Folks that rent an Airbnb are often wanting more than a boring room (full kitchen, yard, washer/dryer), which is still without a doubt vastly cheaper than any hotel.
Sure there are shitty hosts with ridiculous rules, but those are things you should be researching in advance to paying.
I have stayed at Airbnbs across 4 states and four countries; other than one of them being cancelled due to plumbing issues, we have not had a single problem and each time it was far cheaper (~40%) and had more options than hotels.
Same here, I’ve been to Airbnbs in about 10 countries (all in Europe) and never bad a problem. Usually cheaper and more flexible than a hotel in the same area.
I’ve never had any trouble regarding cleaning fees or whatever.
I think the most crappy expirances are in the US ans some high traffic areas.
You can usually tell by reviews and crazy rules. I once tried to book in Italy and was asked to bring my own linens. So that was a no.
In general there is deals to be had, but a little common sense goes a long way.
I read somewhere that a lot of the private equity that was used to jump start Airbnb has now been pulled back so they can generate revenue on their own.
For regular folks, this means less subsidized/cheaper rooms available now that Airbnb has to front everything versus someone propping them up.
I hate AirBnBs because they make housing less available for everyone, but are they really that or as expensive as hotels now? I feel like hotels are probably still more expensive.
I agree, if it’s not cheaper than a hotel, is there really a point to them?
I mean you get appliances. A kitchen and whatnot. I think it’s more fun to cook yourself instead of eating out for instance.
Not all of them are that bad. I’ve had nothing but good experiences in the UK and EU. Often times cheaper per person than a hotel too. And you get left alone, don’t need to deal with cleaners or what not.
Parts like this make me think airbnb is only shit in the US. I’ve never had those crazy cleaning bills or other hidden fees.
Yeah, seems like a US meme. And if an AirBnB room is priced the same as a hotel room (which is possible if you don’t filter by price), why would one pick AirBnB?
I personally prefer airbnb when traveling in big groups so we can actually hang out together a bit better, cook for one another, have a big table to play board games and a space to drink before going out that isn’t just sitting on each others beds. If I’m just traveling with my partner then yeah we usually go with a hotel but most of our European mainland holidays are in groups of 8+, so we go airbnb. Usually cheaper per head and a better space than what we’d get at a similar price for a hotel.
4 years ago all was good in Airbnb land in the EU. I used it to plan vacations, meet cool people (hosts) and find those more and more hard to find “off grid” places here.
Now they’ve become way overpriced. I tried it this year again it was just costs, added costs, more costs, more rules etc.
It was easier and cheaper to just find vacation stays through the old channels like booking.com.
Same, I’ve only ever had positive experiences with places I’ve stayed, except I’m in the US. I don’t know where everyone is going here that they’re having such awful stays. Then again, I’ve only ever stayed in places that aren’t company owned. I do several months of research before picking a place. I check reviews, fees, etc, and avoid corporate owned properties like the plague. There are no surprises with if you just take the time to look.
After my stay, I take the time to write an honest review of the property. Things that were good and bad. Not just some shitty single line “We had a great time! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐”
If you find problems, report them to the owner, include them in your review, report bad actors to the site or if need be, the authorities. It’s your responsibility as a user of the platform. If you don’t, you’re part of the problem that’s dragging the platform down.
You need to call ahead with hotels if you’re going to be late to check in, but otherwise, they’re good.
Edit: dont know why I’m being downvoted. Ever reserve a hotel room for a big convention and show up at 10pm of the check in date? They will give it to someone else because they’re betting on you being a no show. You gotta call them if you’re doing a late check in.
