I’ll be in Florida next week for 9 days visiting relatives and taking a break from the cold Ohio weather. My sister pretty much always uses airbnb for longer stays, while I’ve been an inveterate hotel fiend all my life.
My questions are: how safe from fraud is it in terms of charges? Are there scammers who prey on renters, show up and oops someone is living there and has never heard of their place being rented? How do you avoid renting a dive in a bad neighborhood? Avoid theft of goods when I am not there? I’ll likely just spring for the Holiday Inn again even tho it may cost 50% more, just curious about the alternative.
You can avoid fraud (and most other issues) by choosing a property with lots of positive reviews. Read the reviews in detail, and try to find the negative ones too, to see what the problems were. Airbnb reviews are verified, so they’re nearly impossible to fake.
I’ve used Airbnb dozens (maybe hundreds?) of times without issue. I just look for properties that are highly reviewed, near where I went to be, and then use Google satellite photos and street view to get a feel of the neighborhood.
That said, if you don’t particularly need a house (to cook in or a host a larger party, for example), a hotel will be much less of a hassle.
The things to watch out for:
Book it on a credit card that has a good chargeback policy
Excessive cleaning or other fees (must be in the listing)
Look through any negative reviews
Make sure you’re OK with that particular listing’s cancelation policy
Once you book and get the address, look it up in Google Maps and use Street View to see its surroundings
In the event of a problem, be prepared to contact Airbnb directly and take a while. They will try to work with the host to resolve issues first, only rebooking or refunding you if absolutely necessary
If you are really paranoid, you can use a hidden camera detector or just turn off all the lights and walk around with your phone camera (which can see infrared)
The popular media likes to blow every up Airbnb issue into a major scandal. For sure, at their scale, there will be issues from time to time.
Chances are it will probably be fine. But just use a hotel if you want the peace of mind and traditional service. Airbnb isn’t magic, it’s just another enshittified tech company. But it has its uses.
Yes get familiar with the website and listings. Read reviews, house rules, minimum stays, extra charges and responsibilities.
Cleanliness is perhaps the number one complaint on reviews. . I’ve never stayed in a corporate owned Airbnb that manages many units, but locally owned places usually with the owner living nearby.
I’ve had one issue I had to contact Airbnb because the house was not opening and th owner was not responding. We went to dinner and it was resolved quickly.
I’m finding prices on Airbnb are soaring, so the last few trips it’s been back to using Hilton honors for me
I should also note that properties will sometimes have small issues you only notice after arrival. Most common for me has been broken hot tubs (which is often the main reason we book a property in the first place).
Try to contact the host first, and be as reasonable as you can. But if they can’t fix it, don’t be afraid to ask them or Airbnb for a partial or full refund. It’s still better for them than you leaving a bad review, so they’ll usually try to work with you.
In comparison though, hotels will also often have hot tub outages, and in that case it’s usually just too bad, so sad. At least Airbnb gives you a way to attempt to reach an agreement.
And if you need to cook in the room (or reheat leftovers), an extended stay hotel might be right for you. Residence Inn by Marriott and Homewood Suites by Hilton are two such brands. I’ve stayed in both often for work and have had no issues. Also, these hotels typically have guest laundry facilities onsite if you need to wash clothes during the trip.
Yeah, those suite hotels are often a nice in-between.
The thing about Airbnb listings and hosts is that every time is a gamble, a new unknown. If you go to a major hotel chain, there is at least some minimum level of quality control. With Airbnb you can only look at the photos and past travelers’ reviews.
Airbnb is good for finding the outliers: that spot right on the beach, or with a great view of downtown, or really cheap (maybe it’s just a tiny room in a house with no ensuite bathroom), or otherwise interesting/unique/worthwhile/exceptional in some way. But if you’re just looking for a run-of-the-mill “business travel” place to stay, the hotels are usually a lot more consistent in terms of their ability to provide reliable comfort with minimal fuss (and you accrue loyalty points, yay).
Make sure you continue far enough in the checkout process to see the final, total price, including fees and taxes and Airbnb surcharges and all — just don’t put in your credit card number yet. The base listing price you see on their main search page is a lie; after all the fees and such it’ll probably be more like 30-40% more. But hotels are that way too. The whole industry survives on gotcha fine print.
Property rentals used to be cheaper than a hotel but I rarely find that to be true these days in terms of bottom line. Where rentals win is square footage for the cost. When traveling with family, we use Air BnB or Vrbo (same difference) because it’s just nicer to spend five days in a house. We’ve never had a significant issue with a rental though some don’t live up to expectations. Obviously same can be said for hotel rooms.
Weekend in the city with my wife? Hotel. Trip downstate for five days? ABnB rental.
I stopped in to say basically the same thing. My family has rented an Airbnb at least once a year for the past several years. We’ve always had good experiences*, and the price for the 8-11 people is as cheap, if not cheaper, than 4-5 hotel rooms. Plus, we can all be together to cook, eat, play games, or just chill. We’ve rented houses in Maine, Michigan, Washington, New Mexico, Utah, and California.
*One time the Central A/C wasn’t working; a phone call brought out a technician and it was fixed promptly.
We used to stay in hotels when we traveled but after one or two crappy experiences with drunks yelling in the hallways at 2 a.m. or prostitutes entertaining clients on the other side of thin walls, we switched to AirBnB or VRBO. Once you’ve used them a couple of times, it all becomes clear and easy how it all works. We have generally had no trouble except with the door codes sometimes not working on the first try. Yep, it costs more than hotels, usually. But it’s worth it to have privacy and peace and quiet. And the ability to make your own coffee in a nice kitchen first thing in the morning.
Yeah, when I look at the pictures of the house I’m contemplating, I can usually see the street number on the house, and when I run that through Google maps in the general area, I can always find the house. Then I can examine the whole neighborhood to ensure the house isn’t across the street from a school or on a noisy big street or in a crap neighborhood.
We stayed in a few of them years ago with fairly negative results. But in fairness, I think the idea was just gaining traction and there was not much in the way of quality control. I’m guessing that most of that caliber have either gone out of business or upgraded their rentals.
I’ve done maybe 20 Airbnb rentals in the last ten years. Everything from a 4 BR house for ~10 guests coming in for a family event to a room when I needed to crash overnight in Rotterdam on a solo journey through the Low Countries.
I’ve had a few times when I didn’t feel entirely safe in my persons and belongings. Just from the vibe of the neighborhood or the building. Sometimes parking is a hassle. Sometimes getting the key is a hassle. But overwhelming it’s been fine. Never great.
As others have said in the last few years the value equation for a single or couple 2-3 night stay just isn’t what it used to be. I can get a room at Hampton Inn, Homewood Suites or Residence by Marriott for usually less than the Airbnb price. And it’s more reliable in terms of cleanliness, state of repair, check-in/check-out, parking, etc.
I have over 109 hotel stay reviews on TripAdvisor right now. I used to travel a lot for work. Over 90% of my reviews are 4 or 5 circles. I’m not a very demanding guest. But I’m probably more risk averse than most.
I know two people who LOVE Airbnb. I wouldn’t ride in a car driven by either of them
Cancellation policies will vary depending on the host. Some require cancellations to be done well before the date, others will allow you to cancel a day before. If your plans are uncertain, make sure to pick a place with a generous cancellation policy. If your plans are totally uncertain, a hotel may be better since they are a lot more consistent about allowing cancellations very close to the date.
Keep in mind that places are run by individuals. Some will be managing them as if they were a commercial hotel, while others are just casually renting out the apartment over their garage. The furnishings may vary between being brand new to random stuff you might find in a thrift store. If you are strongly attached to a hotel-like experience, get a hotel. But if you are just looking for a place to stay and don’t mind if it’s like staying in a friend’s guest room, then AirBnBs will be fine.
For the last few years hotels have been playing games with their cancellation policies, too. Things like “pre-pay, no-cancellation” rates, and such. The only point is that if you need flexibility, you also need to pay attention to what you’re buying.
When getting an AirBnB I pay lots of attention to the host’s rating and experience. A superhost with many satisfactory reviews and years of experience is probably going to be much more professional than new host just figuring it out.
I’ve stayed at places that are very new listings, but I’ve always been very careful about it. They’re often less expensive, but they also tend to disappear and cancel without warning. If you’re visiting an area for a major event that will fill everything, this could be a huge problem. If you just need a place to stay a few nights, and worst case is a last minute change to a chain hotel, it might be worth the gamble.
One thing to consider is, if disputes arise, there is a good chance Air BnB will stand behind the landlord - its client, rather than you.
I’ve used Air BnB/Vrbo a couple of times - usually in locations where there were not good hotels nearby. No bad experiences. And I know several people who use them almost exclusively over hotels. Also have heard some unpleasant stories, such as people arriving at their destination in Europe only to find their Air BnB unavailable. I tend to think that less likely to happen with a hotel. But hotels can mes up reservations as well.
My experience is not as extensive as other folks, and is confined to the USA.
But I’ll echo the others: IMO it’s a great answer for accommodating 10 people for a long weekend, or maybe, depending on your attitude to cooking versus restaurants, 2 people for 2 weeks.
But I’m a LOT more inclined to get a hotel room if it’s just one or two for any duration. Fiddling with cooking (even making a PB&J) is just not part of what I think of as vacation.
My wife and I almost always use VRBO or AirBnB if we’re staying anywhere for more than a night or two. For our lifestyle, it’s much more pleasant to have the whole building to ourselves, no loud people in the hallway or next door in the middle of the night, a full sized refrigerator, having the option to cook breakfast or dinner if we choose to, our car parked in the driveway right outside rather than in a garage a 10 minute walk away, easier checkin process than a hotel, etc. We’ve done this dozens and dozens of times with no serious issues. I agree that it’s important to look at the ratings and don’t choose a place with low ratings or few ratings. I would not be at all concerned about fraud. To avoid theft, just take ordinary precautions: lock the doors when you leave, close the blinds, don’t leave valuables outside or in plain sight.
We’ve done over a dozen, all over the US and also in Copenhagen. All very good. The only negative was in LA where the owner seemed to be violating the terms of her contract with the apartment or condo building it was in. But it didn’t affect us.
We only use AirBnB for multiple day stays. And the places are often in better locations than affordable hotels. For a college reunion we rented a place in Cambridge which was a lot cheaper than hotels, bigger, and was in easy walking distance from campus, unlike the affordable hotels.
But definitely read the reviews, as was suggested.
I think most AirBnB places are realizing they need to be competitive with what hotels offer and are getting competitive in price. Maybe not a bargain but in the ballpark as what local hotels are charging. Also, AirBnBs were getting notorious for added charges (e.g. cleaning after you left). I rented an AirBnB for an upcoming trip and it was made clear the cost was all of it…no extra fees at all (unless you damage the place of course). That’s a big improvement.
Although, not 100% sure this is true for all AirBnB places or only those who participate so be sure to check else stealth charges may come in later. Of course, hotels are no strangers to stealth charges. Go to Vegas and you will be shocked at what gets tacked on that you never expected.
As others have said, check reviews carefully. Check the neighborhood where it is as well. As with most cities there are good and bad places.
