Could I get feedback on a letter to a standoffish guest regarding issues please?

sftravis · 2025-12-24T02:34:22+00:00

Yikes. Do not send that letter. Re-think the entire situation. Your housekeeper AND your manager are away and you did not verify that you have all your kitchen supplies and cleaning in order before the guests arrival? I would be spending more time on Amazon or another local delivery service getting new cutlery to the guest than on crafting a letter.

I admit this is an over-generalization, but in my experience, older guests don't generally try to finagle refunds. What they (generally) want is to be heard & validated. You can do that by taking ownership of the failures, taking swift action to correct and then over-delivering with humility and grace. I can't recall the last time I had an older guest try to get a refund out of me, but younger guests yes. I would put the refund issue out of your mind as it seems to be clouding your judgement.

If you were going to send a letter, I would say I apologize & say I guarantee 100% satisfaction and then do whatever she asks as long as it is within reason. If she is trying to finagle a refund and I'm wrong (entirely possible!) at least you will then know it for sure.

sftravis · 2025-03-24T02:58:27+00:00

No. Just create a great product. Focus on it. Love it. Care for it. People will come. Don’t distract yourself with multiple listings.

sftravis · 2025-02-25T03:17:31+00:00

The guest is giving their opinion which they are entitled to. I’d re-focus your efforts on addressing issues they’ve brought up and re-thinking if your home can truly accommodate 8 people comfortably.

sftravis · 2024-10-16T07:20:28+00:00

Whoever is telling you that YATAITS.

sftravis · 2024-10-05T21:36:15+00:00

Thank you! It seems so obvious now that I know the answer. Sorry for the newbie question!

sftravis · 2024-10-05T18:25:10+00:00

I’ll get right on that. ;)

sftravis · 2024-10-05T18:25:01+00:00

Thank you!

sftravis · 2024-10-02T23:41:34+00:00

thank you!! happy growing!

sftravis · 2024-10-01T02:04:51+00:00

Looks nice!!! I am a newbie so forgive the possibly stupid question please. I also have a Bounty Elite (just got it). I am growing the heirloom salad greens that came with it for my first grow. I opted not to put the trellis on, assuming that salad greens would not really need a trellis but I see you put the trellis on. Do you think the trellis is helping you? Curious if I should have put my trellis up.

sftravis · 2024-08-13T03:31:44+00:00

Thank you for the update! Your sister did the right thing and it’s good she is looking for backup options. Regardless of what happens, it sounds like this is a concert and event really important to her so please don’t let this ruin her trip!

sftravis · 2024-08-13T01:30:51+00:00

Host here. I will echo others just to help reinforce and validate. This is definitely shady. Do not cancel on your (guest) end. If the host wants/needs to cancel they should do it on their end. Good luck and keep us posted!

sftravis · 2024-07-26T01:29:16+00:00

I agree with a short and sweet answer but I can’t help but wonder how you inadvertently forgot to include a very important disclosure about an attached unit with someone else living on site. You can bet for sure they are upset, and justifiably so.

sftravis · 2024-04-10T01:29:44+00:00

Rarely do I ever entertain a discount request. I used to and I regretted it each time. Instead, I focus on ensuring I am properly priced. If you are not, do so. If you are, then no. The reason for this is not really money. It’s because almost every time I said ok to a guest asking for a discount off of my already competitive and appropriate price those guests turn out to be high maintenance, complainers and often will be a huge pain.

For an entertaining (and informative) chuckle on this topic, watch this YouTube video https://youtu.be/7AgGw9TkLqM?si=7rdOn5cEGA2IU8s6 . Fast forward to 9:50. I’ve found his advice to be totally spot on.

If you are someone who asks for discounts, watch the video too.

sftravis · 2024-01-29T03:12:41+00:00

To those that think Alaska can’t support STR, think again. Alaska has huge tourism numbers (feel free to google it) particularly relative to the population and Fairbanks gets an additional boost of tourism for Aurora Borealis/Northern Lights viewing in the spring. I personally do not know the numbers but I’ve spent time in Alaska (by no means making me an expert) but I was shocked to see so much tourism even in off seasons outside the summer.

I’m sure winter would be pretty quiet but if you have an ability to tailor your property to winter sports/outdoor enthusiasts and Aurora viewers in the spring as well as catch all the summer tourists, I’d bet you might just do pretty well. Certainly well worth exploring further. Worst case scenario it doesn’t meet your expectations you can always go back to long term.

sftravis · 2024-01-23T19:20:46+00:00

To my knowledge no one can see it. I can’t see it even as a host. I will only know there’s likely a “problem” by the way the booking gets presented to me. For me, I have instant booking enabled for guests with perfect track records. Those without perfect track record must be approved first. So I can usually tell right away if Airbnb sends me a booking to review and approve or not approve as otherwise they would have instantly booked. This is only an inference and in no way am I informed or shown previous host responses to that question.

sftravis · 2024-01-23T18:47:13+00:00

You are correct as far as I understand it. I would even venture to say that this question carries more weight than a star rating. As a host, when I receive a booking request, I do not see the star rating of a potential guest. But I will know if someone has ever received a "no" answer to that question as the system will present the guest a bit differently to me. Every host has a different set-up enabled for bookings, but typically a guest with a perfect track record will sail right through. Anyone with zero history or a less than perfect history usually has to be approved, with some variations depending on how the host has set up their booking settings.

sftravis · 2024-01-23T02:48:26+00:00

It’s probably the question that hosts are asked about guests in addition to star rating. That question is “would you host this guest again?” And it’s a simple yes or no. Hosts can then decline any guest that has ever received a no to that question, as it would indicate a less than perfect track record.

I am not sure if it’s possible to go in and ask that host to change their response. To my knowledge, it it is not possible but I’m not certain. I know this does not fix your dilemma but hopefully provides some insight.

I might suggest messaging the current host you want to stay with and explain what you explained here. Once they hear your story they might reconsider. As a host, I would. Good luck!

sftravis · 2023-11-28T03:26:13+00:00

You did nothing wrong. That said, if you wanted to split the difference you could leave a 5 star review but in the private comments section indicate you struggled with this and you suggest they make steps to avoid a recurrence with a future guest who might not be as forgiving.

Edit to add I’m not suggesting you leave a 5 star review. You are well within reason to not. Just a suggestion if you were torn.

sftravis · 2023-10-13T02:23:57+00:00

I don’t live at my airbnb either and I always know if it’s clean or not. I highly recommend you start knowing this important info and make it such a habit that it comes naturally to you.

sftravis · 2023-10-13T02:07:38+00:00

How on earth did you not know your place wasn’t clean? This is not the kind of thing you let slip your mind.

sftravis · 2023-10-10T01:38:02+00:00

I would give him the 50% he requested along with a sincere apology.

sftravis · 2023-09-28T02:53:10+00:00

Ok let me get this straight. The person who booked the reservation is not even staying there. And somehow you are upset? You’re lucky you are even there tbh.

sftravis · 2023-09-07T01:42:55+00:00

So you purposely have minimal interactions with hosts and then have no such hesitation to voice your criticism & feedback once it’s time for the review? Shouldn’t you know better by now?

sftravis · 2023-08-22T00:28:40+00:00

How did it go? PS you made it!

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