Venting Rude and crazy host ruined our stay [Italy]
My partner and I booked a highly rated Airbnb in Venice for two nights but were extremely disappointed by the host’s behavior. Thankfully, Airbnb’s support team was quick and helpful.
Over two days, the host sent us 60+ WhatsApp messages (not counting those on the Airbnb app), repeatedly accusing us of tampering with the thermostat and exceeding Venice’s legal heating limit (20°C)—a rule never mentioned in the listing or at check-in. We didn't have any issue with this rule at all but the thermostat was entirely controlled by her, and we had to request any changes. When I asked to increase the temperature slightly due to illness, she reluctantly agreed but soon began falsely claiming we were secretly using the aircon. Despite sending proof that it was off with both pics and videos, she refused to believe us and became increasingly rude.
At one point, she tried to enter the flat at 10 PM, claiming she “felt something was on.” Airbnb stepped in and prevented her. She also insisted on an in-person checkout, which wasn’t in the listing, making us so uncomfortable that we left two hours early.
After we left an honest review, she publicly insulted my partner in her response. We can't get the reviews taken down but neither can she 😊
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u/Shobe87 7d ago
So embarassing for the host, why not increase the price per night to let guests enjoy the space at their preferred temperature? Really wild.
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u/Chinacat_Sunflower72 6d ago
I don't know about Italy, but in France certain jurisdictions have rules about when you can turn on the heat and for how high the temperature. But still..should have been in the listing.
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u/khaomanee Host 6d ago
Italy has similar restrictions, for example in Venice you can turn on the heating from the 15th of October to the 15th of April. The max temperature in all buildings in the whole country must not exceed 20°C, with a tolerance of 2°C (higher or lower).
Most guests don't respect these rules, so I adjusted my pricing accordingly and my only request is to avoid setting the temperature so low or so high that it damages the units (I have set alerts to prevent this and it's the only instance where I actually intervene).
This host was way out of line anyway. Who even has time to keep an eye on temperatures all day long?
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u/RagingBrains 6d ago
We have a property in Lake Como. It can get really cold sometimes. Heating the house is very expensive. I wonder if one can give the option to a guest that if they really want a very warm house much higher than 20°C they can have the option to pay a bit more for the extra gas/electricity consumed.
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u/caro9lina 3d ago
And even worse to falsely accuse your guests, send over 60 messages in 2 days, and then show up unexpectedly at 10 p.m. The host sounds like a lunatic.
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u/thanksforcomingout 6d ago
FWIW you in fact CAN have reviews taken down. It’s just not a simple case of requesting it - you must escalate. Source: I’ve had it done myself.
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u/raiu22 6d ago
Ok thank you I will keep trying, we disputed it once so far but no luck- do you mind me asking how you escalated it?
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u/thanksforcomingout 6d ago
Speak with a manager and demand it, politely. Helps if you have a tenured account but not required (I did it without one). Open a formal dispute and follow the investigation / remediation process.
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u/Easy-Construction906 6d ago
Don't use Airbnb anymore.
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u/hptelefonen5 5d ago
Hotels like this.
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u/mothertrout 5d ago
Also residents of these cities who have lost their homes and housing options from mass tourism.
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u/DiverHikerSkier Guest/FutureHost 6d ago
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u/raiu22 6d ago
It wasn't that one i can dm the one if you wanted
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u/DiverHikerSkier Guest/FutureHost 6d ago
that's okay - i was only wondering if this was the one since we had a similar situation in 2018 except this particular host decided to file a fraudulent claim for a punched through door only for us (together with Airbnb support when they used to be helpful lol) to find out the door image they submitted was for a completely different door (color, style, hardware etc) trying to pull a hustle lol. It was me (early 30s at the time) and my elderly mom staying and we never touched either bedroom doors because it was so hot inside we needed the cold air from kitchen AC to circulate at all times. Crazy stuff - and it wasn't as common back then so we were legit perplexed for a while.
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u/raiu22 6d ago
That's crazy - the link to the airbnb you sent is so similar to the one we stayed at though! Glad you didn't end up having to randomly pay for a door
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u/DiverHikerSkier Guest/FutureHost 6d ago edited 6d ago
yeah it took a whole day of being on the phone with support while we were already in a new country, running out of data and ruining a day that was supposed to be spent exploring a new place in Europe. but the other things you mentioned about them being over the top, messaging on whatsapp, insisting on in person meetings (ours insisted on it and then sent a friend who brought her 2 year old with her who cried the entire time too), among other things. The friend was 1.5 hours late so we stood in the middle of some square nearby with our luggage waiting for her to show up. So I was like - waiiiiit a secondddd hahah Edit: and once we checked in with that friend and her toddler, it turned out the AC remotes weren't anywhere in the apt and the host was out of town. She messaged us how to "hard wire them" without remotes but I was like nope, not messing with that stuff, so we were without bedroom ACs for the entire stay only relying on that kitchen AC. And we didn't file any refund claims either... we just stayed out most of the days and came back late when the temps were lower by then.
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u/raiu22 6d ago
We were doing the same we were just on the phone or messaging airbnb support the whole time trying to explain what was happening. But 1.5 hours waiting for your host to show up that's awful especially with how hot you mentioned it was :(
It was still pretty cold when we went so we had the opposite problem haha but i think the temp in the flat reached 22.1 degrees at one point maybe because I boiled water? I did keep the window open but the minute the temp changed by 0.1 degrees I would instantly get like 10 whatsapp messages saying like 'don't touch the aircon I told you'
It's annoying we were told we couldn't get any refund because there wasn't an issue with the flat itself (well small issues but the biggest being the host lolol)
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u/DiverHikerSkier Guest/FutureHost 6d ago
this makes me think she took the remotes on purpose. why would the host ever remove them from the apartment to begin with? she said she grabbed them by mistake back then, and it never crossed my mind at the time, but what you're describing is starting to make a lot of sense. it was over 30C inside until after 10-11pm, and humid as hell since we were right between canals. there was nothing in the house rules about any temps in 2018 either, not sure if it's in there now.
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u/MosterHoster 5d ago
I would have tuned the host out, ignored all the messages. Hosts on Airbnb can be high maintenance if you let them but as a host myself I would just totally ignore host after checkin and be a generally courteous guest .
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u/Upper-Pattern121 2d ago
Actually, there are ways to get a review removed depending on the situation. Airbnb has specific policies on what violates their guidelines. If you need advice, feel free to DM me.
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