Is this unhygienic?!

[loislaneloves]

I have an Airbnb on my property. It’s basically a tiny home at the bottom of our large garden with an amazing view. Most people come for the weekend by train and I don’t want people to spend their holiday shopping for stuff like coffee, tea, milk or having to cram suitcases full of toiletries or beach towels so I provide all of those. I also provide a little evening snack (crisps usually) some wine to watch the sun set on the deck with and fruit from the garden and a croissant and jam for breakfast. People love it and I make it quite clear on my ads that these things are provided.
Just got a review from a couple who stayed with us a few days ago. They gave us a good review but took one star off and in her private message to me she said ‘We loved our stay with you but we weren’t very happy that the toiletries are in big shared bottles rather than individual use. This is obviously very unhygienic (we don’t know who has used them!!) so we had to make the trip to buy some for ourselves which was an expense and effort we weren’t expecting’.
To be clear I offer Aesop Shower Gel, Shampoo and Conditioner in the shower and Aesop Hand Wash by the sink in 500ml bottles. They get replaced when empty which is usually about every 10 months
AIBU to think this is not unhygienic?!

How do wash your hands at work/in public?

You have the hygiene fanatics - people rip out bathrooms in houses just because they are 'used'. Honestly posh hotels have this all the time.

You can't please all the people all the time OP, I'd not try to.

There's a lot less chance that someones going to have had time in a public toilet to get it off the wall, open the container and have a wank into it then there is is the privacy of an airbnb

if they are fixed then I don't think it's a problem but if loose I would think twice about using them. People do all sorts of weird things

To those who say it’s unhygienic do you bring your own soap to wash your hands in public loos? Soap is always communal there.

no because no one else can generally get into the dispenser

I've heard awful stories of men depositing extras in places they shouldn't for a laugh

I would think OP's dispensers are perfectly fine though as
you can't just unscrew the top

They are being ridiculous and it is also so so bad for the environment. Lots of hotels have now moved from mini bottles to big static bottles. YANBU

Not hygiene related, but I remember aeons ago on MN a poster receiving an email from the b&b where she’d stayed requesting return/reimbursement for the high-end toiletries the OP had taken. Posters were up in arms on her behalf… and then it transpired she’d helped herself to three big 500ml bottles. Still some posters were outraged - I guess this was before it was the norm to provide refillable bottles instead of individual ones, but still - do people really snaffle the big bottles?

Loads of cafes and shops and stuff just have bottles of soap sitting on the sink.... So do you use those?

They are bat shit crazy as the majority of hotels are now moving to big bottles

yes but they are unlikely to have men wanking into them seeing as it would be the ladies loo and not to mention in the public area

FFS, does she carry her own soap into public toilets? What a knobber.

I think what you provide goes above and beyond, a lovely gesture x

Initially I read your OP as you leaving a bottle of L’Oréal shampoo on the side of the bath, and thought it was a bit odd. But the set up as you describe it sounds perfect. Just a thought, I’m assuming that you have photographs on the website, could you make sure that the bathroom picture covers the items, so no one could claim they were unaware?

@loislaneloves

Perhaps you should add something to the listing to clarify that you check that the big bottles haven't been pissed or wanted in by the previous guest?

Could I ask why? You worry that someone has put something inside one of the bottles?

I was just thinking that they usually bolt a pump style bottle to the walls in a hotel. Perhaps you could offer individual for a supplement in future. They sound snobby to me!

Tell her you don’t support single use plastic and so a refillable bottle is better for the environment. I used to think the same that individual bottles are better than shared but it’s so common to see even five star hotels going down the refillable route.

you could even add something about sustainability in your listing to show it’s actually a positive thing!

Same as BoTree, Churchill and Intercontinental. All big bottles.

Drunk people pee or men do you know what in them they think it's funny. My friend who works in hospitality told me it happens all the time.

That's kettles 🤣

I hate the little toiletry bottle. There is never enough in them for me. They fall over in the shower, the lids are all over the place. Your big high quality bottles sound ideal. Also less plastic wastage.

I don't really get how the client is saying they are unhygenic is it because of other people touching them ? This could be sais of any surface surely.

People need to manage their expectations!

To avoid this I would buy tiny bottles (travel one) and I would fill them for every guest :)

You are very kind to do this and I think that it how it should be done, however I can see their point. x

I like my hygiene and this wouldn't bother me at all. The less plastic wasted the better.

All the little plastic bottles, it is so wasteful. And you're providing a nice brand not something super cheap. I get the little plastic bottles of pricey stuff are a perk at high end places, but even those are starting to go away.

Yes she is being fussy. You could word it as they can bring their own or there will be toiletries on offer should you need.

Another example of how the world has gone mad!!!

I use Airbnb a lot and wouldn’t think twice about using toiletries. I might take my own shampoo but only cos I have a personal preference.

Likewise I would use the tea bags etc, even if they were in a box.

Does the daft bat expect the toilet to be individually wrapped too?!?