Your experiences hosting airbnb superhosts

I am going to be hosting my second Airbnb superhost and she had already asked me why my pricing was showing up as it was…I am sure she maybe nice and I am a bit nervous and overreacting but I am seem to be a bit paranoid with the superhosts being critical. The last one gave me a list of things to add to my place that were never mentioned by any guests before, which was helpful but interesting since I never asked. Lol:)

There’s a recent post on this subject.

My experience has been good with the two hosts I’ve hosted, however your situation, with the guest making demands before arriving, sounds problematic, and if I had a way out, I’d suggest she book elsewhere.

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I have hosted 2 hosts. One was my first guest ever. He left no review at all. :frowning: The second was a lady from Ireland. She messaged me 24 ish hours after checkin with a litany of bs complaints. I told her she was free to cancel and that Id refund the unused night. It was Thanksgiving and I just wanted her gone. Also left no review.

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Try to remember that being a SH is really no big deal. All it means is that the person has been hosting for a few months and during that time hasn’t cancelled on a guest, had a reasonable response rate and reasonably good reviews.

This means that many, many hosts achieve this ‘status’ soon after they started hosting.

It doesn’t mean that your forthcoming guest is really some sort of special species of host :slight_smile:

I’ve hosted plenty of them and it’s no problem at all so don’t let one experience with a SH colour your experience with them all. There are tens of thousands of SHs and they are not all the same sort of being.

P.S. As a SH, I have never been critical of a host, SH and criticism don’t go hand-in-hand,

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We know that.
But does the "Super"host know that too?

Many social experiences have proven that when you tell a person they belong to a special group that is superior to others, give them a special task, and a title/badge they will start acting accordingly.

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Based on my experience, I agree. I’ve experienced and heard of so many hosts who really aren’t up to par and at the same time, SH seems really easy to get and maintain. Anyone who can’t get it or got it and lost it doesn’t want to hear that but that’s my experience. As a guest I’ve left nothing but 5 star reviews. I’m also exceptionally careful about where I stay. If your place falls short I would leave an honest review. So I don’t know if you have anything to fear or not.

As a host I haven’t had problems hosting other hosts.

LOL. This is true. How many times have I seen a post here that starts “I’m a SH and blah, blah, blah…” That they are a SH is often irrelevant or they go on in their story to reveal that it’s a mystery how they became a SH given how clueless they are.

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I really try to overlook the “host” but past experience has taught me well that these individuals can be much more difficult to please. My first had unrealistic expectations to go to bed a 6pm and not hear noise (private room in a 3bdrm all ABB) in the home. Another one knocked me down on ratings because the décor wasn’t to her liking. Another marked me down because they found an eyelash behind the toilet, her comment " Home was extremely clean and nicely done but I did find an eyelash behind the toilet you might want to talk to your cleaner" honestly I cringe when I see it but don’t stress about it anymore. They are just another guest, good or bad and I will do my best to make their stay enjoyable.

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Can we amend this topic to include: Your experience hosting members of AirHosts Forum. Inquiring minds want to know. :grinning:

The two hosts that have stayed at my listing weren’t aware of this forum.

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LOL - yep nothing better to do than to look BEHIND the toilet! Sheeh…

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Agreed. I will never be critical or give less than 5 start to a fellow host unless it’s something very, very, very bad. So you see SH are not all the same.

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As a Superhost/Guest I’m never critical in my review, although I may, on the private side, suggest some things that would make a listing I’ve stayed at even better IMHO. I DO read the listing and the reviews, and choose the best of the best places to stay at my destination that are in my price range. But sometimes the description does not match reality, and I will mention that in my review. I will never book a place than has a cleaning fee of more than $20 or $25, and we almost always book listings that are detached or not shared with the host, rather than a bedroom in someone’s house.

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So, a related question: As a host, what would make you decline/cancel a reservation booked by a guest that happens to also be a host? I’m planning to rent an Airbnb this summer in Europe and I’m wondering if I will be at a disadvantage.

I think that in your shoes, I would respond with something along the lines of;-

" Thank you for your query about my pricing. As a fellow host, I’m sure you aware that the pricing shown to you as a guest is not what I would see as your host, and unfortunately, I really can’t comment."

By doing this, you let her know that you’ve taken on board that she’s a host, that she should already know this, and that you are not going to be pushed around just because she’s a SH.

Good luck!

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By coincidence I ended up staying at a SH home this week. I texted them in advance to see if they were ok with me. Of course.

Wow! Must do this more often. Learned a bunch of time saving hacks!

I’m sure many of us would be interested to hear when you have time.

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They respond within 10 minutes. They offer a discount for last minute. The email from them once confirmed is a step by step, simply phrased, on where to park and how to get in. They have small signs with the rules and notes to take you through the basics. One blanket, two pillows, ultra clean if Spartan. One towel and face cloth. Signs everywhere stating employees only. It was a one nighter and they never met me. But they did serve a light breakfast, and asked for a 5 star review. SHs at nearly 400 reviews. Dead quiet through the whole stay

What impressed me the most was the simplicity. I was really excited and so was my co host. I like to interact with guests but some prefer more privacy. And some are constantly demanding or looking for entertainment if you are around a lot. Starting to resent the imposition on my time.

We were able to knock down cleaning times per room to 1.5 hours. If they need extra pillows etc they can ask.

I also dropped my prices and minimum stays but added a small cleaning fee.

I’ve rented several Airbnbs. I always search first for instant book and superhost and only turn them off if I can’t find anything suitable with those filters on. I have had difficulty with two non IB places which reinforces my bias against people who are screening me. I’m sure I miss out on some nice places but I have a strong preference for places and hosts I can instant book.

Also, I never book with any host with a cancellation notice among their reviews and it must be 5 star average.

I always look for hosts who are well-established. (Sorry, new hosts, but I do). You can tell this from the dates of the reviews, of course, but there are other tell-tale signs of a new or inexperienced host. I find that a more experienced host will, almost by default, have had plenty of other hosts staying with them as many of us use Airbnb for our own travel. Therefore they don’t have any problems with other hosts.

These hosts are going to see host/guests just like any other guest so they won’t have any prejudices against you.

Yeah, I’ve been hosting for only 5 months and I made superhost 14 weeks from my first guest check-in. From threads I’ve read here and on other forums, it seems some hosts may tend to discriminate based on their own experiences. I guess I’ll have to see how it goes.

Yeah, I was going to ask that myself. Could you please share these with us?

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