AIRBNB GUEST REQUESTING LATE CHECKOUT - WHAT TO DO + RESPONSES
Is your guest requesting a late checkout? Here are some easy responses that we use to help direct the guest accordingly. But first, you need to determine what your late checkout policies are - i.e. do you clean the home yourself or do you need to reschedule with a cleaning company like ours? Do you have a guest checking in the same day?, etc.
As a cleaning service provider, we try our best to allow flexibility when it comes to scheduling late checkouts, however it isn’t always a guarantee. Generally, if one house is requesting a late checkout, we direct the cleaning crew to start at a different property that will be checking out on time if this isn’t an option then we may request you charge a fee to the guest if they would like the housekeeping staff to wait. This isn't always the case as sometimes we simply can't make late checkouts work. It is best to reach out to your LCC team to see if we can work the schedule to accommodate the request.
Make the Late Checkouts Worth Your Time!
If you know you can accommodate the late checkout without disrupting an incoming stay (i.e. there isn’t a same-day turnover), make it worth your while to do so by adding a small fee especially if your cleaning crew will have limited time to prepare the home than usual. You can use this fee for the added scheduling workaround on your behalf. You will find that many guests will happily pay a late checkout fee to continue enjoying the home a little longer particularly if they have a later flight, a meeting, want to sleep in a bit longer, etc. Make sure to keep your fees reasonable, you don't want to come off as if you're taking advantage of your guest but it's fair to ask for a small amount if they are going to be 1-3 hours past your original checkout time as it will require some extra effort on your behalf and your cleaners to make sure the property still gets a proper turnover. If you know that the house is unlikely to book (i.e. for example, if your Sunday’s are not usually booked last minute), block the day and absorb the little bit of extra income from the late checkout. A little bit is better than nothing at all.
All of our properties are 10am checkouts. Our fee structure is:
$30 for 11am checkout
$40 for 12pm checkout
$50 for 1pm checkout
1pm and after - need to book additional night
Beyond 3 hours past the original checkout time, we request that guests book another night. We have our properties on same-day instant book so we always want to ensure that our properties are ready to go should they immediately get booked following a stay.
Be contentious of your cleaner's and their time first and foremost. Make sure you communicate with them and okay the timeframe with them first before giving guests the green light. You do not want to get in a situation where your cleaners show up to the property and end up having to wait an extra hour to get in nor should you expect them to fit a 3 hour cleaning job into a 1 hour time slot.
Here are our automated responses:
"Hi GUEST NAME,
I'd be happy to accommodate a late-checkout, but first I will need to confirm with the cleaning company who schedules each clean. A small fee does apply for late checkouts as follows: $30 for 11am checkout, $40 for 12pm checkout & $50 for 1pm checkout. Is this okay with you and if so, what time would you like to extend your checkout to?"
"Hi GUEST NAME,
Unfortunetly, I cannot accommodate a late checkout following your reservation as there are guests checking-in the same day and cannot alter the cleaning company's schedule. However, there are some great spots nearby that are a good stopover before you leave town. I've listed those below:
Coffee shop + address
Restaurant, diner or cafe + address
Library + address
Thanks and please let me know if you have any other questions."
