No for me!
The HO has the option to find a local sitter. 4 nights is a very odd and specific request. Were you even offered an explanation?
Agree with everyone, 4 days is a bit much in this economy to being coming out of pocket especially if it wasn’t already in your budget.
Also in my opinion cats are the easiest sits (from what I’ve personally encountered) they are self sufficient. If she had a football teams of cats maybe I could understand but just for one cat. That’s a bit too demanding! You for sure dodged a bullet.
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Hi @Marion. No. Just the HO wanted to get the cat used to the sitter. All a bit strange tbh.
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I think that any hotel stay pre or post Sit should be paid by the Owner. And I completely agree with you that departure and arrival times should be clear from the beginning. Some Owners are terrible about thinking things through from the perspective of a Sitter. It would be really nice if these times were in the listing, but that is rare.
Also, I think the Owner should have a Plan in place (relatives, friends) who can step in if their arrival home is delayed. You have committed to stay until a certain date, and then you have a right to carry on with your life. I always make sure that the Owners have arrived safely home so that the Pets are safe. I do this via text and there has never been a problem. I suppose that I could be more proactive during the interview phase, and make sure that Owners have a back up plan, just in case. I would hate to think that Pets are left alone if I have already hopped on a flight!
Just saw a new listing that made me think of this post. It’s only a 3 day sit but the owners ask the sitter to arrive a day before and stay at a nearby hotel at their own expense.
I have no issues paying for a hotel if I’m going somewhere I want to go and it makes my life easier in terms of travel time, etc. However, I feel the HO should be paying in this instance since they are the ones requiring the sitter to arrive a day early. Asking a sitter to travel to the HO area and pay for a hotel to do a 3 day sit is a bit cheeky IMO.
That said, it does look like a great sit and I may or may not have favourited it in hopes that a longer duration comes up 
@Lindsay I’ve just seen that listing too - and I thought the same it …does seem cheeky for such a short sit … hopefully any applicants aren’t in too much of a rush to apply and do read the information in the home section or they will miss this expectation of the homeowner
hi @Lindsay. Maybe some are happy to pay for a hotel stay for such a short sit but I wouldn’t be.
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