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Yes Yes Yes. Put a mini SILENT fridge (not cooler) in the room. Also recommend an electric kettle an a couple of cups on a tea tray on top of the mini fridge with a 500ml of milk in fridge on arrival. We have Caldura silent 30 litre fridges in all our bedrooms since the children became teenagers and they have been especially useful for Airbnb.
Chill quiet also have a silent mini fridge. The 40 L is just a wee bit too big, the 17L is NOT silent but the 24L & 30L are perfect for size. We have them in black.
Discuss with the guest on arrival where would be convenient for him/her and leave it there.
This thread feels like the group is trying to be helpful and you can use whatever advice you wish. Enjoy the ride as you figure out what works best for you & your guest.
So… We pulled the trigger and bought a fridge…! And a keurig! The fridge is 2.6 cu feet and fit nicely in the space I indicated above. I purchased the mini keurig. (I didn’t want to have to deal with cleaning up coffee grounds).
I personally loved when I updated my unit with a mini fridge. I bought a different dresser to allow me to put a mini fridge, microwave, kettle, and a drink station in the room. People don’t really need a dresser, they need like a drawer or two so I searched for an old dresser and found one that I could use. But even a cool bookshelf could be used or storage shelbing. All my guests loved it and it made my bookings go up. You do need to make sure that if there is carpet that you put some wood or solid surface under it. I also reminded guests in the rules and the house rules that they would be charged if it had to be defrosted. So guests take better care of it. It does add maybe an extra 15 minutes to cleaning to have those items but it also allows for our guests to feel almost like they got a hotel room with amenities but also got a local Host to make their stay better. Plus location is important. If you put it outside the room you really need to think about if you would want a mini fridge in the bathroom! Gross! Or of if you want it in the garage. If it’s in the garage I would want a whole fridge, with microwave and and full little mini kitchen. When it’s a mini fridge it allows guest to heat up leaftovers and keep drinks cold. Something most guest want. I have had over 6 units. All very different. We had one with the garage beddroom (inclosed and up to code) they had a mini kitchen. We didn’t advertise the mini kitchen so it was a bonus at check in. We never advertise new things like that until we feel out our guests and make sure they like it.
I have to say that having fridge and coffee facilities less than a meter from where I would defecate (I once worked in a lab) makes me blanch. It is quite unhygienic putting it there. You would be amazed at the bugs that are floating around that space.
Sorry but I would not stay in a place that had a refrigerator/coffee station in the bathroom. Maybe it’s just me, but I would move that to the plug I saw in the bedroom on the opposite wall of the bed. Even if the space didn’t “flow” as well.
Actually I’m now remembering that the coffee maker is often right on the bathroom sink in hotels and I’ve never thought that much about it. So I take my comment back. I wouldn’t want a microwave in there though…
There’s no microwave in the bathroom – I think I mentioned above that I would never put a microwave in the bathroom.
But the fridge and coffeemaker I’m okay with, especially given, as Arelene pointed out, I’ve actually been in hotels where the coffee maker was in the bathroom, and the fridge just works out best there.
We’ll continue to test out the mini fridge in bathroom and see how it goes.
It’s funny. I was reading something the other day about how many Americans think that the fact that households in the UK have their washing machines in the kitchen weird. The US writer was explaining that he didn’t like the thought of his dirty underwear being so close to where food is prepared. (Which made me wonder - how gross does he let his dirty underwear get???)
Personally I find the thought of a fridge and coffee maker in the bathroom a lot worse.
The fridge in the bathroom doesn’t bother me at all. And like the example you gave of toothbrushes I could make a number of arguments that there is nothing actually wrong with a refrigerator in the bathroom. How many people have cat asses in their kitchen? How many people forget to wash their hands every time they handle the refrigerator door in the kitchen, etc. However, this may be a case of where perception trumps reality. To me it is very much like the issue of locks on a bedroom door in a home shared with the host. No matter what the arguments are for and against it, how the guest feels about it is more important.
I was thinking the exact same thing! Many things about this business (or any really) are about perception. It doesn’t matter if my toothbrush might be exposed and next to the toilet in my own home, or that when I thought about it longer I remembered that coffee makers are sometimes on hotel bathroom sinks. Because if I were looking for a place on Airbnb, my first thought and reaction are what count, I would have long moved on to the next listing. I wouldn’t take the time to put any thought into the placement of your frig’ and coffeemaker; I’d already be looking at the other listings because my gut screamed YUck!!!
Fridge in a bathroom sounds weird, I only once saw this in Ethiopia.
It’s a very good idea to have Fridge in guest’s room.
Even if it’s a a very small room, mini fridge doesn’t take much space. Mine is very silent .
We have the same type of setup. Our studio has a separate entrance at the front of the house with an attached bath. No access at all to the main house. I provide a mini fridge with freezer and a microwave upon request.
I don’t think my guest microwave has been used even once in the year since I purchased it. But I do think it’s a nice amenity to have alongside the small refrigerator so I’m not disappointed I purchased it.
