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?!

Yes, I have definitely seen those maid's trolleys at hotels, and, despite the posh bottles in the bathroom, they have a large plastic container of shampoo and shower gel refill in industrial quantites! It may be that places like Aesop and Diptique provide these direct to hotels .... but ... one cannot be certain!

Ditto the mattress protector change. I see lots of sheets bundled for laundering but not many mattress protectors. I am sure they get overlooked unless someone actually defecated in the bed or similar.

BUT life is full of risk! If you want to go on holiday, you deal with it (and take your own toiletries).

I take it that you would you wash your hands with the soap in the toilets after your business? Before then using hand sanitiser at the table

100%

Yes I take my own because I’m picky and always have been but I’m interested that the posters concerned about the contents are mostly ex cleaning/chambermaiding or other hotel experience and its the contents people are worried about not the poo crumbs. The big brands also own the cheap brands so even if they are providing the bulk containers it is not remotely the same product which retails at 20+ quid a bottle.

The main difference with public loos is that they usually have tamper proof dispensers (to prevent theft) and hotel restaurant loos either have tamper proof or rely on the footfall to minimise opportunities. Hotel rooms offer much more opportunities for playing silly games with the contents even if the hotel is using produce which conforms to the labelling.

Mostly I laugh at the idea that its all for eco purposes when its about cost cutting - the eco badge just makes it acceptable much further up the chains than used to be the case.

Totally agree with your last paragraph.

But I still think the OP should be using big bottles. People can take their own if it bothers them. It's a courtesy for if they forget or, for phobia-free individuals, to try a nice brand if it interests them to. Although I agree that many hotels are NOT providing the same as you would get in the store, I have nonetheless discovered some nice toiletries in hotels that I have thereafter kept using.

She sounds like an absolute dick. You sound lovely 😘

Yes messaging privately is fair enough - if I have a minor quibble with a good place I message rather than put it in the review and I always accept it may just be me.

The OP is best to leave it stand unless they are desperate to send a private message explaining why (I wouldn’t). Leaving pompous replies (as a couple of the suggestions on this thread) to reviews always reflects worse on the owner - most people are capable of reading through reviews and ignoring those whose issues are not relevant to them.

Oh I'm not advocating for the return millions of little bottles, just amused at the greenwashing of a cost cutting exercise.

I take my own, I would commend anyone who is fussy about their products to do the same as you really don’t know what is in the big bottles.

They were being ridiculous! I travel fairly frequently and it's a long time since I've stayed in a hotel that doesn't have those big bottles rather than little individual bottles. I've never considered it to be unhygienic! How? It's not like people are rubbing the products on their bodies and then putting it back in the bottle! (For that reason I would never want to use a bar of soap that had previously been used by someone else.)

If they were so particular that they didn't want to use "communal" products, why didn't they bring their own with them? Were they seriously expecting that you would provide individual bottles? If so, they are seriously out of touch.

Your property sounds lovely and I would be thrilled to stay there!

Its the same with paperless mail order: simply makes it a total pain to return anything, so they "go green" in the hope most people will give up and keep unwanted items.

I remember feeling a bit 'icky' about using leftover bottles of shampoo in leisure centres/hostels as a teenager, but when hotels/leisure centres started having refillable bottles I think that my attitude changed. Now, if I see a leftover bottle of toiletries I think winner.

Guests are insane a lot of the time. I once got a 1* review for a country cottage I let out because - and this really was the quoted reason - there was a newly dead moth in the otherwise spotless cottage on arrival.

It’s one thing for them to be topped up and ‘look’ as if you’re the first person to use vs every bottle being at different levels

I think a lot of hotels, etc have adopted this approach because it’s more green.

what do they do in a public toilet?!

I travel a lot and it's been years since I've stayed in a hotel that didn't do this!

I don’t think using Aesop toiletries instead of the cheapo single use brands is cost cutting

It’s not unhygienic and I really appreciate it when somewhere has toiletries available.

Did they complain that you didn’t leave a fresh unopened toilet roll just for them to use?

Its a shame she sent you a private message about it and not public. Because if her message was public it would be obvious she was just a nutter. Maybe ask her to? That way anyone thinking 'oooh I wonder why this person put 4 star' will know she batshit crazy, and you could respond, patiently, what you offer for environmental reasons with a pic. LIterally no-one is gonna support her on this. Only those who really shouldn't be staying away from home due to germaphobia.

Yes, they either change the full bottles to new ones or give me mini versions. Never been a problem.

Your place sounds lovely. She sounds like a dick 🙄

No but always have hand sanitizer, I take my own shower gel to the gym and spa

Bonkers!

Your Airbnb sounds lovely!

They're being ridiculous! Its soap ffs so self cleaning!
For clarity you could maybe list in your add that in order to be environmentally friendly you provide shampoo etc in large bottles so as to reduce plastic waste. That way, precious people like her can bring their own in future!

It’s perfectly normal to have pump bottles of soap, shampoo etc. I always used them until recently when I saw something that said people put their bodily fluids into the bottles so now I can’t get it out of my head and don’t use them but I wouldn’t complain to a hotel or Airbnb about it I just bring my own.

You can do without guests like that.
I'm fussy, but what you have described would not bother me at all. In fact I'd be very pleased, it all sounds lovely.