If this is the only bad experience you’ve had then let it go. Sending a message to future guests will either bemuse them or freak them out. Part of being a successful AirBnB is not letting something like this destroy your life. By all means come here and rant.
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Agree - if I read that as a guest I’d be thinking “That’s one pretty angry host, don’t know if I’d be comfortable staying there!” I’m sure that’s not generally true of you, @SmallNSweet, but it’s clear you wrote this while feeling ngry and that comes across!
If you absolutely feel you have to write something, maybe use something like @Annet3176’s wording, which gets the point across but is much less confrontational …
Incidentally, how small is small? Do you put the square metreage (or footage I guess) in the description?
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Seems to me your first mistake was accepting any request from “a young boy”. You let unaccompanied people under 18 stay at your place??? That can be a major liability issue as they are not legally responsible and you do not have contact information for parents or guardians.
I find your message to future guests to be very confrontational, aggressive and offensive.
I too would probably cancel after receiving that diatribe.
As mentioned above, there is absolutely no need for that message. IF you simply must send it, at least re-word the message along the lines mentioned above.
I do call guests on arrival day to ensure I understand what time (plus or minus 20 minutes) that they will arrive.
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This is just what is in caps and started reworded in a message. If they go back and look it will be right there in plain writing for them at the beginning of the listing.
I’ve had 2 complaints in December alone, but most find it quaint and cute. And those who read commend me on how well I describe the space in my listing.
I another thread the OP said this about the listing description:
I think she is one of those hosts who is booked 90% of the time, so has lots of guests, doesn’t live there, has another job and then gets frustrated trying to manage it all. It’s doable if guests cooperate, but they don’t.
@SmallNSweet Guests don’t read, you can’t make them do so and either accepting that a certain percentage will be unhappy or finding another way to deal with the situation is your best option.
It a 150 square foot tiny house. I lived here for 3 years and it’s completely do-able.
I do work, but for myself. I just get frustrated when multiple guests complain about the same thing when it could be prevented if they just opened their eyes.
I honestly don’t know how to make it more transparent.
You can’t. You can only work on changing your reaction to their lack of reading.
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For the past year I’ve been brushing it off, updating my listing as I saw fit, making sure to photo document everything. But after 1.5 years I don’t know how to better show it before a guest books. Everything is there for them. Down to every single thing In every single room.
KITCHEN:
Toaster oven, microwave, 2 burner stove, salad plates, dinner plates, bowls, knives, coffee, tea, Tupperware… etc
LIVING ROOM:
Full sized futon, tv with Hulu and nexflix, large bookcase, small table to work and eat on…
LOFT:
Queen size bed, laundry basket, fan, side table…
Has this increased detail and documentation improved outcomes? Has it changed guest behavior?
In other words, don’t keep doing the same things over and expecting a different result. You are just going to have to accept these kinds of problems. Enjoy the ride while you can.
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@SmallNSweet -
Have you tried presenting the 150 square feet as something like “a 12-foot by 12-foot room” ?
I think people understand a 12-by-12 foot room (or similar dimensions) a lot better than 150 square feet.
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is this the place you posted about previously where you are sub-letting a flat you rent in NYC without your landlord’s permission and contrary to your city’s regulations???
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I think the challenge is that it’s a loft on two levels. I’m picturing a footprint smaller than 12x12 and part of the footage is in the loft above, as she said, like a tiny, tiny house.
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No, this is my home in upstate New York in Northern Westchester county.
Oh, then my prior link was incorrect. You have the micro apt with loft and shower that needs remodeling in the city and a tiny house upstate. Twice the fun, double the problems.
I just want guests to read. That is what this thread was about.
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ah okay, i thought you were referring to your place in NYC that you were originally Airbnb’g Airbnb rental unit— is it worth renovating?
my partner moved to the city for work and I no longer needed a crash pad there. I like tiny places. They are cheap and easy to maintain and keep me a minimalist
Maybe you’ve already done this @SmallNSweet, but can you post a link to your listing so maybe we can help you describe it more accurately? Because like @KKC said, you can’t expect to do the same thing and get different results.
My partner and I decided to take some time off for the new year. We’ve permanently deactivated on air bnb as of an hour ago. I’m moving to VRBO. I’ll post when I make the listing.
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Why choose VRBO over Air and not use both? From experience, I can assure you that VRBO guests don’t read any more often than AirBnB guests do.
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