Airbnb Host Review Example: How to Handle Messy Guests, Pet Fees, and Cleanliness Ratings
Happy Friday, Fellow Hosts and Friends!
If you’re like me, you know the end of the week often means the infamous same-day check-out and check-in marathon. To be honest, I was a little nervous about this one. After nine years of hosting, I’ve learned to spot subtle clues about guest behavior and can usually guess what kind of condition I’ll find my Airbnb in once they leave. Today’s turnover inspired this article because now I’m wrestling with how exactly to write this guest’s review.
Red Flags Before Arrival
A few things raised my eyebrows even before the guest checked in:
- Last-minute booking – They booked Monday for a Tuesday arrival.
- Review average of 4.7 – Not terrible, but with 14 reviews, the lowest category was cleanliness.
- Traveling with a pet – They were upfront about it, which I appreciate, but paired with the low cleanliness score, it set off a little alarm bell.
Here’s how the ratings were broken down:
I also noticed one past host’s review that simply said “thanks for booking with us.” Over the years I’ve learned this can be a subtle code: the host leaves an honest star rating in the categories but avoids writing out the messy details. Oh, and one of the reviews mentioned a name that was not the guest’s.
What I Found on Check-Out
Walking in, I expected one of two scenarios:
- A spotless space where the guests tried hard to improve their reputation, OR
- A total mess that reflected their review history.
What I got was somewhere in between. Let’s call it a 1.5 on the clean-to-chaos scale.
- I was greeted by a frenzy of flies and fruit flies. In nine years of hosting, I’ve never once had a fruit fly problem, until today.
- Several dish towels were used (way more than average) and balled up, dirty on the counter.
- Food scraps and debris were left in the sink (thankfully, the drain wasn’t clogged).
They did run the dishwasher, but it only contained a few dishes: two plates, two bowls, two glasses, and two spoons. Having stayed three nights, I suspected more had been used. Sure enough, when I checked the cabinets, dish-by-dish, I discovered dirty items put back as “clean.” Had I not inspected each one, my next guests would have found them – and I would’ve been horrified.
Other issues were small but added up:
- Crumbs and dog hair all over the couch cushions, despite my house rules about no pets on furniture.
- Two quarter-sized stains on the area rug.
- Food debris mashed into the carpet.
- Red wine spills and marijuana shake on the coffee table (thankfully no odor!).
- And oddly enough, a partially used roll of toilet paper tossed in the trash.
Individually, none of these were deal-breakers. Together, they painted the picture of guests who weren’t particularly mindful.
How I’ll Handle the Review
Overall, I’d classify this stay as average. I admit I’m spoiled with guests who are usually very clean and respectful, so maybe my bar is high. Still, honesty matters. As much as I dislike leaving less-than-stellar reviews, other hosts deserve the heads-up, and the guest deserves context for why they’ll be getting a four-star rating in cleanliness.
Pet Fees and Perspective
This turnover reminded me why I charge what I do for pets. For years, I didn’t charge anything. Then I tried $30 per stay. About a year ago, I raised it to a flat $100 per stay, and today, as I meticulously cleaned dog hair, I felt justified in that decision.
Yes, sometimes I feel guilty charging the fee when guests leave no evidence of a pet. But then I think of the times like this one, when the dog clearly made themselves at home.
For perspective: I’m planning a four-night trip at the end of October with my family, and we’ll be bringing our two dogs. The Airbnb we booked charges $25 per dog, per night. That’s $200 for our stay. We’ll leave the property spotless as we always do: vacuuming, using our own doggie blankets and beds, and ensuring zero pet hair remains. So really, my $100 flat fee for guests seems entirely reasonable.
One last note about pets: my house rules AND check-in details message say “We are happy to host your pet! We please just ask they are not allowed on furniture or left unattended in the house or yard.” So, technically, according to the two clearly comfy spots the pup found on the couch, I could call this a breaking of house rules. I’m choosing to “let sleeping dogs lie.” (yes, pun FULLY intended!)
Time Spent Cleaning
On average, my turnovers take about 90 minutes. My fastest ones, when guests barely touch the place, have taken as little as 45 minutes.
Today’s turnover: a full 2.5 hours, plus an extra load of laundry (luckily in my anticipation of a big mess, I allowed extra time and was able to remove and wash a few of the couch cushion covers). That’s time I’d rather spend prepping for new guests or deep cleaning tasks, not scrubbing out evidence of old ones.
Final Thoughts
This wasn’t my worst turnover, but it wasn’t my best either. While I appreciate the guests ran the dishwasher and avoided any catastrophic damage, the accumulation of little messes made this stay stand out for the wrong reasons.
I’ll be drafting their review soon and will update it here when it’s written. For now, I’m moving on, grateful for the lessons, and ready for the next set of guests.
UPDATE:
Yes, I used Chat GPT to help me on this one! (Read more about the beauty of ChatGPT helping in multiple aspects of your hosting journey in my other article, “How STR Hosts Can Use ChatGPT to Enhance Business, Guest Communication & Marketing.”
For the prompt I shared the general issues with this guest. ChatGPT gave me both a public-facing review, plus private comments to share with only the guest directly. The messages, first public, second is private:
“[Guest’s name] and their dog were good guests and respectful of house rules overall. The space required a bit more cleaning than usual at checkout, so I’ve left four stars for cleanliness. With a little more attention to tidiness, they’ll make excellent future guests.”
“Thanks again for staying with us! I wanted to share some feedback to help with future stays. When I prepared the space after checkout, I noticed crumbs and pet hair on the furniture, a couple of small stains on the rug, and some dishes put back dirty. While nothing was serious, it did take extra time to clean. I also ask guests to keep pets off furniture, as it helps maintain the space for everyone. I appreciate that you ran the dishwasher and followed house rules overall, and with just a bit more attention to tidiness, you’ll be a great guest wherever you stay.”
I’ll be sure to update you with the review the guest leaves me. I’m anticipating some feedback about the fruit flies, and it’s one of those tricky things because I’m sure the presence impacted their stay, yet I know there wasn’t a single fly to be found when I cleaned prior to their arrival (and bonus points for me: I gave them an early check-in!)
Happy Friday and Happy Hosting, friends!
