A guest books a cottage for a weekend. Two days before arrival she receives a document telling her a five hundred pound deposit is held, that no visitors are permitted, that the bins must be put out and that check-out is at nine.
She would have accepted all of it before booking. Finding out afterwards, she feels she has been caught out, and the stay starts badly.
The checklist
Publish these before the booking button, not in a pre-arrival email.
1. The deposit amount and how it is handled
Whether it is taken and refunded, held as a pre-authorisation or covered by a damage waiver. Guests dislike a large sum leaving their account for a week, and knowing which applies matters.
2. When a deposit is returned
How long after check-out, what triggers a deduction and how a deduction is evidenced. Publishing the timescale prevents a fortnight of anxious messages.
3. Occupancy limits
Maximum guests, whether children count, whether visitors may come during the day and whether the number is enforced. This is the rule most commonly broken and least clearly stated.
4. The party and event position
Parties, gatherings and events are the reason most deposits exist. Stating the policy plainly, and the consequence, deters the bookings that cause problems.
5. Pets
Whether allowed, how many, any size restriction, which rooms, whether a supplementary charge applies and what is expected on departure.
6. Smoking and vaping
Inside, outside, in a garden or not at all, and the charge for a breach. Be specific because guests interpret this generously.
7. Noise and neighbours
Quiet hours, whether the property is attached and what is expected. Rural and residential properties have real constraints and guests would rather know.
8. Check-out expectations
Time, whether dishes must be done, whether bedding is stripped, what to do with bins and rubbish and where keys go. Guests are happy to comply and resent being surprised.
9. What counts as damage
Normal wear, breakages, stains and missing items. A stated position, including that honest breakages should simply be reported, encourages guests to tell you rather than hide it.
10. Parking and vehicles
How many spaces, whether the lane suits a large car and whether any vehicle restriction applies.
11. What is provided
Linen, towels, toiletries, a starter supply of essentials and whether a cot or high chair is available. Guests packing for a week need to know.
12. The arrival information
Times, key arrangements and what to do if a guest is delayed, which belongs alongside the rules rather than in a separate message sent the week before.
12b. Who to contact during the stay
Guests need to know who answers when the heating will not come on at nine on a Sunday evening. Publishing the contact arrangement, the hours a person is reachable and what counts as urgent turns a small fault into a message rather than a paragraph in a review about being unable to reach anybody.
13. Answer before they book
These are checked in the evening while comparing properties, which is the behaviour in guest questions before booking a holiday rental, and anything touching payment details needs the care described in AI chatbot security questions to ask a vendor.
Getting started
Publish your deposit terms, occupancy limits and house rules before the booking form, then answer them at any hour. SpideyChat for accommodation providers answers from your published pages, and owners considering letting are covered in holiday let owners and the questions before they instruct. Try SpideyChat on your own site, or read about answers on the features page.