Airbnb host check out demands - AIBU to ignore

[Senseonhorizons]

Been staying in Airbnb for last 3 nights, out of many, many we have stayed in this is our worst experience. There are lots of positives about the place, however it is f'ing freezing. Non functional heating on one floor so bedrooms were 12 degrees and we were all so cold in the night and now are ill, may or may not be connected.

I did contact host re heating on arrival and was given a load of instructions that don't work.

I have now received list of tasks to do on check out, none mentioned in property listing. They include stripping off beds and taking all sheets and towels downstairs, emptying bins in kitchen and bathrooms and taking to bins half way down the lane.

I feel like f'off do it yourself. We paid enough for the place. I know people did it in covid with sheets etc, but there is absolutely no reason to now

AIBU to ignore their demands?

Airbnb is no different to the myriad of cottage agencies we used before it was invented

Did the cottages add a separate cleaning fee to the costs though? They didn't when I used to hire them, but admittedly that was a long time ago

For me this is what makes the difference, even though I'd usually empty bins and strip beds anyway - it's not so much the cleaning I'd object to, but being charged for it and being expected to do it myself

I stayed in one last year..the cleaning list was hilarious! I'm not cleaning an entire air BNB to pristine standards when I'm on holiday paying a premium.

I'm tidy, I wipe everything down but no I will not be sweeping and mopping all floors and cleaning a bathroom or fridge before departure.
I'll drag the sheets into a pile on the bed. that's it.

When I can't check in until 1.00pm and have to be out at 10am..they can clean it.

I always leave any place I stay in clean and tidy. I’ll wipe surfaces and put the dishwasher on. However, it wouldn’t occur to me to empty the kitchen bin or strip the bed particularly if I’m paying a cleaning charge (which is the norm now). Air bnb owners on this thread have put me off using the platform going forward. Hotels from now I think.

I will not strip beds. I will empty a bin and leave things tidy.
One owner expected us to take the full bin bag away with us! This didn't happen..

Sorry you have had a negative experience. There isn't always a hefty cleaning fee though. This is a setting the host can choose or not. I'm a host and don't have a cleaning fee.

I don't require beds to be stripped and I don't do it as a guest either. It barely saves any time really.

I think a cold place is horrible and I'm not surprised you're all ill and fed up. Having said that, I find with airbnb if you get a good review from a host, or several, its a lot easier to book the places you want thereafter. If you leave a negative review and don't do the things they're asking, they could turn around and say you flouted house rules, left it filthy etc. Then next time you want an airbnb the host might hesitate to agree to the booking. I'm just looking at it in terms of short term loss / long term gain here. You do whatever you like, ultimately, but just keep a mind to the consequences.

I always empty the bins and strip the beds. Making the beds just makes things harder for the cleaners and leaving shite in the bins is just rude. Most of the time you're passing the bins when you're leaving so it just seems lazy.

I wipe down benches, run the dishwasher, and put any thing I've moved back where I found it. Never had a negative review.

It’s pointless making the bed when they are just going to change it.

I would always strip beds and leave the bedding by the washing machine in a rental. I'd also always empty the bins and sweep the floor. This is just common courtesy.

Making the bed is a complete waste of time.

To be honest I always do that , take sheets out leave towels together in one place and never leave any bins full .

I would always empty the bins and make sure the washing up is done or dishwasher running with no more than breakfast stuff . I’d wipe down the kitchen surfaces and bathroom but superficially . I would expect if checkin is 3/4 pm and check out 10 that they cleaned between 10 and 3 . I don’t strip beds apart from maybe once or twice in a caravan ! Quite surprised quite how many people say they do

See this is the issue.
It's not curtesy in many cases. If there is a cleaning fee, and absolute majority of airbnb I ever looked at, if not all, had it, I am paying for cleaning service. I will therefore not clean unless we actually made it actually dirty. We leave it tidy, we don't make mess, towels in bathroom, dishes clean (barely use any anyway) and that's it.
Plus I hate sweeping.

It's a business, it's no longer someone's home they are trying to make few quid on over a weekend and one should be courteous. It's a bigger hotel "room" essentially nowadays. Just with less service

We’re a host and don’t expect people to strip beds etc. The issues are not really related but it’s totally unreasonable for your heating not to work. I’d request a total regund, not a partial!

I always do this stuff anyway. I always ensure anywhere I stay is left tidy…it’s something my parents did and I just thought it’s what most people do?

It's just so much easier and less hassle to stay in a hotel.

The cleaning fees are extortionate. I’m not stripping any beds. Bins and leaving it tidy - yes.

This was exactly what I was thinking!! Why put yourself through this stress? At least with a hotel you have the option to move rooms immediately, people on call to fix any issues, room service, turn downs, daily cleaning, stocked mini bars, service and security. It’s often much cheaper too! I don’t know why anyone would want to strip beds and sort out bins whilst on a so called holiday!

You are literally just paying someone else’s mortgage and paying twice for cleaning!

Amen to that @umberelladay !!

What was the outcome of you not following the cleaning demands?

Yeah we stopped using airbnb a while ago. I still look to see if there are any cheap than hotel but nah. We just need place to crash

You are ill after sleeping in 12 degrees for three nights? Oh do give over. Although the heating should have worked.

The bed stripping request is fairly standard I believe. I am happy for my guests to leave everything except their bins and their washing up. I'll empty the dishwasher so long as they've stacked it and run it, and I actually prefer to strip the beds myself in case they remove the pillow/mattress protectors as well, which don't get washed every single time.

Most air bnb places will levy a separate cleaning charge and apart from removing your own rubbish and making sure you don't leave a kitchen full of dirty dishes, they won't necessarily expect you to do anything more. All my guests have left the place decent, had a quick sweep though, made sure the loos are not grim and that's enough for me. But some people don't charge a cleaning fee and are free to set their own rules and expectations, which will have been laid out clearly before you agreed the booking, so there is no point in complaining now.

Couple of misconceptions here. The Airbnb system doesn't work like that.

Hosts do not see the guest review until they themselves have also written a review or the 14 day review period has passed. We can however reply publicly to your review so if it is unfair you can expect to be called out on it by an aggrieved owner.

I can leave a public review for guests that don't review me. In fact Airbnb will nag me for 2 weeks until I do.....

It's not unusual to strip beds and any decent person would empty the bins.

Re making the beds, honest, don't bother. The cleaners will go in and strip it off anyway. In the minute or so you take to maje the bed, you could strip it and leave the bed empty ready to remake.

We always leave the kitchen clean dishes washed, towels in bath tub etc. We don't just leave the place in a tip - although we pay for the cleaning.

We've just checked out of an Airbnb property in Scandinavia. All we were asked to do on leaving was to load the dishwasher which we did. We had to leave at 8am to catch a train. Didn't empty bins or strip the beds.
I've already had a thank you message from the owner 🙂