Ah, yes, I’m a university professor as well, and you know how when you read a colleague’s syllabus and you see all kinds of weird instructions and warnings that make you scratch your head? (I think the joke is “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, it’s going in the syllabus.”) I imagine that many hosts’ house instructions manuals are a lot like those syllabi!
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Oh boy that sucks. Did you find that BDC guests are worse than Airbnb guests on the whole? Less accountability?
Yes, yes, and yes. Ha! That is so true. It’s like your syllabus becomes a book after a few years of teaching. (Same with the house manuals.) Ahhhh, people… 
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I have to say I have never understood the concept of dining chairs covered in fabric. It’s where people sit to eat. It seems inevitable that they would get food and food stains on them.
1000% yes. There is no 2-way review system, and the messaging is awful, the site it set up for hotels, so it’s setting the wrong expectations from the outset.
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@muddy oh yeah! They were a horrible choice for the airbnb, BUT they look so danged cute, I can’t part with them…yet. Ha! It’s funny though, we have fabric dining chairs in our own home, and it’s been no problem; granted, my husband, son and I are not messy eaters. I’ve never truly understood people who are, or even people who let their kids make huge messes (especially at restaurants, ugh!).
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I always made my kids eat at the table, no wandering around with food. But you know the weirdest thing kids do? They’ll wipe their sticky hands off on the underside of the table.
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OMG! Is that a REAL landline on the wall by the table??
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Even though I think they are being unnecessarily picky I usually listen to what hosts who give me low stars (only about 1%) as they will often say what others are thinking. One thing I got was a Sleeping Duck mattress which at $1800 I thought was super expensive but would ensure a great nights sleep for all. Then when I stayed down there recently it gave me a back ache. Admittedly I normally sleep in a very firm king single “hospital bed” so it may have just been the change. The dog liked it though as he got his own half of the queen double bed, complete with quilt/doona and his own electric blanket (he likes it hot) instead of having to fight me for the same space.
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In answer to the op ;
We have only the best quality stuff, (more or less family heirloom or all handmade) which is one of a kind and unique to our hideaway offering. We give an inimitable style, privacy and authentically different guest experience.
The guests feel the love and nothing has been stolen or broken with the exception of a few scratched pans and broken coffee cup handles. There are no lists of stuff, no cameras and very few rules, but those are generally followed to a T 99% without asking after they are clarified.
Look it up, see the reviews for Tiny Tiki Retro Hideaway!
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When I stayed in my own Airbnb recently I noticed someone had taken the (not very expensive) knife sharpener which also meant the knives weren’t very sharp. But no one had mentioned it. I know people steal teaspoons but they are cheap to replace. And I get that sometimes if you find the perfect spoon you just HAVE to have it. I wouldn’t mind but wish they would tell me so I can replace it from the nearest charity shop.
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I’ll bet most of those teaspoons ended up in the trash and not stolen.
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Where I’m at, it seems like every other guest causes me to want to add a “This rule has a name attached to it” blurb to my House Rules. The only one I’ve really stuck with is “No semi trucks.” My place is on a boulevard, but it’s not really wide enough for commercial vehicles. One guest, a long-haul trucker, arrived in his semi. While neighbors didn’t complain, they also weren’t happy. So I added a blurb about no commercial vehicles, trailers, boats, etc because it’s a busy street and just not enough space to accomodate.
Aside from that, I’ve had several things go missing and be replaced with the cheapest of cheap items, mostly towels and kitchen items. I use nice things in my kitchen and assume most of my guests do too. So while I don’t like furnishing the kitchen like a college student’s first apartment, it saves on replacement costs.
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I’ve seen perfectly nice-looking dishware, etc, in dollar stores. No one would know that you got it there instead of a pricier place. As long as it’s not just a hodgepodge of mismatched stuff, it wouldn’t give the impression of a dorm kitchen. And it doesn’t even have to really match not to seem like a thrift store hodge-podge. Bowls and plates, for instance, could be different sizes and shapes, but if they are all the same color, it could just look eclectic and purposeful.
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LOL no it’s a phone for the front gate. I didn’t even think it worked when we bought the place and then one day it rang! Everyone in the apartment looked stunned.
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I thrifted a full dinner set of Churchill Blue willow crockery at $2 a piece. Every charity shop in town now knows that I will take anything that comes in.
I have a heap of back up pieces for breakages/ theft and they look wonderful on the dressers in my heritage homes.
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It’s very charming, I love it!
It’s reassuring to know you’ve never had any of your belongings go walkabout!
Looking at the captions on your pictures, it looks like you decided to use multiple avenues to deter guests from bringing their dogs – and smoking. There must be some interesting stories there?
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I grabbed what appeared to be a brand new Bodum french press at a thrift store for $1.50. I didn’t even need it, as my current one is fine, but in case I accidentally break the glass beaker, which I have before, I have a replacement which is much much cheaper than buying a new one.
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Hi,
Thank you for checking us out!
We are in an extreme wildfire danger area and cannot have open flames of any kind. We do allow vaping outside. I am sure some guests have smoked but they hide the fact well.
We have a doberman mix and a fawn Doberman. They are both reactive to other dogs, and fenced in near our home. The listing is somewhere that the dogs know what goes on up there. They are usually accepting of usual guest noise and activities.
Someone brought a white Samoyed “service dog”, brushed it, and flushed the hair down the toilet. Caused problems… Someone else was warded off at the pass (offsite meet place) they had 2 puppies in their car.
Guests dogs could be eaten by coyotes or hawks if they are small…
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I never thought of that! Do you think they broke or bent them, or just accidently threw them in the rubbish with the used tea bags? I can imagine for people used to getting their coffee from the office or a cafe that throwing away the disposable stirrer/teaspoon might be second nature so they do it without thinking. or they nick them.