Pet Peeves

[Flower]

Men who can't hit the toilet.
Women who use our best towels as catch all for the men who can't seem to hit the toilet.
Those heavy tread shoes that track in mud and the people who wear them inside after a muddy walk, day after day. Don't they see all that mud on the carpet?
Early arrivals. They have been verbally told that we do not accept arrivals before 3. It is in writing on their confirmation along side the time they told us they would be arriving. Still, there they are are 1pm wanting to use the bathroom and drop off the luggage.
Moisture rings on the piano from wet glass. We have almost every horizontal surface covered with glass and coasters all over the place. So where do they decide to put the wet glass? Ugh...not just once but over and over.
Then there are the guests who bring half the beach back with them and dump it all over the floor. What doesn't get dumped on the wood floors is in the tub....the rest is clogging the drain pipe.
Wet towels hung on the wooden doors and furniture. Duhhh, that's what all those hooks and towel bars are for!.

Reading all this reminds me what a great group you all are. In another group all I heard was well it is the price of doing busness. ..Oh yea!!!!! it may very well be!
BUT!!! gosh darn any ways people are dumb and need to be educated not only on a better way to stay but what not to do at most Inns / B&Bs. there might be a blog in there? For thoses that have the gift of telling people what not to do at a B&B /Inn that is diplomatically correct.

 

[Joey Camb]

I was ready, I was here at 4pm for check in. They arrived at 930PM last night. I freshened their room today and found movie tickets from yesterday to a 6pm show. The movie theater is three blocks from us, could have checked in first? I am sure they could have.
I will not, I confirm, I will not be held hostage by checking-in every guest in person, I don't care what the heck anyone else says! At 6pm if they are not here or have called first to say they are late, they will have a self check in note.
EVEN SO...as you all know, we wait thinking they might not be able to get in, yeah they should be able to, but people are inacapable of doing some basic things sometimes...
Now, having said all that, they are very nice. Because I do not like waiting 5 1/2 hours past the time they said they would arrive doesn't mean I don't think they are nice people. They are normal people.

.

One of my things to do for this year is to find more ways for guests to be more self sufficient. For example late checkin's get the lock box especially regulars in that they know their way about enough to manage. 2 which was done today was a drop box for keys for example I have a ton of builders they have to be on site for 7am I am not doing breakfast at 6.30 every day, they are staying till april and pay like clockwork on a thursday night go home for the weekend back 6pm on monday. they have been leaving they keys on the back desk but then this means they have to leave the back door open to get to their cars which i wasn't happy about as we have had a lot of opportunist theiving around where I live and I didn't want it getting around. now the drop box is on the wall by the back door they go out lock the door and then drop the key in the box securly which I am a lot happer about. It is all about seeing the problem and working out a solution for it.

 

[Generic]

I was ready, I was here at 4pm for check in. They arrived at 930PM last night. I freshened their room today and found movie tickets from yesterday to a 6pm show. The movie theater is three blocks from us, could have checked in first? I am sure they could have.
I will not, I confirm, I will not be held hostage by checking-in every guest in person, I don't care what the heck anyone else says! At 6pm if they are not here or have called first to say they are late, they will have a self check in note.
EVEN SO...as you all know, we wait thinking they might not be able to get in, yeah they should be able to, but people are inacapable of doing some basic things sometimes...
Now, having said all that, they are very nice. Because I do not like waiting 5 1/2 hours past the time they said they would arrive doesn't mean I don't think they are nice people. They are normal people.

.

I was ready, I was here at 4pm for check in. They arrived at 930PM last night. I freshened their room today and found movie tickets from yesterday to a 6pm show. The movie theater is three blocks from us, could have checked in first? I am sure they could have.
I will not, I confirm, I will not be held hostage by checking-in every guest in person, I don't care what the heck anyone else says! At 6pm if they are not here or have called first to say they are late, they will have a self check in note.
EVEN SO...as you all know, we wait thinking they might not be able to get in, yeah they should be able to, but people are inacapable of doing some basic things sometimes...
Now, having said all that, they are very nice. Because I do not like waiting 5 1/2 hours past the time they said they would arrive doesn't mean I don't think they are nice people. They are normal people.

We got one of these... http://mydlink.dlink.com/products/DCS-930L and when it detects movement (ie they managed to get in the door) it sends me pictures by email. I can also view it live on my phone. But it's nice that you can set it up as confirmation that they got in. (And I leave the note in a place where the movement would be detected.)
Just an idea...

 

[EmptyNest]

I was ready, I was here at 4pm for check in. They arrived at 930PM last night. I freshened their room today and found movie tickets from yesterday to a 6pm show. The movie theater is three blocks from us, could have checked in first? I am sure they could have.
I will not, I confirm, I will not be held hostage by checking-in every guest in person, I don't care what the heck anyone else says! At 6pm if they are not here or have called first to say they are late, they will have a self check in note.
EVEN SO...as you all know, we wait thinking they might not be able to get in, yeah they should be able to, but people are inacapable of doing some basic things sometimes...
Now, having said all that, they are very nice. Because I do not like waiting 5 1/2 hours past the time they said they would arrive doesn't mean I don't think they are nice people. They are normal people.

.

I was ready, I was here at 4pm for check in. They arrived at 930PM last night. I freshened their room today and found movie tickets from yesterday to a 6pm show. The movie theater is three blocks from us, could have checked in first? I am sure they could have.
I will not, I confirm, I will not be held hostage by checking-in every guest in person, I don't care what the heck anyone else says! At 6pm if they are not here or have called first to say they are late, they will have a self check in note.
EVEN SO...as you all know, we wait thinking they might not be able to get in, yeah they should be able to, but people are inacapable of doing some basic things sometimes...
Now, having said all that, they are very nice. Because I do not like waiting 5 1/2 hours past the time they said they would arrive doesn't mean I don't think they are nice people. They are normal people.

We got one of these... http://mydlink.dlink.com/products/DCS-930L and when it detects movement (ie they managed to get in the door) it sends me pictures by email. I can also view it live on my phone. But it's nice that you can set it up as confirmation that they got in. (And I leave the note in a place where the movement would be detected.)
Just an idea...
.

I like that. I don't really have a need for it...but it's cool and useful in the right circumstances. thanks for sharing.

 

[Tom]

Men who can't hit the toilet.
Women who use our best towels as catch all for the men who can't seem to hit the toilet.
Those heavy tread shoes that track in mud and the people who wear them inside after a muddy walk, day after day. Don't they see all that mud on the carpet?
Early arrivals. They have been verbally told that we do not accept arrivals before 3. It is in writing on their confirmation along side the time they told us they would be arriving. Still, there they are are 1pm wanting to use the bathroom and drop off the luggage.
Moisture rings on the piano from wet glass. We have almost every horizontal surface covered with glass and coasters all over the place. So where do they decide to put the wet glass? Ugh...not just once but over and over.
Then there are the guests who bring half the beach back with them and dump it all over the floor. What doesn't get dumped on the wood floors is in the tub....the rest is clogging the drain pipe.
Wet towels hung on the wooden doors and furniture. Duhhh, that's what all those hooks and towel bars are for!.

I took my shoes off, put them in the way back of the car and forgot them until yesterday after I traipsed thru a wet field while we were on vacation. I put my slippers on in the driveway of the B&B so I wouldn't track into the house. This is only because of what I've learned in the past few years!
When we first got here, every old-time innkeeper would come to the door and stand on the mat saying, 'I know you just cleaned...'
I kept having to say, 'Come on in, there's a vacuum or a mop for anything you drag in.' But it was very easy to pick out either the new innkeepers or those that had full time help!
.

You just brought to mind that guest who walked in from the rain and stood on our foyer rug and scraped her feet all up and down it like it was an outside doormat. I have never before seen anyone do that, nor since.

.

And you with a porch and everything!
We have no outside mat so I have a cheapo (pretty, but cheap) rug right inside the door. It's the only place to wipe feet but I would be peeved if someone had the opportunity to clean up outside and didn't!
.

Way to go. We did that too: a 5 x 8 polyolefin, not too bad looking rug for $90. I can take it outside and pressure wash it.

 

[gillumhouse]

Men who can't hit the toilet.
Women who use our best towels as catch all for the men who can't seem to hit the toilet.
Those heavy tread shoes that track in mud and the people who wear them inside after a muddy walk, day after day. Don't they see all that mud on the carpet?
Early arrivals. They have been verbally told that we do not accept arrivals before 3. It is in writing on their confirmation along side the time they told us they would be arriving. Still, there they are are 1pm wanting to use the bathroom and drop off the luggage.
Moisture rings on the piano from wet glass. We have almost every horizontal surface covered with glass and coasters all over the place. So where do they decide to put the wet glass? Ugh...not just once but over and over.
Then there are the guests who bring half the beach back with them and dump it all over the floor. What doesn't get dumped on the wood floors is in the tub....the rest is clogging the drain pipe.
Wet towels hung on the wooden doors and furniture. Duhhh, that's what all those hooks and towel bars are for!.

I took my shoes off, put them in the way back of the car and forgot them until yesterday after I traipsed thru a wet field while we were on vacation. I put my slippers on in the driveway of the B&B so I wouldn't track into the house. This is only because of what I've learned in the past few years!
When we first got here, every old-time innkeeper would come to the door and stand on the mat saying, 'I know you just cleaned...'
I kept having to say, 'Come on in, there's a vacuum or a mop for anything you drag in.' But it was very easy to pick out either the new innkeepers or those that had full time help!
.

You just brought to mind that guest who walked in from the rain and stood on our foyer rug and scraped her feet all up and down it like it was an outside doormat. I have never before seen anyone do that, nor since.

.

I have a boot brush procupine on the porch next to the door and a leftover piece of my hall carpeting on the porch in front of the door. the boot brush startles a few folks but other than my "live-ins" last Spring who tracked everything in (belonged in a barn), I rarely get folks who track the trail or barn in with them. Most leave their shoes on the porch or in the downstairs hall by the hall tree.

 

[bc30md]

Odd, I have found the bedskirts are too long and I am hemming all of them this month. I will say that I got a great bedskirt at JCP that actually has added matching fabric where it drapes over the boxspring so on that one bed I never see the muslin part of the bedskirt.
Peeve 5- One 50 gallon trash container's worth from one room on a one night stay.
Peeve 6- Please don't show up on the wrong day and blame me.
My peeves are pretty standard-
Don't tell me you can't eat that when I set it in front of you. You knew the day before what was for breakfast. (We're getting a little more aggressive on this during the year. Asking again on arrival so there is NO reason for ANY problems in the morning.

)
Don't show up 6 hours early and expect to check in..

Don't tell me you can't eat that when I set it in front of you. You knew the day before what was for breakfast. (We're getting a little more aggressive on this during the year. Asking again on arrival so there is NO reason for ANY problems in the morning. )
You really think this will solve this? It won't, I can attest to that!

.

Don't tell me you can't eat that when I set it in front of you. You knew the day before what was for breakfast. (We're getting a little more aggressive on this during the year. Asking again on arrival so there is NO reason for ANY problems in the morning. )
You really think this will solve this? It won't, I can attest to that!

Note I said 'no reason'. Anything that comes up in the morning is unreasonable.

I really need to think that thru now. How to handle the morning breakfast issues they neglected to tell us about after all the opportunities to do so.
I guess what really gets me is the guest then expects us to make what they want. 'I can't have that, but I can have this...' something not at all on the agenda. There are days we really, seriously do NOT have whole wheat bread to make toast with. This is considered a crime of some sort by some guests.
'OK, then, I'll have a muffin. No muffins??!! How about some banana bread? Really? No banana bread??? What exactly are you running here if I can't get breakfast?'
The list of things I've been asked for when a guest doesn't want what's being served is amazing.
.

I buy a bulk package of printable postcards (4 to a sheet) from Staples or Office Depot.
On check-in, there is a stack of postcards (one printed for each guest) with a spot at the top for their name and room #. Each card has the following:
-a checkbox for "I have made other plans for breakfast or will just grab something from the café area" "(if this option is selected, the following is available at any time in the café: cereals / yogurt / whole fruit / coffee / tea)
-the TIME breakfast is available (occasionally we offer flexibility here)
-a fruit choice: usually> pink grapefruit / mixed berry parfait / oatmeal
-a "bread" entrée (some type of pancakes, FT, or pastry)
-an "egg" entrée (scrambled, omelet, casserole, etc)
-sides: bacon / sausage / multi-grain toast / white toast
**at check-in, this is the last thing we discuss before going to their room. I make it clear that these are their options, they must complete a card and leave it there on the foyer table BEFORE turning in at night, otherwise, I will assume NOT to expect them in the morning. At the time they made their reservation they were asked if there were any food allergies or other dietary restrictions... if they did not indicate any at that time, I ask to confirm there are none...
**regarding our "café", we have airtight canisters of cheerios, kashi, and shredded wheat (if there are kids, I will mention we have lucky charms and rice krispies as well - just not sitting out); I also keep a bowl of apples, bananas, and sometimes oranges sitting out; we have a water cooler that dispenses hot or cold water and also has a small fridge on the bottom where we keep milk, lemon, and butter and sometimes cream cheese; we also have a Keurig and an assortment of k-cup coffees, teas, and hot cocoa; there is a dish with mini-moos and mini french vanilla creamers; we buy honey sticks (sealed straws of honey) in bulk from Amazon.com and I keep them in a straw dispenser (the vertical kind where you lift the lid and it raises the straws); we also keep individual size OJ, cranberry, apple, and V8 juices (kept in a cabinet at room temp - we have a small sized ice maker in the café, too)
Also, I usually whip up a small batch of muffins or biscuits or scones (something quick or something I already made that I can just re-heat) that I set out on a tray near the beverages in the morning - I never mention it, so that in case I am running late or just don't feel like making it on a particular morning, no one will be expecting it; but if it's there it's a nice surprise... Usually, guests will at least sample whatever it is, often it gets inhaled with requests for a recipe, occasionally I still have a full tray of whatever it is when I clean up after breakfast... My family gets the leftovers for snacks or dessert...
All of the above has made any issues regarding breakfast virtually NON-existant!!

Hope someone finds some of these suggestions helpful...

 

[Madeleine]

Just found peeve...
I am doing a major cleaning of the dining room/guest area pantry. In every stinkin' sugar holder (and there are 9 of them) was an opened pack of either the yellow stuff or the pink stuff. Very carefully folded over and placed back in the holder where someone else would surely want to use it.
People. Use it or don't but don't put it back like someone else will want it. You're not home. No one else wants your semi-used sugar packs! No one but the ants, anyway. Just what I need.

 

[Joey Camb]

Just found peeve...
I am doing a major cleaning of the dining room/guest area pantry. In every stinkin' sugar holder (and there are 9 of them) was an opened pack of either the yellow stuff or the pink stuff. Very carefully folded over and placed back in the holder where someone else would surely want to use it.
People. Use it or don't but don't put it back like someone else will want it. You're not home. No one else wants your semi-used sugar packs! No one but the ants, anyway. Just what I need..

I had that when we used to have jam packs they had opened it and then shut it and put it back in the bowl we didn't find it as they had hidden it at the bottom till another guest opened it and it was full of fuzzz yeabelugh!

 

[JBloggs]

The older they are the earlier they arrive.

 

[JBloggs]

Nit pickers are my pet peeve. It is just in passing them comment about this or that.
This guest was telling me how confusing it is that our B&B address is one thing, then our parking is another. So sorry. I said "You can park out front down the hill on the street if you want to. We actually LEASE the area behind the inn to provide parking for you."
It is not rocket science. Just wondering are we blinkin' supposed to park vehicles near the front door?
comlaint over.out.

 

[Madeleine]

Nit pickers are my pet peeve. It is just in passing them comment about this or that.
This guest was telling me how confusing it is that our B&B address is one thing, then our parking is another. So sorry. I said "You can park out front down the hill on the street if you want to. We actually LEASE the area behind the inn to provide parking for you."
It is not rocket science. Just wondering are we blinkin' supposed to park vehicles near the front door?
comlaint over.out..

Nit pickers are my pet peeve. It is just in passing them comment about this or that.
This guest was telling me how confusing it is that our B&B address is one thing, then our parking is another. So sorry. I said "You can park out front down the hill on the street if you want to. We actually LEASE the area behind the inn to provide parking for you."
It is not rocket science. Just wondering are we blinkin' supposed to park vehicles near the front door?
comlaint over.out.

Given your driveway I would think guests would be happy you are providing them a flat surface and easy access.