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Chris, I made my guests wait twice out of 250, and both times people were upset. Once i was sick in bed, and guests could not open code for the door. BY the time i got up and put clothes on, 10 minutes passed. A woman was visibly upset, she said she was very tired, and its burning heat outside. Second time i was away, and a guy could not come in because another guest took his keys too for some reason. The guy did not even want to wait. He called air and they cancelled and he booked somewhere else.This is how bad it was for him.
I once could not get into appartment in Munich. I came to the door, and did not even know wich door i was supposed to go through. Host was nowhere to be found, and she did not answer my calls. I was wondering around for half anhour, after transatlantic flight and not sleeping for 24 hours. Finally i stumbled on a key that was visible through the doormat.
I cant call myself princess, i stayed in some rough places and not once but many times. It feels very unwelcoming when you cant get in, and it feels like owner does not care. Thats why there is an arrival rating.
When we arrived we were told that the sheets were with the cleaners and that by the time we arrived back (as we were going out) the sheets would be back and the hosts would be ready (in my mind this means made). This is more my complaint that they said they were going to make the beds but then didnt. Its abit like the faucets, please dont set the expectation that youre going to do something if you dont. Id rather the host yes âyou need to do thisâ or âI wont fix thatâ rather than committing themselves to something they dont do, if that makes sense.
Personally, when I travel outside the US, I do bring âgreat expectationsâ with me, but not physical ones but cultural ones. That is why I am there.
None of the things that took place in this particular case I would have wasted much time on individually. Even the faucet - ââEngmarâ (whatever your name) hand me a wrenchâ. The less drama, the better. Yes, I could certainly understand however that collectively, all the little things could be annoying to someone else.
Since traveling outside the US is usually so much fun and exciting, and one is usually so focused on why one came, usually that enthusiasm helps to oversee all the annoying hurdles of getting there and staying there.
(Be in Amsterdam in June,2017. Donât think will be staying at Engmarâs place)
European prices are quite different. In 2012, I stayed in a cheap hotel in Paris, 11th A, single room with sink and bidet. Toilet along the hall, shower next floor. up. No elevator, lots of stairs, use of fridge and microwave at reception. Lovely view from a window. Some of the towels were ragged, but clean. âŹ40 per night. I decided that location was key, price 2nd, and I could cope with stairs, bath facilities etc. So, 2 bdrm apartment for a week, shared by how many isnât too bad, if two shared then itâs âŹ72 per night.
Waiting 15 minutes considering that it wasnât a snow storm, or pouring with rain isnât a tragedy. Putting sheets on yourself was your choice. We donât know why the sheets were late, thatâs unfortunate. Hotels can have you waiting for a room to be made up, and have plumbing problems, or broken air conditioner. I stayed at the Delta Chelsea downtown Toronto a few years ago. Sat in the bed and it sagged to the floor, supposedly 5 star hotel. When we complained a new room was assigned, but Iâm sure that bed wasnât fixed, and was probably assigned to another guest that day.
I do not think you are a diva. Regardless of the locationâthere should be a high level of STANDARDS. I am a hostâ if I left guests in this situation, Iâd be incredibly ashamed of my lack of attention to details! I try my best to make sure that every corner of my place is sparkling clean, and I always have an abundance of TP and paper towels! I want guests to know that I feel gratitude for them having chosen my place. Soooo what if that TP, soap, shampoo, paper towels and Kleenex might cost a lil extra moneyâ Iâm in the business to WELCOME guests and create a space that helps them feel completely comfortable! Okay⌠My rant is over now! Write a review that is the TRUTH-- do not worry how future hosts might perceive you! We are in this cycle together and we need to hold our expectations at a high level! Everyone I know works hard for their money-- the next potential guest will be grateful to you!
Ok, @Nonna tell us how you really feel, stop holding back.
Seriously speaking, I definitely would have spend some time, trying to educate these folks privately, and try to convey upon them that the little things do count.
I left my review last night, I was nice in the public review, gave 3 pros and 1 con (the stairs) and then took on @Garden1Gnomeâs suggestions and basically wrote what she said.
However all of my star reviews and comments were reasons why I basically gave 3 stars for most things.
Although I do have a question now that I gave my review, the first page is star ratings and âthings youd like to have passed onâ some of these are locked to the host but others âweâll pass your suggestions onto the hostâ. I filled them all in thinking this was the feedback bit, then it goes to public comments, the next page says what private feedback would you like to give, does all of my previous feedback not go back to the host? As Id already spent well over an hour on the first page trying to be clear with my points, I kind of grazed over this bit because, again, I assumed the feedback from page 1 counted⌠Please can someone clarify how this works? Thanks you again for all your patience and help with this!
This all depends on the nightly revenue per guest.
It sooooo easy to rant about these things, if you are able to $100 per guest per night, but it is a whole different world if they only pay $15 per night.
Chris, absolutely true, but if youâre the host, why bother at all if you canât cover minimal expectations? I believe I would close the shop!
Note, I didnât suggest leaving orange juice, fresh bread and fruitâŚ(which is standard for my guests.) Perhaps I shouldâve refrained from commenting seeing that I donât know the âstandardâ rate per night for that part of the globe. But, back to fresh sheets on the bed, thatâs a MINIMAL expectation/requirement!
What are minimal expectations? Different kinds of guests have different expectations. I clearly have a different target group than you have. That is why I avoid hosting other hosts, 95% of them are unable to think outside their own little world. They do not understand that there are guests who are happy to have less luxury, so they still can afford taking their children on a nice holiday.
So fresh sheets on the bed is not a standard, and not a minimal expectation.
Like others and myself mentioned in previous posts, many vacation homes get rented without bedding.
I know some very large holliday rentals7parks, where you can to take your own bedding, or rent it.
If you rent it, you have to pick it up at the reception of the park, and make the beds yourselves.
We include bedding, but for non AirBnB guests we do not include towels, this is common practice where we operate.
We changed it for AirBnB, because most AirBnB guests we get are intercontinental and do not know this.
If we get European AirBnB guests, one of the standard questions the guests asks is if they need to take bedding or towels.
Nonna, there are so many âstandardsâ around the world of living. Letâs not forget Airbnb is a house sharing. There is no standard when it comes to amenities, itâs not a hotel.
I stayed in poorest homes where every penny counts, for almost nothing , for me, but for hosts it was a lot of money.
I stayed in Airbnbs where hosts charged extra for beddings.
It was minuscule amount of money and I gladly paid bcs it was obvious for them it was a lot.
I expect many things from hotel because they are given stars depending on amenities and level of luxury , but not from Air hosts. Thatâs why I prefer to stay at jotels
Yana and Chris,
Point well taken! And, contrary to how Iâm presenting on this thread, I do get what youâre saying.
As a new host (started July 2015) I spent several hours setting up my Airbnb profile to accurately portray EXACTLY what my guests could expect at my place. My pictures and descriptions are on-pointâŚI believe that as hosts that we have a obligation to our guests, to leave very little to the imagination. As a guest, I would hope that if there were 72 steps ( if I recall that correctly) that Iâd KNOW that going in⌠If I needed to bring my sheets and towels I would certainly be prepared⌠But, to be surprised, thatâs not the way I want to represent Airbnb. I enjoy my Superhost status because I believe it represents that Iâve communicated well with my guests.
I would hope that we could agree that cleanliness is a minimal expectation, no mater where the listing.
I can deal with:
no bedding,
Walk-ups (have stayed in a few- Fee gym!)
Ugly furniture
Cheap furniture
No dishwasher/oven/AC/TV/tub/microwave (as long as not listed in the amenities)
Cramped space
Thin, small towels
Etc etcâŚIf priced accordingly
But dirt , grime, bugs*, dust, expired food, grease, mold, mildew, bad smells
NO, no no.
Not acceptable anywhere in the world, at any price, when you are a paying guest.
*beyond insects that would be considered normal for the particular climate, like in the tropics
But I have to confess that I have some mildew issues in some showers, the sealant of the tub and doors start to turn black at some spots. I need to cut out the sealant, and replace it, but I have to wait until I have a few days without guests.
Iâm with the guest here. I would never think of having a guest arrive and the bed not be made. This kind of hosting gives Airbnb a bad name, and if I were the guest Iâd leave a one-star review, and also place a call to Airbnb to complain.
So another person who would not bother to find out if the local region even provides made beds, much less linen. But you would call Airbnb and leave a 1 star review?? I hope you are not a host yourself. This is why so many hosts decline other hosts. They cannot even imagine another way of doing things outside of their own culture.
I sure would be, because I know they do such things. Some guests really are disgusting and do things that make me shake head. More than anything else though, the reason I personally have the bed made up is that I am aiming to provide a âbetter than hotelâ experience - not a cut-price DIY budget holiday experience. Even so, there are certain things that I do purely for selfish reasons and so as not to waste my own time.
For example, I sleep two and only use single duvets. If I get a âsolo guestâ booking, I leave a spare pillow without pillowcase, and spare duvet without cover, just in case they bring someone home etc. (I drape the clean covers over them and leave them in an obvious place - this means Iâm not wondering whether the item was used - if itâs untouched after the stay I donât have unnecessary washing to do.) Having said that several guests have put the cover aside and used the pillow or duvet with no cover. Honestly. I donât wash them after every guest. Would you put your face on it?
As for the mattress mine has a waterproof cover anyway, which only gets washed if it gets soiled. But again, I am 100% that some guests would sleep on it rather than bother with sheets, so I always make the bed up myself.
Would I ding a host for not making a bed? If the listing photos show the beds made up, and the listing & local tendency is for beds made up, then yes. If I were staying in a gĂŽte in France and pics showed clean linen stacks on each bunk bed, then no.
The reason I asked the question is that my brother slept on a bare mattress throughout his adolescent years. He was too lazy to make his bed. Iâm pretty sure that while unusual, he wasnât unique.
If a place requires that you bring your own linens, then of course youâre going to make your own beds. Thatâs an entirely different context from that of the OP.
When a unit provides linens & the host asks, âdo you want me to make the bed?â you donât think this indicates the hostâs acknowledgment that this is a standard expectation? If this werenât the case, wouldnât the host say, âhere you go - fresh clean sheets! Enjoy your trip!â
