I just had a couple of young guests, I’m guessing 20-21 and they are among my all time favorites. They knocked on my door and said they just wanted to meet and chat and see the dogs. And they were just gushing about the room. One of the pair had 2 prior reviews from last summer when she was in Italy, presumably with no adult supervisor.
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I’ve had quite a lot of under-25s and they have all been great guests. And, they’ve all said something to the effect of “thank you for allowing us to stay at your house” - in a way that I can tell that other hosts have turned them down because of their age. It’s a shame because I think that generation, that’s under 25 right now, they are giving me some hope for the future in general, they seem to have something good going on. But truthfully, I do hold a little age prejudice, there is a group I’m apprehensive about, it’s just not the under-25s.
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I know! I hear you loud and clear. I was worried about all the same things. At least (though I didn’t find out until later) they didn’t travel from China, they only came from a few states away. Apparently they were all at a boarding school together, but were from the same city in China and the oldest guy, the 19 year old, was sent as the “chaperone”. I got the feeling that it was a serious job to him, that it was kind of a man-to-man deal with the dad in China. Seemed solid. Was solid! I looked into the hosting of the minor thing with Airbnb, hoping it would give me an excuse to beg off but their policy is just that the person booking has to be 18. Kind of surprising really. I put that guy through every hoop possible and he kindly and swiftly jumped through them all. That says a lot about a person, that’s why I took the chance. A scammer or even just anyone who would be a crap guest would never have jumped through those hoops, would have been too lazy or too whiny to do it. That was my theory anyway.
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Damn, I was just about to practise a little oneupwomanship by quoting our last guests - apartment spick-and-span and a bottle of Freixnet in the fridge!
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Ha ha!
Wish I hadn’t though. Also ended up having a “welcome drink” on the patio with yesterday’s check in’s, returning guests we now know quite well. Then wandered round to our little plaza for a beer and to catch the evening breeze, and bumped into our other guests…
Feeling a bit tired today, but nothing much to do until our double changeover on Sunday.
Happy days.
JF
Definitely. Without stereotyping or being prejudiced or anti-American or anything (that’s my disclaimer, thank you) I have to say that in my experience people remain kids longer here in the USA. It’s always seemed weird to me that kids of fifteen are allowed to drive but yet they’re not considered to be an adult until they’re 21.
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I’m from the USA and I’ve always thought it weird too.
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I’ve noticed that they are kids when we want them to be and they are adults when we want them to be. Need cannon fodder and we can easily send them off to war at 17. Need a supply of cheap labor? Have a culture that says teens should get jobs. The driving age is to benefit adults, not teens.
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Just pressing the heart at the bottom of your post doesn’t seem to be enough. Like Like Like.
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Thanks. I get so sick of adults and their BS bashing of young people. I joined a “reunion” page for my high school and after just two weeks I’m sick to death of all these old farts’ nostalgia for the way things used to be and “how kids these days…” Ugh.
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I sometimes feel like a modern slave myself…
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I too have given several young people a chance and been very happy with the respect they showed. Also been told, who cares by wine bottle welding stranger in my hot tub at 1am. While the guest stuck his face in the water and played dead. I stayed up till three that morning baby sitting. I couldn’t send them away in their condition. I told myself not to book any more mature adults who say, Cool Dude. In my own defence I am sure that was after I booked him.
Gross 
I could never eat that. lots of people leave food in my fridge and microwave. I toss it out. If they forget beer Id leave it there for the next guests. I assume beer doesn’t have an expiration date, right?
Me too, so
I gave it away and only use Airbnb now
For the first time, we are asked to host 4, 2 couples, 1 night. No reviews. I asked for more info and he who was already a good communicator sent a tome including educational, work and family history! So we said yes. Our max is 3 and the payout looked high enough for 4. (I had changed the extra guest fee to 95$ after 2 to discourage 3rd guests.)
We just hosted 3 male soccer stars for 2 nights and they kept the place pretty messy, but when they left it was as clean as anybody else, just more bedding to wash! We’re learning about the strategic nights off for breath-ing room:)
We have hosted over 80% young couples, they are great!
My current guest (a nurse) says she “really likes cleaning” and has promised to leave the place very clean. It’s always good to know I don’t have to clean myself.
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I had 5 20-year-olds book for a guys weekend. I thought there might be some party aftermath, but they had each stripped their bedsheets and folded them in a neat pile, all bottles and cans were in bags (3) to be recycled, and there was little cleaning to do. Their mother taught them well!
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Agree. It’s trouble waiting to happen.
I have student boarders/lodger and because of the discriminatory laws am not allowed to advertise “wanted one Chinese Student for double room”, but I literally jump with delight when I do get one! They are clean well-mannered, thankful, polite, quiet, studious, helpful, appreciative, tidy … I could go on. The first thank-you letter received from a Chinese student was so gushing I had to scan and email to practically everyone I knew as it moved me to tears. I drag it out regularly to demonstrate to my children how to write a proper thank you! Next month I have a couple of Chinese parents coming for a week for a College graduation ceremony, I didn’t even hesitate to say yes to them.
Just occasionally I have a couple of young uns who may come to London for a gig then stay on for some touristy stuff and they have never ever been a problem. Turfing them out next morning no different to getting my own son up!
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