Jump to content

Airbnb...worth the hassle and drama from hosts/guests?


Chimaera

Recommended Posts

Hey all, back from a long holiday in the US, and I experienced my first Airbnb.

Before I go on, I'll say that the idea behind Airbnb seems great, especially for people who want to have extended stays in areas with high cost of hotels. That said, because you're basically either allowing someone to live in a personal property (potentially your own home), or you're a guest staying in a person's personal property or home, things aren't nearly as cut and dry as they are with hotels. I've seen some major drama with Airbnb, to the point where some people flat out boycott the site and, like uber, it is often borderline illegal in many places.

All that said, this post is spawned, not from the experience at my Airbnb, but from the response to a review.

My wife and I spent over a week at an Airbnb in LA. The home was nice, the amenities were nice, and there was very little to complain about. That said, a few things were worth noting in a review: water pressure was low, parking space was narrow for a large vehicle (mainly due to the small size of the shared parking garage and poor parking by another person in the parking garage), and trying to use the gas oven set off the fire/CO alarm. All relatively minor things that didn't really detract from the experience but, as recommended by the Airbnb guidelines, I included in my review. It was a largely glowing 5-star review with a special thank you to the host, flattering comments about the considerations they made for guests, and a features breakdown - similar to my Steam reviews if you've ever read one. It was a very flattering review and only cast the critiques as minor things that we noticed, but weren't that huge of a deal, just something for people to be mindful of.

The reaction of the host to the review was nothing short of spectacular. Their reply to the review showed they were quite butt-hurt by anything remotely critical/negative, and they went so far as to block my Airbnb and Facebook accounts from communicating with them.

As a guest, I found this behavior surprising, disconcerting, and it put me off from the experience. That said, I can KIND OF understand how people will feel about guests being critical of their homes, but that said, we are PAYING guests, not people just stopping in for a visit.

So what do you all think? Are any of you hosts? Any of you guests who've had similar experiences with hosts? Is the potential for personality conflicts really worth the cheaper rates (for guests) or added income (for hosts)? Any great/horror stories you'd like to share?

Thoughts are appreciated. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just finished my licensing to be a saleperson in real estate. Airbnb's are tricky sometimes, and I can say I have seen some horrible stories. People sometimes don't leave when they are suppose to after their stay. That can cause issues, also people coming home when you might be staying there. AirBnB's are kinda tricky on a case by case, and for the most part my broker told me to stay away from dealing with all that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So far I've had nothing but stellar stays with AirBnB and will continue to prioritize AirBnB over any Hotel. I've used them in Netherlands, Belgium, France, Italy, United States, and Canada. I have never received negative feedback even after a bachelor party left nail polish stains all over one owners bed sheets (don't ask, i paid her extra for that fuck up). My strategy is I let them rate me before I rate them. or I don't rate them at all. They normally get antsy for a review and leave you a good one in hopes you will return the favor. Win-Win. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've stayed at one once in a nice, but hotel-less neighborhood in the Twin Cities. It was exactly where I wanted to be, beat out hotels by a mile on price, and gave me a lot of flexibility. The owner was nice and understanding and it was a great experience. 

That said, I can totally see how it can turn bad quickly.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My one experience with them is a room on Cape Cod.  Hotels here are pretty high in the summer and usually full.  We picked a cottage that had a room for rent for my wife, baby and I.  It was nice, my only complaint is the kitchen was pretty much unusable due to the mess left by the owner who lived in the bedroom upstairs.  If you look past that, the location was on the edge of a salt marsh so we were treated with fantastic sunrises and access to a private beach (shared by the cottages HOA) on the southern coast, both of which were not mentioned in the advertisement.  It was a great first experience and I'd happily do it again.

11181215_10207016509031421_8190009928828678212_n.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Haven't used the airbnb.

Have used the hostel backpack travel- to 5 star hotels.The fact that they blocked you from posting shows they were willing to cover up the addmenities  problem.and make you the problem..

Some times you get what ya pay for....sometime you get a pleasant surprise. Go figure...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...