Upped the Game a Little

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Ditto. My basics: salt, pepper, seasoned salt, steak seasoning & old Bay. Anything else is a bonus.

Old Bay is expensive so I buy the giant Costco containers & place in a smaller but ample container to refill. In my shrimp loving world Old Bay is a food group.

My guest book suggests shopping at dollar tree for smaller sizes of oils & shelf stable foods like Rice or cereal.

Nope- no fine spices here.

I do highly recommend my favorite “they have everything” grocer Boulineaus (IGA) and my 2 favorite just off the boat seafood sellers.

Ok while writing this my mind sailed to my favorite easy summer meal.
Boulineaus will steam shrimp with Old Bay. Fresh corn on the cob. Sliced chilled cucumbers in sweet vinegar. Watermelon. Oh-I digress

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No one has ever complained here either – actually one person commented that it would have been nice to have more, so one person in several hundred bookings since I’ve been involved.

So I’m engaged in a real experiment, with the focus for me as to spices is the variety I’m offering, 13 generic type spices and then a few blends (Chef Prudhomme) and classics like Colman’s mustard.

At Walmart’s I would have paid say ~ $13 for those spices, while I probably paid almost $65. In the scheme of things – convenience #1 – the difference doesn’t matter much to me, and we’ll see what I do next time. I certainly don’t think that based on what I’ve read that they will taste better, or that they are ‘fine spices’ though I do think that say where you buy saffron does make a difference, maybe cardamon, or whether it’s Tabasco or Cholulu are real preferences.

Consumer Reports did a blind taste taste with two spices, oregano and cinnamon, and the more expensive grocery store spice was not materially better tasting than Wal-Mart’s, which was MUCH less expensive, like a third or a fifth the price.

But they were not comparing Wal-Mart with Penzey’s or The Spice House, where the quality is very good and the price is very expensive.

I suppose if I saw that one spice was used quite a bit, I might spring for Penzey’s or The Spice House and test out the feedback as at least I’d know people like that spice. I got the brand I got because it was either that or 365 or Simply Organic and I was attracted to the idea that Frontier was a co-op and it was all fair trade and they give 4% to charities. And Whole Foods is 2 miles, Wal Mart is six miles and Costco is 40 miles away.

But, dollars and cents, Wal Mart or – even better – Costco, would be the better deal and you can always get something special for something that is used a lot or is ‘the show’ in the recipe. Actually I think I’d score a lot of taste points with Maldon sea salt flakes, which is really delicious, but it’s easily contaminated by people’s fingers, so it was a no go for me.

Steamed shrimp with Old Bay? Old Bay is a star in that show, and very much worth it.

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@HostAirbnbVRBO Don’t change a thing! No need to explain and re explain yourself. I stand by what I stated and would very much enjoy creating in your thoughtfully curated listed kitchen.
@JJD Furthermore, now I’ve got to say saffron is not turmeric nor is it curcumin which though the health benefits, they have a heavy scent. Therefore a paella be it traditional or veggie has neither but if you wanna kick me out so be it.

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One thing you don’t mention in this thread is the nightly rate of your property on a per-person basis. On a nightly per-person basis, hosts here range from US$30 (or less) to several hundred. If you are on the high end, then adding those touches makes sense. It’s great if this works for you, but I’m guessing that most hosts don’t have the profit margin needed to maintain such an extensive list of extras.

I still believe you should not leave the list out and just let them know you strive to stock the pantry with staples. Two reasons to not have a list - people don’t read so they’ll probably miss your disclaimers, and a serious cook will check the physical inventory before they go to the store. So why have a long list that you don’t guarantee instead of letting them open the pantry and be delighted?

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I don’t believe an hour would be near enough time.

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You ask about our nightly rate and by doing so raise a good question about where we are in the marketplace. Our nightly rate is $170/night; in the winter we lower to $150, sometimes lower.

We don’t permit pets or children under 12 [wood floors, lots of indoor plants and experience where parents let kids play with metal toys on floor, scratching and marring floors; house not child-proofed], which seems to be our biggest limiting factor (was just reviewing a nearby one bedroom home that permits pets and lists at $250/night!). We have a 30,000 in-ground solar-heated pool, A/C, occupancy 6, and for what it’s worth the property is private, strikingly decorated, and very well gardened, with many flowers, no grass, plenty of sedum, a man-made stream/water feature, hardscape in part.

When we look at our marketplace, most of the homes are in the $120 to $150 ballpark. Then there are a few, not many, that are $250+/night, which are typically bigger than our 3 bedroom home and very upscale, not in the city itself.

So we are right in the middle and alone in the middle. Our home is MUCH nicer, usually bigger, more amenities than the $120-$150 homes but not as nice/upscale and big as the $250+ homes.

If you’re a budget traveler, have dogs or kids, our place is not the place for you. But if you want a home in a quiet neighborhood, private, beautiful inside and out and don’t want to pay $250+/night we really have no competition.

So part of my motivation is to add some upscale amenities in terms of spices, condiments, toiletries, make the most of our most upscale inside feature, the kitchen, and see if that translates into more re-bookings, new bookings or ultimately a higher price (though not too much more, maybe $190?).

BTW, our cleaning fee is $130; this is not a profit center for us as we pay at least $180 and that doesn’t count quarterly deep cleanings and lots of things we do to keep the property in mint condition as the primary host is unbelievably finicky on how clean and perfectly maintained the place must be. Yet, while people compliment the cleanliness, they also did so when we were paying $70 for cleaning and it was nowhere near as spotless, pristine as it is now. Like much in life there are diminishing returns.

So, with the spices, condiments, toiletries is it something guests will notice, appreciate and ultimately pay for in price or loyalty? I don’t know. That’s the experiment.

One more thing. It’s been years that I’ve been at a hotel but I recall going to some nice hotels years ago where they’d have little cards touting their soap or the robes or such. Of course, I knew it was marketing but I also wondered, paid attention, evaluated. “Is this robe so nice? Is this soap especially good?” I often really didn’t know, but I knew that they seemed to think it was special, and I wondered whether it just might be. So, that’s also part of my thinking on the list, which I’ll hold myself accountable to, not worried about that. If I demonstrate, by the list, that it’s a big deal that this whole range of spices and condiments, some snacks too, is available to you (and I invite the question on what’s missing), maybe you will too.

I find that sometimes little things mean a big difference. Many things are of diminishing returns, but others are of exponential returns. @Robin 's letter board idea. Recently we started turning on the gas-insert fireplace before the guest could check in. THAT got some raves. Is the list and the kitchen stocking one of those things? I don’t know.

[I don’t know if we’ll continue leaving the gas-insert fireplace on. I’m on the community emergency response team here and will ask a fire Dept rep at the meeting this week. I think you should never leave a fire unattended even though there is nothing combustible nearby past say 3’ and it’s gas and glass-enclosed. I might have to stop that.]

We started inviting guests to send things ahead that we could take in, offering to get groceries or, better, just take them in via Instacart. One guest raved about that but most so far have passed on it. But our reviews are noticeably lengthier and now more often mention our hospitality, not just the place. So there’s that.

We get at least a couple of new-to-Airbnb guests each season who exclaim that they didn’t know ‘Airbnbs do all this.’ So, for them, we’re just average!

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They especially don’t read things that are Proustian in length.

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Well, we had the list down to one page double sided, but now it’s spilled into a second piece of paper. Maybe I can cut it back.

But they could miss it as we now have: 1) Guide to the House, 2) Guide to the HomePod Minis (one page), 3) Things we Stock, 4) Emergency Plan and 5) Guidebook to the Area.

I’m disclosing this in full realization of the torrent of comments that will follow.

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And you’ll never get that hour back in your life! [We each have our issues]

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But then she has to remember to ask for the toothpaste. It’s more common to forget to ask because you’re orienting to the space, managing luggage, maybe managing other people…

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You got it right; we’re in MA.

I don’t know if you’d call it a duplex, but it is a split level home (no shared spaces; separate entrances) and we live in the floor below.

So I am supposing that we are not subject to that legislation. Is that right?

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Are you the owners of the property? If so, who is the “primary host” you mentioned before?

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Yes we are the owners of the property. I am co-host. The primary host was the owner of the property before I became a co-owner, and just is very particular. [I’m not complaining.] Years ago she cleaned houses and is ‘old school’ plus she says I can’t see the dirt!

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Every time I update my guides or our website, I try to decrease the number of words without losing the message. It’s not concise enough yet, but it gets a little better every time.

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For reasons of hygiene, and liability I don’t provide anything other than small containers of salt and pepper. They are tossed if a guest opens them. Many don’t even open them.

For the type of listing I have, I don’t want to encourage people to cook. I don’t even provide cooking oil, and only one guest so far has mentioned there was no cooking oil.

I can imagine myself booking an Airbnb with a nice kitchen and cooking a nice meal. I would definitely love a place like @HostAirbnbVRBO has.

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Love, love, love Penzey’s!

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On an interesting note - our nightly rate is twice what yours is - and you’re definitely offering more than us on the little touches.

I don’t know if you’re family friendly - but where we are - most of the personal touches are games / entertainment , toiletries , and snacks

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We do have some games: Clue, Ticket to Ride, Jumanji, four decks of cards. Plus projection TV (just one on 80" wall). Definitely provide the toiletries: highly rated shampoo, conditioner, body wash; cotton pads, balls, makeup remover, mouthwash, Q-tips, pump hand soap. Just started on snacks for next guest: popcorn, Keto bars, gimMe seaweed toasted sesame snacks, individually packaged jerky. What do you offer for snacks?

BTW, these little touches we’re offering are a relatively new thing, the last three months.

I was looking at our competition again last night. There are a number of $250/night homes that in my view are not nearly as nice as ours. They are new, with few reviews – many 0, most under 5. A few offer pets while we don’t.

Then there are $250/night homes that are definitely bigger, more upscale, or offering a property that is uniquely different (say on a pod with kayaks, that sort of thing). Our differentiator is the pool, the landscaping, the kitchen, maybe the striking decor [which goes against the Airbnb advice and typical realtor advice on using neutral colors – guests claim to love it, though don’t know if all are sincere or reflecting the obvious efforts we invested and ‘being nice,’ Maybe not every one’s cup of tea for 365 days/year but I do think people enjoy it.]

So I am thinking that maybe we should be considering a higher price, but I am going to wait and just evaluate how this other competition does since I can see from their calendar whether they are getting filled up or not. To me the $250/night for many of these places seems excessive.

Have you gone to Airbnb’s Insight/Views to compare your monthly views this year vs last year? Our # views is WAY DOWN and am wondering how much of that reflects the overall marketplace and how much our place?

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So for snacks - we have a welcome basket with up to 4 items. It changes but -

Lindt chocolate
Jelly beans ( we are family friendly )
Crackers of some kind and sometimes a high end jam
Popcorn
And we have individually wrapped cookie packs in cookie jars

We also put the personalized welcome letter in that basket.

We are still in our first year so I don’t have a baseline. We are on Airbnb and Vrbo at the moment - soon to start targeting direct bookings maybe in the next 2 weeks once I finish some mandatory paperwork :slight_smile:

I can’t say my views seem off from other months. I just know my bookings come in waves . I have friends with cabins in the same area and we all seem to get bookings at the same time. So I’m not sure what’s up with that! I can have a dead 2 weeks and then sometimes it’s 3 bookings in a day. Fortunately they are sometimes for almost a year out.

We only need 3 weekends booked to break even - so when we get those 1 week long bookings - we move in the right direction quickly. But I bought this property with the expectation that 50% occupancy was fine and we could carry the property with no bookings if we needed to.

So long way of saying - I have no idea if views / visits are down. Most of our guests drive in so I imagine gas prices are causing hesitancy for the immediate trips

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Most of our guests stay one night and are visiting to attend a sports ball game or concert, and live just far enough away that they don’t want to drive home after it. Quite often they don’t even shower. We provide some welcome local beverages, a basket with some snacks, tea, etc., some basic non perishable breakfast foods, fresh fruit, coffee, and basic cooking spices.

Since so few guests use the kitchen, aside from throwing some beers in the fridge, it just doesn’t make sense to keep lots of spices on hand. We do occasionally have guests that stay longer and I always let them know that if they need any special spices to let us know, we live downstairs and have a pretty large selection.

I’m the summer I pick fresh flowers from the garden, and during the winter I have potted plants.

Most of our guests are grateful for our recommendations for places to eat or grab a drink. I also provide a list of unique sights to see.

I think at the end of the day you just have to decide what best suits your guest’s needs and provide accordingly.

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