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My first post after lurking for a long time. I’m struggling with a review. I sound so nitpicky in this review but I’m not sure how to word it.
Rachel and Luke were very nice people. They were gone a good deal of the time so I didn’t see much of them. They were fine overall, but didn’t keep the shared bathroom as neat as most guests do, leaving their toiletries in there (there are several signs and a caddy provided so there are no personal items in the shared bathroom). The day they left, they left towels on the floor, etc. If it was a private bathroom, that would be no big deal, but it is a shared bathroom so it was a bit disrespectful to the other guests.
They were nice people but every day I took all their crap out of the bathroom and put it on the table outside their room. Then the last day, there were towels, the bathmat and washcloths on the floor and counter. They were only here three nights so it wasn’t a big deal - it was just really rude. Usually, I take the stuff out and give a reminder one time and guests don’t do it again.
I wouldn’t even bother. people do stuff much worse than that to warrant 3 paragraph review about towels left on the floor and toiletries forgotten in the bathroom.
they didn’t actually do any damage, so why complain? i’d give them 4 stars and say something like they are ok, didn’t seen them much.
@Peggy_Farren I have had the exact same experience with guests sharing a bathroom and completely understand your frustration!
When guests stopped doing it after I’d either mentioned it to them or they took the hint, I did not mention anything in the review.
When they didn’t change their behaviour (even leaving their dirty underwear on the bathroom floor on one occasion) I would review them as guests who “struggled with the concept of a shared bathroom”.
I agree with others that the review is too long and detailed so maybe you could shorten it a bit.
Just saw her review. She gave me three stars because it “wasn’t clear” that it was a shared bathroom. Sigh. It’s in the VERY FIRST LINE in Airbnb’s description, then I put in a full sentence saying it’s a shared bathroom, as well as throughout the description it says you’ll share the refrigerator, here is a link to our other rooms, etc. Sigh!
Overall 3 stars? Infuriating. We say don’t reply to reviews and we say don’t get snotty but this would make me want to say “it wasn’t clear this guest was illiterate.”
You can say that without being snarky: ”We work very hard to ensure our guests know what to expect of our home, and are disappointed that revealing the shared bathroom on the first line of our listing wasn’t clear enough for Rachel and Luke.”
My standard response is “I welcome you!
Please be sure you have read through the entire listing as all Airbnb hosts are different and offer different amenities.”
I guess I need to be even more specific. Sigh. But then, will they read that?
Too picky and 'way too wordy!!! Short, simple, factual and unemotional:
Can’t recommend Guests unless they have a private bathroom. They were nice enough (what we saw of them) but extremely messy – leaving toiletries, soggy towels and other things all over the shared bathroom every day.
Snarky or passive aggressive, either way the lack of accountability for guests who refuse to read listings and then blame the host for their mistake is maddening.
It will never happen since Airbnb is all about the guest experience but wouldn’t it be nice if we had something like 3 strikes a year. If we could demonstrate to Airbnb that the review was false we could get 3 reviews (or a percentage of booking would be more fair) a year removed. Make it one of the perqs for IB hosts.
@Peggy_Farren Ugh, so sorry to hear about their review. What shits. I found that with couples it’s often just one of them that books a place and then the other one doesn’t like it and complains in the review. So glad I don’t host couples anymore. They were always the worst guests.
I too share a bathroom with my guests and tell them they are welcome to leave their bathroom stuff on a shelf above the sink and I provide them with a caddy in the bathroom next to the bath with shampoo, conditioner and shower gel.
(As a guest it’s a bit of pain to have to remember to take your stuff into the bathroom each time you use it, I think).
It feels rather passive aggressive to take their stuff out of the bathroom and leave it on a table outside their room every day to be honest.
Do you provide the guests with a laundry basket or hamper for their towels etc for guests to use when they check out. If so if they left them on the floor I would be a little annoyed, but not enough for me to mention it in a review.
And as you asked, yes I do think you are being a little picky
While I agree the OP is “too picky” and the initial review was “too long” I really would like to see this kind of guest off the platform completely. They didn’t read the listing, dinged the host in the review for their mistake, and then once they were at the listing they were slobs. Please, go stay in a hotel Rachel and Luke. Even in my Airbnb where they have their own bathroom almost no one just dumps their used towels all over the floor.
I don’t agree with either of these statements, I’m afraid!
If the bathroom is small and there is limited storage space, it is simply not practical for everyone to keep all their things in there. Whenever I visit friends or family, for example, I wouldn’t dream of keeping my things in their bathroom - I pack a washbag to take to the bathroom. It’s not exactly difficult!
It seems like Peggy explains the set-up to guests and provides caddies for them. The fact is that these particular guests chose to consistently ignore this and showed no consideration for others. I don’t think it’s passive-aggressive to remove things from the bathroom when they’ve already been told not to leave them there in the first place.
Also, remember that this is a shared bathroom between two sets of guests, not just the host. I know exactly what that is like and it does need careful management. Even though anyone with half a brain can see that my bathroom cannot cope with 4+ wet towels hanging in there, I would still explain to guests that towels are to be kept in their room and provide hooks for them to hang them.
@Magwitch you are right I have always had large bathrooms, so the lack of space in the bathroom was something I didn’t think through. And all my guests to date have always kept their towels hanging in their rooms and only bought a wash bag in.
When I stay with friends and relatives I leave my wash-bag in their bathroom. Different folks, different strokes
I stand by saying I see the leaving items on the table every day as being passive aggressive, as in that sort of situation I prefer to have a friendly chat with the guest as being more likely to lead to a successful outcome.
I didn’t see the OP mention there were two sets of guests sharing the bathroom with her.
Just seen the guests response. They are bang out of order for their silly remarks and rating. What twonks.
