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For me, it depends. Since Airbnb has recently changed how they show the number of beds/how many the room sleeps for each room, there seems to have been more confusion.
In the past I’d only had it written down in the listing info that it could sometimes be and option to have a single mattress on the floor (next to the twin bed).but had it showing as “sleeps 1”. I guess I go on a case-by-case basis. If I get simultaneous booking inquires that would overload the desired capacity I generally go with whoever’s inquiry I received first, or who might be the best fit.
I have turned down plenty of requests (as I get more savvy in this, I decline more and more, as my radar has gotten better). I no longer think “Oh, they sound awful, but maybe they’ll change when they get here”. One hundred percent of the time when they’ve been a pain they have been terrible guests. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem answering questions, inquiries, how far I am from something etc etc - even if they’re already in the listing - which we know they usually are.
Even when the listing clearly shows the maximum is 1 in a room, that I can’t host little ones (stairs and house set up not safe for the littles, unfortunately) I’ve still had inquiries, asking to have 2 adults and a toddler in one room. Multiple times. So there’s that. Maybe it’s determined by location? There’s also a shortage of longer-term rental housing in my city, so that comes into play as well. People are also coming to the city for work and school so that means that unless my entire calendar is completely booked/blocked off (and even when it is) I’m always dealing with inquiries. I get messages from people asking for dates that are already booked etc. etc.
OK, thanks for that. How nice for you that you’re in such demand. I remember those days! Now I’m competing with people who are listing en-suite places for £25 a night
I completely understand your right to decline requests but I would caution that this will a) affect your search placement and b) it’s pretty crap to be declined as a guest, no matter how nicely you put it.
I don’t care what Airbnb says about how it’s ok to decline guests, bottom-line it’s a huge disincentive for users, particularly newbies. So there is no way that they (Air) will promote you if you are a serial decliner. Also, if you find yourself continually having to decline people there is possibly something in your listing that needs adjusting? I know you said that people are asking on the off-chance - maybe some CAPS are in order?! We CANNOT ACCOMMODATE XXXXX for eg. It won’t fix everything but it might save a bit of time for both you and guests.
Well, here’s the thing - I’ve been hosting guests in my home for over 15 years (3 of them on Airbnb). So I know what happens regarding searches etc. My listings come up as “rare.find” which encourages guests to book. I only turn down a small percentage of bookings.
I have considered doing it in all caps, and it struck me as condescending, but since I’m being called that on this thread anyway…
This next part isn’t directed at you, Magwitch, I’m just too tired to figure out where to post it on the thread…
However, I do feel exhausted by having to defend myself on this thread. I really liked the useful things that I’d read on this forum over the past while, so I came on to share my situation and to ask for what other hosts would do.
There were some helpful folks (like yourself) and then it spiralled to some not so helpful, (read: righteous) folks who feel that they are somehow able to magically intuit the “feelings” of this guest (not to mention the size and capacity of my home without my ever having mentioned them). Frankly, I find that baffling - not to mention unpleasant.
The situation has been resolved to the satisfaction of the guest (who is very happy, asked to write a review even if she didn’t stay with me because I was “so kind and helpful” and has said she’d like to stay with me in the future), myself and Airbnb. So… done and dusted.
So does this thread stay open for me to be lambasted unto eternity by others who may want to criticize after the fact?
It’s one thing to come her for a particular situation, hear input, weigh the opinions and make a decision. It’s another to be one person at the receiving end of that amount of ongoing criticism. While I realize that this may be from hosts who are fortunate enough not to be working 3 jobs to make ends meet (unlike myself) and who would accept any guest request based on the $ or length of stay, that is not the case for everyone.
The default occupancy for my rooms is one person. Sometimes I will change the setting for one of the rooms to allow two people, e.g. low season. When the actual number of people in the house changes, I adjust the number of persons (up or down) allowed in each room depending on my reservations. On occasion, I have had guests ask if I would allow a second person. Depending on the number of people in the house, I have sometimes said yes to these inquiries. On occasion, I turn off IB to avoid overbooking. HTH
