Hosting my first “super host” today and she’s already requesting an early check in. I said yes @ 12 (normal check in is 3:00). She wrote back that she was hoping for 11:00 am check in. 
Why do I already feel like nothing will be good enough for her?
Have you guys found that hosting “superhosts” brings more grief or grace?
I’ve hosted several other hosts before, but never noticed whether they were Superhosts. They’ve all been great guests, none have asked for special favors or been critical.
Hosts are just a cross section of humans, and some will be great and some won’t. I don’t think your guest’s sense of entitlement has anything to do with her hosting status. And I wouldn’t have told her she could check-in 3 hours early.
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She made a point to tell me when she requested to book that she was a superhost. As I’ve learned on here, doesn’t mean much.
I appreciate you noting the sense of entitlement. I thought maybe I was being critical.
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I was chatting with my friend at 7:50 this morning when the guests requested an early check in. I told her the situation and she also said I was being too generous. She isn’t a host, but asked me “is she paying for an early check in?”. She is in town to care for her elderly father, so I was a bit sympathetic.
Well, if she’s a host, she is well aware that check-out times are usually 10-11 am and you wouldn’t be able to book the night before if she checked in by 11 or 12, as there wouldn’t be time to clean. So asking for 11am check-in, without asking if you had guests checking out that morning, indicates she doesn’t consider anyone but herself.
I don’t see anything wrong with offering an early check-in, without an extra fee, if it doesn’t mean you’ll be inconvenienced. I had a guest who when I asked for ETA, said her bus arrived at 9am, but she knew that was too early to check-in, so she’d just find a cafe to hang out in until my check-in of 11am. (I leave one day prep time, so the room is usually ready by the afternoon or evening before).
Since she had no expectation of special treatment, I had no issue telling her it was fine to check-in when she arrived.
Your Superhost guest, instead of just asking for early check-in, and then pushing the envelope, could have politely said “I was wondering, if you don’t have guests checking out that morning, would it be be possible to check in at 11am?”, which would show some understanding and consideration.
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As a superhost I stayed in many Airs in the country and out and never asked for special treatment. Even when flying from the states to France, got there hours before checkin and all I asked was to drop off my suitcase.
Never asked for early checkin.
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I had someone check out yesterday, so the timing was fine. I have an exterminator coming (routine) this morning or I’d have let her come at 11. I don’t dare tell her that’s the case, or I feel like I’m opening myself to a can of worms. Maybe I’m overthinking it though. 
I always look forward to your responses.
Thank you 
I’ve hosted plenty of hosts and never had a problem with them. Bear in mind though that a Superhost could only have been hosting for a few months and it doesn’t mean that their Superhost status implies that they are any better than those who aren’t Superhost,
She has also sort-of insulted you by implying that you don’t have a guest the night before.
It definitely doesn’t mean that they are intimidating in the least. A superhost might be a great guest or might not be - it takes all sorts.
What you have done here is broken one of your own rules. The guest knows that an 11 am check-in is ridiculous (or at least she should know) so in effect she was asking you to break one of your rules. And you accepted it.
With any guest, Superhost, regular host or just a normal guest, breaking your own rules before they even arrive definitely gets you off on the wrong foot.
Like @zillacop I’m a superhost who has stayed at many rentals advertised on Airbnb and never asked for anything out of the ordinary. (And certainly never mentioned being a superhost - that’s just too tacky).
When I’ve had hosts as guests they have usually been great as they know the hard work we do to give them a wonderful stay.
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Unfortunately I’m one of those “superhosts” that has only been hosting for 8 months and I am still so eager to please and exceed my guests expectations. Being too generous is definitely one of my flaws as a host.
What would you have recommended I say to her when she asked for an early check in?
If it’s inconvenient:
“I’d love to let you in early – no charge – but the room/suite just won’t be ready.”
OR
“I’m happy to give you early check-in, but I can’t do it until 2:00pm.”
If it’s convenient:
“As luck would have it, the room/suite will be ready early today, so I’m pleased to invite you to check in early at 11:00am. There is no charge for the extra time.”
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Like @Spark , I’d say that the rental won’t be ready. The previous guests will be checking out at 11 and it takes us between three and four hours to make the apartment perfect for you when you arrive.
I also say that I’ll text the guests and let them know if the rental is ready before check-in time. You can also recommend places for the guests to have coffee / lunch / sightsee / swim / shop / whatever while they are waiting.
I also let them drop off their luggage but I don’t let them into the rental - I look after the luggage in my own apartment. I also recommend two local businesses that will store luggage for a couple of hours for a reasonable sum.
At that point, I feel that I have done the very best that any conscientious host could do.
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Because she’s already set the bar to “Gimme more!! That freebie wasn’t enough.”
As others have mentioned, hosts - super or otherwise - are people. Some “get it” while traveling and others don’t. She led with “I’m a Super Host” probably to intimidate you and show off her hosting prowess. She may find fault with everything because “I do it better at my place.”
I like Sparks replies for guests who ask for early check in. Neat, to the point, polite. And sets boundaries. Remember, it’s your home, your business, your life. This is a fun business if you work hard and set expectations.
Frankly, I wouldn’t host her once she asked for 11am check-in. I’d say something along the lines of “I’m sorry, but allowing a noon check in is the earliest I can do without an additional fee. This listing may not meet your needs, so feel free to cancel your request/IB/inquiry.”
I have had same day check ins and moved to blocking a day so the suite would hopefully be ready, but I work from home and sometimes it isn’t.
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I believe it’s a good move to signal to the guest “I’m doing everything I can to make your stay comfortable,” and not simply convey a “Hey Buddy – rules are rules” message. I did a lot of business travel before I retired, and I always appreciated it when a hotel (this was before Airbnb) found a way to bend the rules – or at least try.
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Telling you she’s a super host upfront is such a red flag to me, especially combined with the 11AM early check-in. Even if you didn’t have a back to back booking, it doesn’t mean you don’t have appointments, upgrades, deliveries to attend to for the listing prior to check-in time.
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We are super hosts and guest favorites and from my personal experience, one of the absolute worst guests we ever had was a super host who lead with her ‘super host’ and demanded everything from entirely new dinnerware to an excel spreadsheet of things wrong with our house when she left.
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Or, unless she IBed, maybe assumes that will get her a sure-fire acceptance. She obviously doesn’t read hosting forums. 
I can’t imagine feeling the need to mention I’m a Superhost if I was booking, which I agree is tacky. If anything, I would assure the host that I wasn’t one of “those” hosts who critique everything and expect special treatment.
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Yep…
202020202020202020
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Yikes, I can’t even imagine.
Normally when I get a response like this I tell them to cancel in 24 hours and I will offer a full refund.
If they decide to keep the booking, the check in time will be 3 pm. It stops all the entitled demands.
There are all kinds of superhosts. Some block nights before a guest and may expect other hosts to do the same.
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I’ve never told any host that I was a host, much less a superhost, before arrival. It has come up with serveral hosts because I stay with owner-hosts who are usually on the property or I’m actually in their house. So it comes up in conversation. Most hosts act like they didn’t know until I told them.
I have no problem hosting other hosts, they have all been great. Telling me upfront that they are a superhost would indeed put them in the debit column and might result in me writing them off entirely however.
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