Well, people, you all are better hosts than me. Fine! Kudos to you. Thank you. I had enough answers. I’d appreciate if the moderators closed this topic, because I really don’t need everybody to tell me how horrible host I am and how terrible human being I am and how much better everyone else is. You all will go to hosts’ heaven and I’ll go to hosts’ hell.
I still believe I did what was good for me and my business. I get sick all the time, from the bus, from my coworkers, from the store etc… All the time. I judged their actions by what I would have done. And that would have been to cancel under extenuating circumstances and book a hotel.
And whoever asked what I do when my partner gets sick, that’s a different story. My guests are not my relatives, not my friends, not my patients and quite frankly, I trust them to mind their own business, as I do mine. I like minimal interaction with them; just help with questions. If I like some of them I go above and beyond, like giving rides and food, but I didn’t like at all these people who, from the second they met me, they yelled at me how difficult it is to park and get out of the driveway when they themselves booked me and should have read the description and look at the driveway picture or even Google Street View, but no; they were so adamant about them being right, contradicting me, who have lived there for so many years and dismissing like nonsense the fact that there is a traffic light at the end of the street when the cars stop coming. At that point I got quite annoyed, thinking here’s my review going down the drain!
At that point I didn’t know they came for a funeral because they only said they came for a family event in their initial message. If they had said funeral I most definitely wouldn’t have hosted them, because these people are in a very dark mood and I didn’t want to walk on eggshells around them in my own house! But they only mentioned funeral later on, after they asked me how long the ride to X takes.
At that point I understood why they have been so vehement, but it did nothing for me to sympathize with them. And then she started to cough. I put up with it for 2 nights, I couldn’t anymore.
Kudos to you who give relationship advice and listen to your guests. When I travel I almost never speak more than 2 sentences to my hosts and this is what I want from my guests too. I have a full time job; sometimes I bring work home. I have my own problems and I definitely don’t want to hear theirs. Talkative guests annoy me the most, but I do my best to smile. If they have a question or concern I answer but that’s about it.
Thank you, it’s been enlightening.
I edit to say that I have a sore throat and I feel the damn thing coming! Happy now?
Hope it is factual enough.