What crap! 6 beds! I would probably do it and then write something in their review.
What opportunists taking advantage of a sitter. Bad form!
I hope you reported to THS and mention it in your review.
Not cool. Not OK. Bordering abusive.
Not in a trillion million years!! And might risk me cancelling the sit too… my response would be ‘No. I’m not happy’.
Tbh I’m also a bit shocked to read in the comments that sitters would do this. I can’t imagine any context where I’d agree to this, it’s not my problem it’s theirs. Let them find a solution. It’s their business, their reviews, their income not mine…..
I would most likely short sheet the airbnb beds ㄟ(≧◇≦)ㄏ
It is an unreasonable request unless in exchange they provided you a personal chef with breakfast in bed, a nightly masseuse for your aching bones for remaking all those beds! Asking you to remake one bed is rude enough but 6 is out of the park unconscionable! Making beds is the thing I dislike most. Out of my 12 sits so far only one person wanted that. The rest all asked me just to strip the beds.
I would never suggest to you what to do now as I don’t know your situation. A younger nomad may be on a tight budget and will stay and chuck it up to experience and even laugh about it in a few months with friends over some drinks. I’m an oldie with a home base so I would have said no I did not agree to 6 beds once there but I wouldn’t even agree to one when she asked you on the phone.
maybe their housekeeper couldnt make it
Well, the thing is that someone has to do the cleaning anyway. There’s a cleaning service which Airbnb customers pay and clearly these hosts want to still get paid the full amount without doing the job.
I honestly can’t say what I would have done if caught off guard and asked nicely. I think I might’ve said OK, thinking it was just a small favour, something unexpected for the host, too. I am usually willing to help. If I had found only on arrival that the task was more than disclosed and accepted by me, it would have made me regret not asking more questions and, depending on the length of the sit, I might just do it and address the issue in my review. For a short sit and if I didn’t have to wash those sheets that’s probably the easiest way out for me. If they expected me to wash the sheets or the sit was more than just a few days, I would probably both set boundaries and address the situation in the review, too.
Thanks everyone for your responses. Similarly to what someone above said - there is already a cleaner coming in to do a deep clean of the Airbnb so I’m wondering why the sheets are left to me.
How much would be fair to charge to do it if I were to agree - if he really can’t find someone else?
It seems odd that it needs doing at all in that case and can’t wait until they return. Will the cleaner re-make the airbnb up for new guests whilst you’re still on your sit? If so, do they want them dried and ironed so she/he can remake the beds for next guests? Sounds as if it’s just an ask as you’re there and they’re cashing in on the fact you’re in situ. Not sure where you are in the world but £40ish if UK. A cleaner is at least £20 an hour back home now, some areas it’s £30 an hour. #takingtheproverbial
How does 5 sets of sheets equate to 10 loads? Not that it matters, the home owner is taking the proverbial and I hope this was reflected in your review.
Hiya. They have two lots of Airbnb bookings, three beds in each. Yes I’m in the uk. I wonder what the Airbnb cleaner charge is. I think it varies?
Yes it’s set by the host. If you want to sleuth it you could find the listing (as you know the location) and go through making a dummy booking and then you’ll see the fee come up on the last page before confirming. #detectivework
I assume that the host usually changes the sheets themselves and if they asked the cleaner to do it they would have to pay the cleaner extra …..
If you decline - that’s probably what the host will do - ask the cleaner and pay them accordingly
It’s not just about the extra Favours -helping run a business comes with responsibility- presumably theres a certain time frame when this must be done ( after guest check out before next ones check in ) this restricts what you might have planned for the day - even someone who works remotely and stays at the home for majority of the time - might struggle to accommodate a specific time slot .
and then there is the responsibility- what if Airbnb guests make a complaint about the sheets - then it comes back on you …
If it’s all disclosed in the listing , and discussed and agreed before the sit is confirmed that’s one thing - another to have this thrown on a sitter last minute…
I agree with you entirely @BonnyinBrighton
Despite going through responsabilities in calls, we had the occasional sit turning out more challenging than initially discussed, but this was usually on the side of pets or garden requirening more care than initially stated. And that usually turned out on the spot, once we were already sitting… So we were kind of stuck with the responsabilities. It was an inconvenience, but not really enough to leave the sit or start a fight over it. I still gave them good reviews but stated the challanging parts in my reviews, as it didn’t seem malicious on their side.
It’s unfortunately quite common for hosts to “downplay” the responsabilities. Then it’s also on the sitters side to establish clear bundaries and avoid people pleasing - which is something I personally still struggle with at times.
When it comes to requests that are “too much”, you can be lucky if they state them already in the posts, so you just stear clear of them. Sometimes I see some quite interesting requests in listings (and they still get applications).
Just recently someone listed “walking the neighbour’s dogs” under the responsabilities (the sit already involved 2 or 3 dogs to be cared for), which shows that some people really just want to take full advantage of the sitter being there.
I’m just happy if I can spot these upfront, so I don’t waste my time and energy on it. Though, I am not sure you can ever completely avoid faling into these traps.
You agreed to it, so just do it, but in future just say no to anything like that, it’s breaching the t&c’s.
We do plenty of different over-and-above favours for HO’s to help them out, but none involving their businesses. It’s about a fair exchange.
If she specifically and knowingly agreed to the real task involved, that’s one thing if the task was misrepresented that’s a totally different thing.
I would also distinguish between helping out if something unexpected needs to be dealt with and using me as a tool to increase benefits in a business.
[quote=“teya, post:35, topic:78264”]
It’s unfortunately quite common for hosts to “downplay” the responsabilities.
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I agree and I especially appreciate the opposite, when hosts “upplay” the nuisances, like emphasizing how much a dog can bark or how “unattractive” their area might be for me… I have always accepted those sits and found out that it was far easier than mentioned. I don’t mean listings, I mean the more detailed information they provide at the chatting stage.
Yes it’s tricky isn’t it. The sheet changing wasn’t stated in the listing, I was asked on a video chat as we were going through the details of the sit.
Oh yes, I also prefer to get the “worse case” upfront and then to be positively surprised. 
Some “a bit difficult” pets turned out to be just lovely.
I also don’t mind if a sit comes with the occasional downside, as long as it’s communicated upfront, transparently. Or even if there is an unpredictable task that comes up… Life happens. The rapport matters a lot.