Or he didn’t realize he’d get back to back bookings. I don’t want to stay in a whole house that has been turned over in two hours.
@KKC - it’s not two hours. It’s negative two hours - check out is 2 pm, and check in can start at noon. So I just assumed he has a day between rentals.
Oh, I see! So the guest didn’t say ‘crickets’ but there was silence. Got it - excuse the Brit. 
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@cabinhost -
I’m so glad you mentioned white noise machines! Our rental (and someday soon, retirement home) is in St Lucia, and during the rainy season, the tree frogs can get loud! We love it - we know we are “home” when we hear it, and it does not bother us. But not all guests feel the same way. So I bought some white noise machines to put in the villa, and my husband thinks I am crazy. Do you have the white noise machines because of the frogs or for some other reason?
Oops that’s even worse. LOL. He must have a day between then.
Yes, it is because of the frogs. I am also a very light sleeper and I would consider white noise machines to be a great amenity to find at a rental. I have had parents with infants use it also when baby needs a nap. I tried ear plugs once and found them irritating.
Funny that I happened to order my white noise machines and they arrived during this stay. I guess I didn’t want to interrupt and should have. This was a VRBO guest who left a wonderful review. She wrote this to me also just so I would know:
"The only thing that I want to make you aware of…I think something is mating in the water fall. Our friends only got a few hours of sleep each night because whatever is happening in that water fall was SO LOUD!! We could hear it a little during the day at that was no big deal, but I woke up Saturday night and couldn’t believe the racket! To me it sounds like something is stuck in a drain, but our friend swears it’s frogs. I’ve never heard frogs like that, but he may have been right considering all of the tadpoles in the fountain. I’m not kidding…I wish I’d thought to record the sound. There are a gazillion tadpoles in that fountain – I can’t imagine the frog infestation that’s going to happen when they mature. Frogs gross me out – if there were a million out there hopping around when I was renting, I would have had to leave. Of course I’ll be happy to write a glowing review without mentioning the frogs, but I just wanted you to be aware. If my parents had been there during Croakfest 2015, my mother would have had a fit! 
Thanks so much for all of your help with everything – you’re the best!"
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@cabinhost -
Hijacking my own thread…
My villa is very “open air”. The interior walls do not go all the way to the ceiling. The doors are all louvered. This is because the Caribbean house design is to capture the breezes and let them flow through the house, instead of depending on air conditioning for comfort. The downside is the lack of of privacy - the house is so very quiet and open that you can hear someone’s bathroom “business” if you listen for it. That disturbs some of our guests (we rent the entire villa out to one group at a time, so they should know each other…)
So I’ve put little transistor radios in the bathrooms! We prefer they don’t run the water to mask the noise - we catch rainwater in our cistern - so I’ve had to be a little creative.
It’s just so frustrating - we had 38 five-star reviews on VRBO with no one mentioning any issue with the noise, then we get three in a row…
So I’ve decided to add the white noise machines. I’ll see how they go!
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This is not a States saying. I thought it was British!
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I’m from the “States”, so I’m not sure why you would say it is not a saying from the “States”. I’ll admit I don’t know where I picked it up from - I’ve lived in the Midwest, the East Coast, and the South.
Never heard the expression before joining this forum. I have lived in the West, Southeast, and Northeast.
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It’s from the ‘States’. I’ve been saying it for years and use it in relation to when there’s no response from someone.
I fully understand those guests. 
No on this one you’re alone 
Fellow Brit and I knew what crickets meant
It’s funny though talking about colloquialisms, I said to a colleague at work ‘I’ve got your number’ and he said ‘how??’. Lol lol lol.
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Yes, glad there were others who understood. Silence except only hearing the crickets. 
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@GutHend -
We were worried about that when we bought the place, but we tested out how much sound carries before making the purchase. It’s really not bad - you do have to be standing still and not talking or doing anything else to hear something. Our guests spend most of their time outside, too - we have an incredible view of the Pitons and sunsets over the Caribbean and shooting stars at night, so most people don’t spend their time in the house. But I do know some people are more modest than others, so I hope the little radios are going to good use.
I think the radios are a really good idea. Although I would probably still feel uncomfortable going to the toilet at night when everyone else in the house is sleeping and radios are not really an option 
.
But I do fully understand why the house is the way it is. It’s architecture for the tropics. If I would buy such a house I would probably make an out-house where people can do their business without people in the room .
Don’t worry about it, most people will be fine with it.
I am surprised that the radios drown out the noises in the bathroom. I would have thought if I was sitting silently in the house, and someone was in the bathroom with the radio - the person in the bathroom wouldn’t hear their “business” as loudly…but I would still hear the light radio music and their business equally as loud.
I’ve never tried it though and will take your word for it 
I remember one time I was being introduced to a new family and there was a big holiday gathering. Of course the only restroom was right smack in the living room where everyone was gathered. There was one in someone’s bedroom- but in my younger days I was too shy and embarassed to ask a new acquaintance If I could use their master bedroom instead of the main bathroom. I had ridden with someone there and didn’t have my own car. It was excruating for a few hours. My poor tummy…
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When you turn the radio on, the sounds of the music and the other noises blend together (the radio is two feet from the toilet and can be played fairly loudly), so your brain doesn’t try to separate the two noises into their parts. If you could see the two activities at the same time (don’t picture it 
- it’s for scientific explanation only!), then your brain would most likely hear them as two separate sounds.
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The way I get away with using the loo in those sorts of conditions is to turn on the tap on. It’s the same idea - creating white noise so your brain doesn’t Distinguish between anything it’s hearing. But I prefer running the tap over a radio especially at night when the sound of the radio would be rather loud and very noticeable.
i think you missed the part of her post where she said they’re on rainwater catchment. So please turn on the radio at her rental.