Microwave popcorn bit me in the ass, that stinks for weeks.
And I used to give a pomegranate in the fruit bowl but then all my cutting boards were stained red.
Way back when I was about 19, my boyfriend and I rented a house that had a pomegranate tree in the backyard. At some point I put a half a cut pomegranate on a saucer in the fridge, which stained the plate. But that saucer kept changing color over time- it went from red to purple to blue. It was so strange.
Between the smell and digging it out from under the sofa it went the way of the eggs. No popcorn for you.
RR
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I think you have confused this with an acid trip
lol
RR
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Nah, at that point, I was pretty innocent. I think I’d just smoked my first joint about 6 months previous, and it was years after that I ever tried acid.
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Why charge them as an add on? Why not raise the nightly rate and “gift” these items. I think guests would be delighted to have a gift of fresh eggs, pie or flowers but might feel like you’re nickle and diming them if you ask to charge for these adds on.
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@Ritz3 So any reasons. One being that wasted food is such a huge problem here (in the US) and with covid precautions we toss anything in the kitchen that’s leftover. Second- we do have welcome gifts, but there’s plenty of people who appreciate our current rates. I don’t want to raise the price and scare off potential guests just to support what I’d consider optional pantry add-ons. Finally, we live in a community of farm stands which is something we considered doing. But don’t have a proper turn-off for folks to pullover safely. This is a way to be sustainable and we donate extra produce + eggs to the local food pantries for folks in need
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I supply plenty of food for guests but I don’t have waste. Two reasons - a) with foods like yogurts etc. I always buy the ones with distant sell by dates and b) I only leave items for guests that we will eat at home if the guests don’t use them. Could be worth a try?
I’m afraid that I don’t remember how long you’ve been hosting but you might want to give higher prices a try if you haven’t already. We have the most expensive nightly rates in the area but both apartments are almost always back to back. Just a thought 
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Why not make the ‘offer’ via message or sign rather than leave things for guests? That way, 0% spoilage or waste…
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Sighhh. Just looking for advice on how to offer add-ons not if.
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Send the guests an email with a pdf price sheet as part of your final welcome email or a link to a website that describes what you offer. Then accept payments through various platforms as mentioned (Venmo, etc).
You can set up an on-line “store” and accept payments through PayPal, for instance.
You shouldn’t have any issues with AirBnB since these are optional expenses for tangible goods.
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Take the best and leave the rest. You can take venmo or cash, honor bar or swipe the guests credit card. Clearly you have made up your mind this is a good idea, don’t worry about those who disagree.
RR
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Why I’m planning to replace my front lawn where no one ever plays croquet any more with raised beds with high hoops and plastic. Fresh organic veg, right here! We have a local growers coop now to sell through, which is part of my plan.
Without my defunct tour business, I’ll have time to rototiller Grandma’s old veggie garden behind the house, and pull the stump of the 40 year old Montmorency cherry tree, rotted, so I cut it down 2 years ago.
The root system puts up runners, and extends 20 meters from the stump, across my property and into neighbors. I give away at least a dozen starts a year.
No garden back there this year, just a nitrogen cover crop and some old tires turned into potato planters. Next year, maybe a greenhouse. A few neighbors several blocks away have chickens, but my back garden is on a black bear pathway, so no captive birdies for me.
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Many places I’ve stayed the ‘add ons’ were little free items ranging from bottles of local wine to hosts’ homemade cookies and treats to free breakfast materials left in the fridge. Want a 5-star review for being remarkable, free add ons are an easy way to deserve it and earn it.
For paid add ons the best were local items during international travel, little food items the city or town or location was known for, a type of fresh pasta in a nice little bag, wine bottled at the place you are staying, tasty sweet treats the region is known for. The easiest method was a nice little sign explaining their history with a little wicker honor basket to place your money in for something you wanted to purchase. This was a low-key way to present it and was appreciated as not feeling like an upsell.
Trying to sell your guest farm fresh eggs? Well, these aren’t really that special or hard to source today, they seem a little tacky to try to sell to a guest, because the guest knows they came from your own chickens and you probably have a surplus like most of us who know or have chikens. But that might just be the way I see it, some people may think it’s really something special to be able to buy a few eggs from you.
I have an “honour system” pantry cupboard and deep freeze at one of my guest homes. Guests love it, as we are 50 miles from the nearest small town grocery store, and 3 hours from the nearest Walmart. I have a cash box on the counter for payment, or also state on my price list, mounted inside the cupboard, my Paypal, or Facebook pay info. Most times guests pay with cash in the cash box. It’s worked out really well.
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There are two options for add ons - airbnb resolution center (request money for extra services) Airbnb does not take a percentage cut from the guest or host. Or the guest pays you with cash, credit card or venmo (we like venmo best). We provide extra services such as meals, tours and products from our farm store. I used to use airbnb’s resolution center all of the time but lately we have had problems with guests refusing the request for money and negotiating for the cost of the tour, meals, etc. In this situation we are stuck because airbnb is not going to support us unless the guest does not respond to the request. And then their support is to keep contacting the guest about our request. So now, we ask the guest to venmo us before they depart. BTW in the few cases where the guest refused to pay the full amount for extra services (even though their reviews were stellar and they told us how much they enjoyed the activities and food) they left without saying goodbye. It think this their “shtick” and they know that we don’t have much choice but to negotiate. I keep notes on who these guests were and they will never stay with us again. Negotiations for food, meals and activities should happen before the guest books or before the services are rendered. We now provide a bill decorative card and present to the guest at check out. If the guest does a tour with us, which includes collecting eggs, we offer them a gift of a carton of eggs that they collected and cleaned! Other amenities which we don’t charge for is local goat milk soap products, small bottle of local apple brandy, etc.
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Thank you @stonethistle, this is exactly the type of advice I was hoping to hear! Super helpful especially with the resolution center, sounds like Venmo is the way to go
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@HudsonNY
When we check people in we show them the fridge and pantry in their space - which is filled with food and snacks. We invite them to help themselves to everything. We don’t charge for any of those things, we offer them as thanks for being our special guest people, and since we are not located near a grocer, we feel it adds to their relaxation if they don’t have to leave and buy food. We also give “experiences” for free, which Air wants us to sell. So we “do unto others”, and it makes us and our guests happy.
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That’s kind, but we don’t plan on stocking a fridge and pantry for guests above basics and complimentary check-in gifts. We’ve stayed in over 50 Airbnb’s at this point and have never expected or come across that level. Tbh, I’d prefer basic staples and then catering myself or if there was local farm products available for purchase …especially right now. A clean and clear fridge and pantry is more appealing.
Do you throw away all food between guests? We follow strict covid precautions, including AirBnB’s cleaning protocols of emptying any food items the previous guest may have left in the refrigerator, freezer, and pantry.
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Do we toss food? Everything we provide is factory sealed. If it is no longer sealed we use it ourselves or compost it (pigs? chickens?). Granola is in sealed commercial bags. If they are unopened, still sealed, they stay. Milk, yogurt and juice are in smaller containers based on how many people and how many nights. No gallons. We provide a large variety of international and herbal teas, they are like restaurants put on the table. Anything else that guests might need they can ask us for, as we have a well stocked pantry and freezer, at no charge. We provide total concierge services, as well. We never, ever leave guests alone on the ranch; in the house, on the property, ever. It is not only the requirement of our license, it is common sense, and courtesy. We’ve been in the hospitality business since the early 1970’s and it is a pleasure. If it is ever not a pleasure for us, something needs to change.
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