New house rule? New house rule!

#1

“We can only guarantee check in between 3 pm and 9 pm. Any other time is at our discretion. If you need to check in outside those hours, you must give us 48 hours notice. A $50 convenience fee may also apply.”

Guest who was supposed to arrive today (and who I’d asked for a check in time from a week ago) wrote me late last night that actually they planned on arriving around 2 am.

She was nice about it, but… no. So i called Airbnb at 6:30 this morning. They said they’d email me when they reached her. Still haven’t heard from them, but I’ve told her that we have a 24 hour diner a block away, and I can check her in tomorrow at 6:30 a.m. (because I know at least one kid will be awake by then, so I might as well be).

… while I’m adding rules, do you think it would be weird to affirm that guests must sleep on the beds? Or just ask that they not sleep on the couch? Because we had one guest who did and having a sleeping person in a shared/ public area was uncomfortable.

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#2

Unbelievable… the guests you have been getting…
Have you tried writing up a guideline, info document with all these things addressed?

It’s really helped me avoid little issues like this.

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#3

I don’t know where the balance is between “don’t suck and we won’t suck” and listing every little thing.

The only automated message I have is one that goes out after they book “The only thing we need to know from you, is what time you’re checking in.”

That’s really it. Unless they’re brand new, I don’t care if they’re here to meet their lover or do business or both. But I need to know what time they think they’ll arrive.

#4

Any idea why they did that? I could see being hot or cold or having noise in the room might make me try the sofa. I wouldn’t put that as a rule. If someone did that I’d wake them up and ask them to go to their room.

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#5

Yes, actually. One guest got home before the other and locked the second one out of the bedroom. So instead of knocking on the door and waking him (and probably us) up, he slept on the couch.

So it was logical, but also weird to come downstairs and feel like we had to tiptoe around this snoring guy.

It stuck in my head, because they were either right before or right after guests who piled blankets and pillows from the porch on the floor on the bedroom, and one slept there while the other slept on the mattress.

Yay, cultural exchange?

#6

I am constantly delighted (and horrified) at the what guests will do, I love these threads

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#7

I write them for yoooooou.

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#8

blushes, runs away

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#9

Sounds like a couple who had a fight, I had a couple break up day 1 at my place and stay another 3. That was nice. I would have started vacuuming in the lounge early the next morning. Just kidding

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#10

Irrespective of Airbnb please ensure you send a request via the resolution centre now for $50 and clearly indicate this is 630am late checkin fee (as I presume the guest paid for the night before?).

If the guest has not paid the night before you shouldn’t be doing this at all, 2 am is not an early checkin it’s a late one from the previous night.

Do not let guest check in unless all nights and your ‘convenience’ fee are paid. Call Airbnb and tell them this must be ensured at their end. Per my recent experience when I said I would refuse guest at checkin if not paid, Airbnb put in writing to me they ‘guaranteed’ I would be paid.

#11

I only just added the house rule, after this experience, and I doubt I can enforce it retroactively.

But yes, I will enforce this gently but firmly with future bookings.

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#12

What were your published check in times?

#13

3 to 7, but they weren’t in the house rules and there were no stated consequences for arriving outside them.

Now there are.

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#14

Oh @Alia_Gee why was your guest sleeping on your couch and not in the bedroom they paid for.

I would have asked them to sleep in the bedroom and confirmed communal spaces are not for sleeping in.

And your 6.00 a.m. checkin, I would definite charge a little extra to cover the fact they are checking in half a day early and it means you can’t book the night before.

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#15

Maybe you should reiterate your check in time in your message. Our check in is from 3-9 pm, let us know what time you will arrive.

#16

They actually booked today, so I haven’t lost any revenue.

They’ve messaged me that they’ll arrive “at 7 or 8” and I’ve asked them to specify “so I can have a hot pot of coffee ready” but really it’s so I know exactly how long I can stay in my pajamas. :wink:

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#17

I often do. And a week before they are due to arrive i ask again. :slight_smile:

Alas, I cannot force them to answer. I hope that by adding it to the rules, I can at least compel them to cough up cash for bad communication.

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#18

I have it in my house rules that guests must tell me what time they will arrive. They also get an automated email from Airbnb asking for their arrival time. If they don’t give me their arrival time, I ask via the Airbnb email system what time they will arrive. If all else fails, I ask via text. I have to resort to all these methods of finding out the arrival time with way too many guests.

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#19

I tell people I need to know what time they expect to arrive (5-8 pm), otherwise I cannot guarantee that anyone will be home when they do. We have busy lives to organise and need a level of certainty in order to welcome and settle them in. It seems to work. Eventually.

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#20

I am also a host, living on the premises… I have check-in times but I am flexible when I know the guest arrives on a plane …

I stayed as a guest in Sydney, and as I was driving I only could give an estimate of my arrival time. A lot can happen on a 1000km roadtrip … The host and I stayed in touch over the course of my driving, I alerted him about one hour before reaching Sydney to arrange the “proper” check-in. It all worked perfectly well…

I guess what I want to say is… communication is the key, anything can be arranged between host and guest if proper communication is done beforehand… without it, it only causes problems, and guests have to be made aware of that

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