Top 10 guest calls for help so far in 2022

Top 10 guest calls for help so far in 2022

Collin HaysBusiness Member
Property Manager · Gatlinburg, TN · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes

I am always fascinated at the things guests encounter at cabins in the Smokies.  We keep a log of things that we have physically had to go out and address.  So far for 2022, this is our "ESPN Top 10" list:

1.  "There's a white skunk stuck in the fireplace and the house reeks."  Gee I wonder why?

2.  "Woodpeckers are waking us up every morning."  Yes indeed!  Seems those notorious carpenter bees have larvae in the soffits and the woodpeckers are hunting for some breakfast.

3.  "We can't get up the hill."   Yes, as it turns out, you're on the wrong road!  

4.  "We have bed bugs!"  No, you have shingles!

5.  "Our daughter got bitten by a bunch of wasps!"   Well, those are yellow jackets, but we'll kill them anyway.

6.  "Our son has a fish hook in his eye and we don't know what to do"   We helped them get to an urgent care center.

7.  "There are copperheads under the hot tub!"  Actually, those are harmless water snakes.  And snakes LOVE hot tubs.

8.  "We've locked ourselves out of the cabin and the combination isn't working!"  Electronic door locks work great, until they don't.  

9.  "There are centipedes all over the back deck!"   Those are millipedes, and they are plentiful certain times of the year.

10. "There are a bunch of birds fluttering around under the deck after dark and they are scaring the kids."  Those are bats, and they keep you from getting eaten up by mosquitos.  

6Reply
17 views

Most Popular Reply

Nathan GesnerBusiness Member
Moderator
Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes
4y

Who would have thought one would encounter so much nature out in nature?

The DIY Landlord Book4.7248 Reviews
See this reply in the discussion

18 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Real Estate Agent · Smoky Mountains, TN · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 984 votes
    4y

    We recently got ‘ceiling fan is too loud’ (shut it off) and ‘shower pressure is too hard’ (turn it down). Same guest ! 

  • Michael BaumPro Member
    Olympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    4y

    The last text I got was about the neighbor yelling at them about being on the wrong beach. Almost got into a fist fight. They were on their dock, we don't have a dock. All is very well explained in our ad and in my welcome text.

    One of the worst guest experiences I have every had and VRBO no less which is very rare.

  • Nathan GesnerBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes
    4y

    Who would have thought one would encounter so much nature out in nature?

    The DIY Landlord Book4.7248 Reviews
  • John UnderwoodPro Member
    Investor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
    4y
    Quote from @Collin Hays:

    I am always fascinated at the things guests encounter at cabins in the Smokies.  We keep a log of things that we have physically had to go out and address.  So far for 2022, this is our "ESPN Top 10" list:

    1.  "There's a white skunk stuck in the fireplace and the house reeks."  Gee I wonder why?

    2.  "Woodpeckers are waking us up every morning."  Yes indeed!  Seems those notorious carpenter bees have larvae in the soffits and the woodpeckers are hunting for some breakfast.

    3.  "We can't get up the hill."   Yes, as it turns out, you're on the wrong road!  

    4.  "We have bed bugs!"  No, you have shingles!

    5.  "Our daughter got bitten by a bunch of wasps!"   Well, those are yellow jackets, but we'll kill them anyway.

    6.  "Our son has a fish hook in his eye and we don't know what to do"   We helped them get to an urgent care center.

    7.  "There are copperheads under the hot tub!"  Actually, those are harmless water snakes.  And snakes LOVE hot tubs.

    8.  "We've locked ourselves out of the cabin and the combination isn't working!"  Electronic door locks work great, until they don't.  

    9.  "There are centipedes all over the back deck!"   Those are millipedes, and they are plentiful certain times of the year.

    10. "There are a bunch of birds fluttering around under the deck after dark and they are scaring the kids."  Those are bats, and they keep you from getting eaten up by mosquitos.  

    We have been overrun with those millipeads this year too. I hear lady bugs can also be problematic at times too.

    I saw a gus throw a water bottle at a bear that was trying to look in the bed of his truck. The bear charged him for a few steps to scare the guy. I bet he hasn't ran so fast since he was a kid.
  • Rental Property Investor · Marietta, GA · Member since 2017 · 131 posts · 101 votes
    4y

    "I think you have mice in the walls, I hear them scratching"... We have a log cabin (the walls are solid). It was a squirrel on the end of the logs chewing. 

    We have a door to the back porch with two large sidelites (nearly floor to ceiling)... resulting in this "You may want to put some stickers on the windows, my kids and even 1 adult ran into the window thinking they could walk straight out onto the porch"... I am sorry, but I just don't have a response for this one. I am still scratching my head. I guess 'sorry our windows are so clean?'

  • Real Estate Agent · Smoky Mountains, TN · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 984 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Andrew Simms:

    "I think you have mice in the walls, I hear them scratching"... We have a log cabin (the walls are solid). It was a squirrel on the end of the logs chewing. 

    We have a door to the back porch with two large sidelites (nearly floor to ceiling)... resulting in this "You may want to put some stickers on the windows, my kids and even 1 adult ran into the window thinking they could walk straight out onto the porch"... I am sorry, but I just don't have a response for this one. I am still scratching my head. I guess 'sorry our windows are so clean?'

    Oooh! One time we had a raccoon family push through the chinking in our log cabin and ended up behind a jetted tub in a weird empty space. That was fun…not. 

    For them to admit they were walking into the glass is the funny part here. Like that’s not a problem for most people man. 
  • Collin HaysBusiness Member
    OP
    Property Manager · Gatlinburg, TN · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    4y

    It is interesting when city folk venture to the mountains and then expect everything to be just like the home in their concrete city.  ;)  

    We have a cabin that is on top of a mountain with amazing views.  Every now and then, we have a guest complaining that the road is steep.  Hmmm.  You did reserve a cabin on top of a mountain...

  • Dave StokleyBusiness Member
    Property Manager · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2015 · 699 posts · 799 votes
    4y

    My favorite one that we've had multiple times is people who don't understand keypad numbering where there are multiple numbers per button. So if the code is 1-3-5-7 someone will call and so "I don't see a 1... there's only 12, 34, 56..." 

    I really don't know how some people survive in this world.

  • Real Estate Agent · Kansas City · Member since 2018 · 4k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    4y

    We stayed at an AirBnB in CO last month. They had a chicken coup. A bear got in a ripped a chicken apart, 3 more got out and were eaten by who knows what. 

  • Bruce WoodruffPro Member
    Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
    4y

    Not from 2022, but 2021. One of my favorites... 

    A young lady (blonde from California :-) on her honeymoon texted me and said it was a great stay, except for one thing - "you have ants in your house, on your kitchen counter"....

    Well that's strange because we have never had ants in that house, not ever!

    So I run down there after they leave, only to find...........she had left their wedding cake sitting out. On the counter. All weekend.

    So I guess technically she was right, I did have 'ants in my house'. 

    You can't make this stuff up...........🤣

  • Rental Property Investor · Bow, NH · Member since 2016 · 216 posts · 185 votes
    4y

    Guest: "I just went outside to lock up the garage and your keypad isn't working. I am locked out of the house"

    Me: "to lock the garage you need the key"

    Guest: " yes, I have the key"

    Me: "go ahead and try that"

    Guest: OMG it worked. Thankyou so much!"

    Checked the next day and the keypad worked fine. I suspect there was high alcohol consumption preceeding our phone call.

  • Michael BaumPro Member
    Olympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    4y
    We have been overrun with those millipeads this year too. I hear lady bugs can also be problematic at times too.

    I saw a gus throw a water bottle at a bear that was trying to look in the bed of his truck. The bear charged him for a few steps to scare the guy. I bet he hasn't ran so fast since he was a kid.
    We get a bunch of lady bugs in the house every year. Most people don't have a problem with them, but I do gather them up when I am there and put them outside. Never kill em. Too beneficial to the ecosystem.

    Spiders are another big thing. We get a bunch all year round in the house. I do collect those and put them outside as well when I can. Wolf spiders are quick.
  • Investor · The worst town to live in, KS · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    4y

    I had two neighboring tenants get into a fist fight in the common parking lot.  They were both bigger than me.  They made up, and the guy that won the fight gave the other guy a complimentary professional looking tattoo.  The guy had his own tattoo gun that he travels with.

  • Dave SpoonerPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2020 · 869 posts · 823 votes
    4y

    This list is Golden! Number 4 is classic 😀

  • Property Manager · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2022 · 269 posts · 135 votes
    4y

    As someone who hasn't camped, hasn't stayed in cabins etc... I'm pretty shocked that people come up with these questions. Like what did they expect lol?

  • Ryan MoyerBusiness Member
    Property Manager · Orlando Kissimmee Davenport Salt Lake City, Park City · Member since 2019 · 991 posts · 1k+ votes
    4y

    Okay but snakes under the hot tub would legit freak me out.

    Cosmic Vacations4.9174 Reviews
  • Member since 2018 · 20 posts · 9 votes
    4y

    We had guest leave us a 3 star review because she said our house was unsafe for children. I called her to get some more detail since obviously that is a pretty serious matter. She told me it was because her child got stung by a bee while outside…. Our house is in the mountains surrounded by wild flowers…

  • Collin HaysBusiness Member
    OP
    Property Manager · Gatlinburg, TN · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    4y
    Quote from @Kenny McCarty:

    We had guest leave us a 3 star review because she said our house was unsafe for children. I called her to get some more detail since obviously that is a pretty serious matter. She told me it was because her child got stung by a bee while outside…. Our house is in the mountains surrounded by wild flowers…


    Reminds me of a large claim settlement in the Smokies just a few years ago.  A guest was stung multiple times by wasps.  As it turns out, there was a large wasp nest on the front porch and the owner neglected to address it.  Risk management is the most overlooked part of owning a vacation rental, yet its neglect poses financial risks that are practically unlimited.  

    POP QUIZ:

    Which is more important to your financial health?  

    A) Selecting the right cable provider

    B) Spending $400 to fix the rotting stairs and rails on your property's front porch

Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.