This is bizarre, almost inexplicable. The bit about rearranging your books feels quite monstrous to me; I’d feel quite shaken by such odd behaviour. TG they have gone.
I do like the suggestion from Magwitch for a review.
Sorry, I have to disagree. They were only there for one night! I could maybe understand if it was a week. And the whole point of changing the check in process to self-check in was because they were so late. It was inconsiderate and rude behavior and it should be noted in the review so they learn that is not acceptable.
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Reminded me of this
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Were your guests in their 20’s? My friend’s 24 year old daughter routinely travels using Airbnb. She & her friends think it is a wonderfully funny game to rearrange nick-knacks & furniture, often placing the nick-knacks in bizarre places.
I’ve tried to explain that is disrespectful and time consuming for the host. I’m old. I don’t understand that the “host loves the game…”. I would hate it for her but maybe a couple of poor host reviews would get her attention.
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What the what? Yeah the hosts should play a wonderfully funny game called “Thumbs Down.” First 20 something to collect enough to get kicked off Airbnb wins.
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How eye-opening ~ I would never have come up with the idea that the OP’s guests were humoring themselves and having a laugh on the host by rearranging the décor in her rental. I’ll bet you’re right that they were young people. I sure hope it won’t be the new trend.
When I was renting out my 3 bdrm lakefront, I had guests who removed all the décor and essential use items (salt/pepper shakers, books, clocks, etc.) from table tops, shelves, counters, etc., and put them in an unused kitchen cupboard and then left them! They brought a 2-yr. old with them (unbeknownst to me) and was apparently child-proofing the place. I learned about it from the housecleaner who said she had hunted for the things and that’s where she found them. I thanked her for noticing and finding everything but…
…when I next checked the unit, which was three sets of 6 guests later, everything was still in the cupboard! I took that rental off the market because I knew it wouldn’t work with a housecleaner short on grey matter. … 
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In my (very short) checkout checklist I say, “if you moved any furniture, please put it back where it was, and if you’ve unplugged something please plug it back in.” Little stuff gets moved around all the time, but after guests moved everything except the heavy sofa and the armoire hiding the TV out of the living room, I added that language. Really ticked me off. They were jerks. Everything was in the dining room I went in after checkout.
Similar but different—After guest/thieves cleaned out my friend’s owner’s closet (off hinges, no evidence), she asked the cleaning service to open & check the closet between rentals. Their response was that they were there to clean, not monitor her belongings. If she wanted that service, she needed to pay them more because it took their time.
I wonder if it was that, you were paying her to clean & see if everything was there…not put it back.
If it were only that simple but no, she did housecleaning for three neighbors for about 10 yrs. and they all praised her. I started calling on her seasonally to do the things I didn’t want to do myself (clean over the fridge and cabinets, bathrooms, glass sliders and tables, etc. - ugh!). She knew my standards and where everything went. The first summer I had it as a STR, she did the cleaning for about 10 sets of guests. It was okay. It was into the second summer when this happened.
Why the heck she didn’t put everything back to where they belonged is beyond me. She had a thick accent but we always managed to communicate just fine. Since she was dealing with renters, I think she just got (starts with an L and ends with a Y) but who knows why it wouldn’t occur to her.
I would always call her and ask how the previous guests left the place because I still had their deposit and could deduct for any damage, etc., and she would always say, “ees OK, ees fine.” So I come back and find wine stains all around the light gray carpet! Had she even tried to get the stains out or told me about them so I could call in a carpet cleaner? No!!
I had never dealt with wine stains before so it was with heavy heart that I drug out the Bissell machine to clean the ruined carpet, but lo’ and behold ~ all the stains came out! I owe it to the previous owners who had put in a quality wool carpet.
Anyway, I decided that without a good housecleaner, I would be tempting fate so I stopped renting the place out
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What a smartarse thing to do. That would bloody annoy me!
What is the need to touch decor items (or move lounges) in a 12 hour stay, the majority of time being for sleeping purposes? Why!
I would actually message them and ask? But I guess that could make them “find” negatives fir their review.
i used to get so annoyed at people moving things, but the fact is you have to get over it.
kids move things, people push the couch over, people don’t put the bowls plates etc back in the right place.
i would say something about late arrival but not the moving things
omg this happened to me, they moved all my bedside lights everything in the kitchen nto the top of the cubpaords and just left and i was like wtf, later they messaged saying sorry it was unsafe for our baby!!!
I’m going to be devil’s (i.e. guest’s) advocate here. We have stayed at the same lovely place in Cape Town 4 times now - we have become friends with the owners and often go out for a meal or to a concert with them while we are there. The apartment is tiny but beautiful with the comfiest bed we have ever slept in. The owner’s husband is a florist - actually he’s way above a florist, I suppose you’d call him a floral artist/designer; does all the smart society weddings and parties. So, in the apartment EVERY surface is covered with objets d’art, vases (19 at last count) candelabra, silver bowls, ostrich eggs, Verdigris trays etc etc. All very beautiful, but there is nowhere to put down a humble magazine, guidebook, tablet or crisp packet.
So my first job when we arrive is to put away half of the lovely décor items (including some of the two dozen or so scatter cushions, although I am myself a cushion freak) We usually stay at least two weeks and of course I put everything back - hopefully in the right places - before we leave. The only drawback is that we usually invite them for a drink with us at some point, so I have to rush around replacing all the cushions, vases, ostrich eggs, silver bowls, candelabra etc …
In our Air apartment I really don’t mind if guests change things around or put them away. Everyone has their different living styles and since our décor is quite minimalist it’s easy to make things picture perfect again for the next guests. I want people to feel at home and if they don’t happen to like the few ornaments I have (or are worried that the baby might break them!) I’m not going to be upset if they temporarily remove them. Life really is too short …!
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The big difference here is a two week plus stay vs a one night stay and living in a place vs and overnight stay.
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My decor is really minimalistic, I stick to the wall paintings and occasional vase or a bowl with lavender and other Mediterranean herbs, maybe a vase if guests wish to buy/pick some flowers or a fresh bundle of asparagus. Therefore I usually don’t have problems with this, but I do with some other things. For example, taking the warm blankets from the closet (which I leave there in the case someone is especially sensitive to cold or for the occasional colder night) and taking them to the beach/using them in the courtyard as a playground for their children. Or putting dirty or poorly washed dishes back into the kitchen cabinets. Grrrr! Just leave them in the sink! Like I won’t notice it. Or pine needles on my blankets.
There’s a difference between moving stuff to provide clear or safe areas and moving it to be mischievous. In both cases,you should move it back before checkout if you are the guest.
I had someone break a table by moving it, then destabilize the bed platforfom by trying to move it without taking the mattress off first and so had to make it a house rule. Please don’t move furniture. Furniture moved incorrectly can and will break. I also added, if you really want to move something, please come get my help. No one has done that and no one has moved anything.
Wait a minute. Didn’t you just say to “get over it” if people move things? Am I missing something?
The women who were here last night (from midnight to 10 am) tried to get into my locked closet. It has sliding bypass doors and the pin lock is mounted at the bottom. When you try to slide the doors you can’t. One really has to make an effort to push the doors apart to get the pin out of the hole it’s seated in. And then as they continue to force the door open it scrapes along the bottom making a noise and damaging the paint. There is absolutely no excuse for it. Otherwise they were good guests.
Do I mark them down a star? Well, it’s not a rule to “do not attempt to open the closet.” They are only the second set of guests to attempt it to the extent of getting the pin out of the door. So I don’t want to add it to the rules that few read anyway. I don’t want signs all over the room, it’s hotel like enough as it is. Thumbs down? No, of course not. A bad review? Nope. A private message mentioning it? Maybe. Putting it in the things you want Airbnb to know? Yes. I have this fantasy that these things are kept on record so if they end up breaking into something else Airbnb can kick them off the platform for repeated violations.
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@KKC
So your lock is visible and they still tried to pry it open? Did you shake your head and mumble something about WTF (not Wed, Thurs, Friday) under your breath?
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@K9KarmaCasa-why aren’t you going to give them a thumbs’ down? They attempted to break into your locked closet. Do you only give them a thumbs’ down if they succeed?