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Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

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Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#201

Post by askl »

BrenBarn wrote: post #120

In addition to stuff people are saying about AirBnB reviews in other comments, as far as I can tell there is no way to leave a review or otherwise provide public feedback in cases where the host cancels the booking before you get there. This seems to grossly incentivize scamming. I reserved an AirBnB months ahead of time to see the eclipse in Dallas last year, and the host canceled it the day before I was to arrive,…

Had this happen a few times with booking.com too. With the difference that booking offered a alternative accommodation and if that one was more expensive, the host who cancelled my booking has to pay for the difference.

I mostly stopped using Airbnb. The same listings often appear in other sites too and those usually have less bad UX for search and booking.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#202

Post by awaythrow999 »

Uninstalled my AirBNB because of 2 resolution issues with hosts that were not in my favor despite me providing all documentation and (damning) evidence.

The reason I should have uninstalled it much longer is because it's toxic for rent prices. I now pay more for hotels and sleep well.

I got rid of Uber for the same reason.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#203

Post by tayo42 »

satvikpendem wrote: post #67
JohnMakin wrote: post #43

I am not a chronic traveler but never understood the appeal of airbnb. Most low-mid to midrange chain hotels offer reasonably clean rooms for equivalent (or sometimes cheaper) price than airbnb after fees and I don’t need to play housekeeper either, or worry about weird owners, which seems to me like the whole nice thing about renting a short term place to sleep.

It has a kitchen, which comes in very handy when you want to save money and cook.

All these years of airbnb and vacation rentals being popular and hotels still seem to not try to accommodate these needs

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#204

Post by BrenBarn »

askl wrote: post #201
BrenBarn wrote: post #120

In addition to stuff people are saying about AirBnB reviews in other comments, as far as I can tell there is no way to leave a review or otherwise provide public feedback in cases where the host cancels the booking before you get there. This seems to grossly incentivize scamming. I reserved an AirBnB months ahead of time to see the eclipse in Dallas last year, and the host canceled it the day before I was to arrive,…

Had this happen a few times with booking.com too. With the difference that booking offered a alternative accommodation and if that one was more expensive, the host who cancelled my booking has to pay for the difference. I mostly stopped using Airbnb. The same listings often appear in other sites too and those usually have less bad UX for search and booking.

Yeah, that's my experience with booking and even with hotels in general. Much more customer-friendly.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#205

Post by distances »

jksflkjl3jk3 wrote: post #189
jterrys wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's also...apartment hotels! Want hotel quality and safety with apartment perks? Just go to an apartment hotel! It costs more than a hotel/AirBnB but you're also not at the whims of random hit-or-miss listings and shady shit. And they clean your room if you want them to!

> There's also...apartment hotels! They're not nearly as common as Airbnb apartments in most countries. I also trust Airbnb listings and reviews more than what I find on most booking sites.

I don't trust AirBnb reviews much at all. When I've found the same place on AirBnb and Booking, the difference was always clear: AirBnb has only glowing reviews with nothing wrong at all, while Booking reviews were much more realistic with also some critical but fair observations included.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#206

Post by OccamsMirror »

darkerside wrote: post #153
fasthands9 wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree. In the long run there was never a way for individual hosts to compete with hotels on price. Hotels have economy of scale so of course they are going to be better bang for the buck in places where both are options. I think airbnb is still the better option in many situations - such as when you are willing to pay a premium to be in nature or you going on vacation with 6+ people. I don't really see how bette…

The only way to compete against the economy of scale was the original thesis of AirBnB. People were renting out their primary homes to bring in an extra stream of income. It was never going to be mainstream profitable to buy a normal apartment and rent it out on AirBnB.

> It was never going to be mainstream profitable to buy a normal apartment and rent it out on AirBnB.

It was never meant to be. It definitely has been though. Lots of people making much more money renting out AirBnBs rather than using their property for long term leasing. Which has obviously compounded the housing issues most cities are currently experiencing.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#207

Post by bogdan »

monster_truck wrote: post #106

Have had some insanely bad experiences with AirBNB and swore them off forever. People listing mcmansions they cant sell in a state of disrepair, lies about amenities and internet. Had to relocate several people repeatedly in the middle of the pandemic lockdown and it took months for the refunds to process. Had another host try to pressure me into a cash deal and then claim damages to extract fees when I turned it dow…

I’ve had my share of bad Airbnb hosts too, not as bad as yours, but still enough to ruin a holiday and make me hesitant to use them again.

The bit that I should have expected but didn't was how strongly they side with the hosts in case of disputes. In hindsight, of course they do; the hosts are their money makers, while I'm booking them only a few times a year.

I stopped using Airbnb and closed my account. Hotels are fine, and never had any major issues.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#208

Post by hn_throwaway_99 »

monster_truck wrote: post #106

Have had some insanely bad experiences with AirBNB and swore them off forever. People listing mcmansions they cant sell in a state of disrepair, lies about amenities and internet. Had to relocate several people repeatedly in the middle of the pandemic lockdown and it took months for the refunds to process. Had another host try to pressure me into a cash deal and then claim damages to extract fees when I turned it dow…

> I now exclusively use craigslist and other sites that allow you to directly deal with property owners and have been really impressed.

So apparently you have found the ~10% or so of craigslist short term rental listings that aren't outright scams?

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#209

Post by xivzgrev »

plorkyeran wrote: post #163
levocardia wrote: post #139

Maybe I'm in the minority but I've generally had very good -- or at least, "good as I expected" -- experiences at AirBnbs, even recently. Sometimes I've stayed with rich friends who book nice places, and the experience is, as expected, very nice. Many other times I have stayed at bottom-of-the-barrel places, which were, as expected, bottom of the barrel flophouses. But tolerably so, and true to the advertisement (fun…

I don't even really understand the concept of comparing AirBnB prices to hotel prices? Unless you're literally just looking for the cheapest place to safely spend the night with zero considerations beyond that they just aren't the same product. Staying in an apartment or house and staying in a hotel are vastly different experiences.

From a utility perspective not really. You need a safe comfortable place to sleep, a clean bathroom, maybe a TV, some space for your stuff and that’s basically it.

The experience is OUT THERE, not where you are staying.

So yea I’m looking for the cheapest place that meets the bar. Sometimes it’s Airbnb but usually it’s a hotel.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#210

Post by freddie_mercury »

chii wrote: post #168
freddie_mercury wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the people who say hotels are better than AirBnb aren't traveling with kids. Having an actual kitchen when you travel with kids is great. Having actual separate bedrooms so we don't have to go to sleep at 8pm when the kids go to sleep is great. Being able to do laundry without tracking down a laundromat or pay exorbitant hotel prices is great. Having a living room or similar area with at least a few square me…

For the same price, airbnb usually provides more than hotels (but with higher variation in quality). Hotels tend to be pretty consistently good when it is over a certain price point, and at any higher price point, all you get is better views/location (and may be some amenities such as gym or pool) - aka, quality caps out and just becomes expensive. Airbnb prices are quite correlated to quality. High priced airbnb (fo…

Hotels also provide tons of variation in quality. Just look up hotels in, say, Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh City where the options are much more than just the typical Western chains. Or compare the many non-chain "motels" in North America.

I think what you mean is "chains" tend to be pretty consistent. Which, yeah, that's always been the main value prop of a chain. You go to McDonald's in Tunisia and you have a pretty good idea what you're going to get.

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