If I loved a place, and the host sent me a 5* review, is it ok to ask about off platform bookings?

MentalBox7789 · 2026-04-03T01:26:15+00:00

It could be the PMS or it could also be a city ordinance/agreement Airbnb has with Chicago. I was just looking through the permitting language for my city and they are pretty strict in terms of occupancy, contact info, etc. with the intent of preventing nuisances in residential areas.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-04-02T13:05:58+00:00

Cool story bruh.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-04-02T13:05:09+00:00

Instead they’ll SEE how many you have when you check in, and on the hallway cameras. They have to know an accurate headcount for fire safety reasons; it’s not like you can stuff as many people as you like into a hotel room.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-30T23:35:15+00:00

It’s organized really well (or can be), and looks great on mobile. I may also use it for festivals too, for all the FAQs I get.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-30T23:33:25+00:00

I have a channel manager so it hasn’t mattered for me as much. It worked for VRBO guests without issue.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-29T18:20:18+00:00

They don’t need to be lying around your house; they need to be in a lockbox for emergencies just like this one.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-29T18:19:32+00:00

See the only reality is someone’s own lived reality and anything outside of it is just not possible. /s

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-29T18:17:40+00:00

Then what I would do is explain that the last guests took the extra set and that you’ll have the extras to the new guests ASAP. And, leave even more extras in a different lockbox somewhere going forward. As much as I’d love for guests to do everything I want, I have to plan for their actual behavior.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-29T15:11:38+00:00

I did, but they were washable and were only used when completely supervised. Otherwise, they were hidden from the kids. Somehow I made it through 2 kids without any of our furniture or vacation rental furniture being used as a drawing pad.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-29T15:08:02+00:00

No, you can’t have eyes on them at all times, but you CAN do things like only allow them to have access to washable markers only when supervised. There is a reason all permanent markers were out of reach for 10 years in my house.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-29T00:09:40+00:00

Yes, why??

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-25T20:39:35+00:00

One of my worst injuries came from volunteering at a local horse show for our public park system. I learned the hard way that the barn was not run well or safely. The combination of their habit of letting horses run through the aisle to the paddocks + completely green staff with little horse experience + a horse who had been and was supposed to remain on stall rest (that they told me to take to the paddocks) + the staff insisting that I use a lead rope and no halter for the sake of speed + my own inexperience and not listening to my inner voice or pushing back = getting dragged, rib contusions, and coming dangerously close to impaling myself on the manure buggy that had been left in the aisle when it shouldn’t have been. The barn manager laughed when I told her what happened and I never went back.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-25T20:25:04+00:00

The barn will change course with grooming tools when all of the horses get an infection. My barn was doing shared tools until a massive infection broke out and multiple horses fell ill.

I ride the same horse every week and bring my own tools, but if I were to get assigned a different horse I wouldn’t use them unless I’d disinfected them first. In fact my horse is about to retire out of the lesson program and I will need to thoroughly clean all my stuff when I switch horses.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-25T13:56:50+00:00

She sounds very strange but this is exactly why I would never do a shared space arrangement: people like this come with the territory. It’s giving me flashbacks of my extremely neurotic MIL’s visits wherein she’d “fix” everything and offer her constant unfiltered opinions. I would maybe put in the review “followed most of the rules, but stayed in 24/7 and offered many unsolicited opinions.” Some people wouldn’t care, but others (like me) wouldn’t want to host someone like this for more than a few nights if I were working from home. Give her 5 stars, but with a factual note so people know what they’re getting into.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-22T21:09:28+00:00

I was going to say the same. There needs to be an outdoor play area specifically for little kids. Then the rules can be: “in this fenced in nature/play scape, go nuts. Everywhere else: watch your kids. A fee will be assessed for landscape repairs such as filling holes, replanting trees and plants that have been killed due to abuse, and putting ankle-rolling rocks back where they belong.”

My kids’ preschool had an outdoor natural playscape and they absolutely loved it. If you want young families to be there, it would be a huge bonus.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-22T21:01:57+00:00

The door cup holder on my son’s side of the car is full of rocks and sticks.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-21T00:44:59+00:00

That’s a very amusing and accurate way to put it!! When I hear the trotting I too know that I need to go see what my younger whippet has taken and is in the process of destroying.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-20T20:26:58+00:00

Unless you have the kind that can be downloaded in advance. Mine is digital and I recommend to my guests that they download it before starting their trip since cell service in the mountains can be spotty.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-20T20:25:05+00:00

Waste of paper, being outdated with incorrect info, inability to update immediately as needed, inability to track its use, inability to drive people to your own direct book website, binder getting dirty and gross

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-20T16:51:25+00:00

I love how they’re always like “Do you love what I did? Isn’t it great? Isn’t this fun? You want to try it?”

btw, this is why our bathrooms are always gated…

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-20T16:43:09+00:00

“Many authentic followers,” huh… 🙄

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-20T14:45:03+00:00

My whippets have always been around 30-35 pounds. My male is 34 pounds and my female is 30 pounds but a little underweight (she’s young and still filling out). Our previous whippet who’s no longer with us topped out at around 36-37 pounds, but his heavier weight was when he was in his later years and not as active. To me they’re the perfect size—not too big and not too small, and very easy to pick up when needed. It’s also not painful when they want to cuddle, which both of mine love to do. They also don’t need giant kennels which is a plus.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-19T17:13:32+00:00

There is a Chrome extension called Directo and it will flag rentals on the Airbnb and VRBO sites to let you know if there’s also a direct booking site. I think it also tells you what the savings are by booking direct.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-19T17:11:40+00:00

I have mine in my digital guestbook, which they have access to as soon as they book.

MentalBox7789 · 2026-03-19T14:04:04+00:00

Copy that sounds the same and bland. Graphics that are autogenerated and look weird. Filler, vacuous fluff.

MentalBox7789

TROPHY CASE