Why not use a saved message that at least says something?
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i think this policy was instated before saved messages were a thing. Also, as far as I can tell, you canât use saved messages on the app. Iâve just saved this text on my phone so I can use it next time:
âThanks for your interest in [my listing]. Unfortunately I donât have time to answer individual questions, but you should be able to find everything you need to know on the listing page.â
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Hi @Lucy_R,
Given that people who make inquiries practically never end up booking, in my limited experience, I think your approach has much to be said for it. Anyone care to share statistics? Out of x people who have sent inquiries (not reservations) to you, how many ended up booking? In my case, x is around 19, and from those people, only one ended up booking.
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This is brilliant and all hosts should be doing exactly this. The âcommunityâ and âphilosophyâ of ABB has of course evolved from the air mattress on the floor during a convention story, but I at least still like to think of this sharing economy and philosophy as having an element of responsible consumerism. In other wordsâŚread what you are about to buy!
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Iâm not going to go count but Iâd say 90% of my inquires book and since I also have instant book I skip a lot of inquires.
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For us, a reasonable rate of the people who send inquiries book. The only ones who never seem to book are the ones who send inquires about a long term stay. I assume that these people are looking for us to offer a significant discount which we donât.
I find that the guests who send inquiries before they book tend to be good guests. This is because they are making sure that our listing meets their needs.
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Iâm sure it varies massively from listing-to-listing, but a quick scan of my inbox suggests about 80% of the inquiries i receive go nowhere. Theyâre a mix of people shopping around, unverified accounts, and people looking for something i donât offer (extra beds, discounts, days that are already booked). If i wasnât fully booked, it might be worth my time engaging with them, but since i am, itâs not.
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Out of over 100, only 2 who made inquiries booked.
We must be lucky, because we rarely get inquiries that go nowhere. Maybe because weâre pretty well established? Iâm not sure, but Iâm certainly thankful for it.
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This is nuts!!! are you kidding???
I am serious. Most who ask questions donât book, around 97-98%. The others just instant booked or sent a booking request directly and I was the one asking questions to them before accepting their booking.
So for me, replying inquiries only have shown go be a waste of time
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I have this experience as well with inquiries and also unverified members asking to book for someone else which is a no no!
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I actually just had a VERY negative experience booking as a guest. Long story short, a host just cancelled my 1 night booking in favour of a 2 night booking at a higher nightly price. Also, when I first did the booking, the host asked me to book on Flipkey instead of Airbnb (because she hates Airbnb). I knew this was going to turn badâŚbut I went through with it because her location was right at the start/finish line of a cycling event Iâm attending. Everything in the area is now booked and the closest place I can find is 30 mins away. YesâŚI contacted Airbnb about her awesome hosting skills. That old gut feeling works both waysâŚas a guest and a host. I should have listened.
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SAme here. I was on INstant book with just rooms and had hardly any inquires, but with separate house only 5% actually book. Now its rented till October and i am glad i dont have to answer all these inquieres
I get a lot of first time users and frankly, after being at my place they are probably going to be disappointed by most airbnbs. LOL But I ask most people about their airbnb experience and lots of people have had a bad experience or two. This is why airbnb is hard on hosts who cancel.
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We are almost exactly the opposite.I rarely pre-approve because I donât want to look desperate 
Great Vent! I am always frustrated with repetitive questions. How should we answer them? I also ask my guests if they have read the âhouse rulesâ. âOh Yes!â, they always say, only to have them ask me questions on the very same subject an hour later. This really makes me worry because my place has specific rules.
How can you tell the host accepted a 2 night booking at a higher rate? Did she forget the cycling event was going on and her place was very underpriced?
Depending on her reason for canceling, she may have to pay FK back the booking fee they lost from refunding you.
You dodged a bullet.
What country are you in? $40 a night seems very cheap for a room within a few blocks if a subway station.
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The guest used your phone his whole stay?