adding a kitchenette and bathroom can actually be reasonable, especially if you can do much of it yourself. Consider how much more you can charge and the types of guests you can now entertain - naturally this is key. If the idea is a solid ROI in a year or less jump on it. Even 2 years makes a lot of sense.
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Perhaps the tricky part is the plumbing. If your sewer main joins your house in the basement, then calculate 1/8" per foot drop from the cottage to there (plus 1 foot in cottage for drop under toilet).
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Even if this does NOT work it can still be done using “sewage pump (also called effluent pump)”. We had to solve a similar problem for laundry only. I did it myself for about $400. Yours would cost more.
On one hand I think that’s a big investment and the problem isn’t the listing, it’s people who don’t read. An investment in time to draft and save a message that you send after booking that says “Thanks for choosing our place. We had a disappointed guest and want to make sure that doesn’t happen again. Could you please confirm that you understand this is just a covered sleeping area. You’ll have to go into our home to use your bathroom.” And I think there are a lot of people who have no problem at all walking a few steps over to the main house. I’ve seen hundreds of successful Airbnbs of all kinds. You just have to know how to play the angle you have.
OTOH, I made a $16k investment in my little Airbnb suite to add a bathroom and separate entrance and I feel that the payback was only about 1.5 years. And the way it made my life easier was priceless.
@Lakehost I don’t see any window coverings in the pictures. If there aren’t any that’s the #1 thing I would do. I want privacy from you in your house and I also don’t want to wake up at dawn’s early light when on vacation.
Adding on to the existing structure is out of the question due to the close proximity to the lake. We’d love to be able to do this but can not. Thank you for suggestions.
After saying, “…bathroom not in this building” describe (again) where it is.
Sample wording:
…not in this building (Bath is a few steps away in the main building)
Reconsider how you use the guest access text area:
-Guest have access to the private sleeping cottage
-a few steps away in the main building is a bathroom (to be used only by you), and shared kitchen.
-kayak
-bicycles
-grill
-sitting porch overlooking the lake
-dock
(I made these up—I couldn’t remember what you listed)
If there is room in your title
“Unique Lakeside…”. Add “…Glamping our way”
Or title it, “ Unique Lakeside Glamping-style Retreat”
Since Glamping is glamorous camping, no air conditioning & use of detached bath facilities is implied. It sets expectations from the start.
Not surprising. How about a covered walkway? Even at my age I don’t mind a bathroom down the hall, across the way, etc. I’d still camp in the right situation, but I don’t want to go out in the pouring rain and sometimes ya just gotta. At least make sure you have a large sturdy umbrella in the rental.
The idea of putting on some clothes suitable to enter a shared space in the middle of the night is a little daunting so maybe making it a bit more clear how “shared” this bathroom is?
I found cheap, nice, effective blackout curtains at Big Lots. In the bedroom I put sheers underneath the blackouts so if the guest wants to awaken to the sunlight streaming in, the sheers offer a little privacy.
I was trying to describe I put sheers under my blackout curtains. Guests can open blackouts & use sheers for filtering sunlight & offering a bit of privacy.
Worried for nothing. They gave us rave reviews. Now talk me out of feeling bad because I gave them a 4 in communication and mentioned that they brought an extra person.
Reviews are not meant to be a mutual admiration society- they are meant to be honest. You got a rave review because you deserved it- she got an appropriate review which mentioned the aspects she fell down on as a guest. Nothing for you to feel bad about.
Anyone considering renting or letting guests use kayaks, canoes, boats, or bicycles needs to have a serious talk with their insurance agent about protection against the inevitable lawsuits. You don’t want to find out after you’ve been sued!
