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Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

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Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#491

Post by firesteelrain »

piva00 wrote: post #395
firesteelrain wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's very anecdotal to your city. VRBO could be renting more than Airbnb. I am not going to go to extreme's to overly analyze this. I made my point.

My point already shows that your whole assumption is flawed, which was entirely my point... You don't need to argue but it'd be in good faith to at least acknowledge that your point has no basis at all, it's just your feeling, not a point. By the way, I live in a capital city in Europe so the discrepancies between listings would probably translate to many other places...

I already said what you claim I did not say. I will give you the last word but not here to argue about it.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#492

Post by int_19h »

borroka wrote: post #265

I am baffled that every time the Airbnb issues come up, there is a plethora of "just book hotels" comments. The use cases are, or can be, wildly different. I am not a particular fan of Airbnb--nobody is a fan of real estate agents, they are intermediaries that provide a service, facilitate discovery, etc.--but I am currently staying in an apartment I booked on Airbnb, and I am spending $2k a month for it. Decent spac…

That... sounds like a regular rental to me?

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#493

Post by cameldrv »

parliament32 wrote: post #459
cameldrv wrote: post #241

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are plenty of hotels where you can get multiple rooms and a washing machine. When traveling with kids, one big advantage of hotels is predictability. The last thing I want to do when I'm pulling in after a long flight an hour past the kids' bedtime is to deal with potentially dealbreaking problems with the place. In a hotel, they generally have maintenance on staff and extra rooms to switch into in case of prob…

In North America, across hundreds of hotel stays, I have seen exactly zero ensuite washing machines. For extended stays, being able to kick off your laundry and leave for the day is absolutely priceless. Having to set timers and babysit coin-operated laundry on a different floor just isn't worth it, to the point where I'd rather just pay $$$ for hotel laundry service over using their communal laundry room.

A lot of "extended stay" hotels have this. One brand I've used and have had pretty good luck with is Sonder. They're not quite full service -- they have a spartan reception and want you to use their app for everything, but they do have multiple rooms, an adequate kitchen, and washing machines in the rooms.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#494

Post by int_19h »

mattzito wrote: post #427
some_random wrote: post #418

There are two ways of looking at Airbnb, as a hotel substitute or as a resort substitute. It has a very hard time competing with hotels, as others have stated there are advantages but overall an airbnb is going to be worse and/or more expensive. BUT the resort substitute is where it is a lot more competitive, and this whole experience thing seems like a good way to lean into that element.

Are we talking about the same Airbnb? When I think of resorts, I think of staff, bars, restaurants, activities, often all inclusive, and often catered to my desired demographic (adults only, family friendly, etc.) When I think of Airbnb, I think of an apartment with a pool in the Caribbean, where I have to hunt around to figure out the best places to eat, or cook myself.

Some people genuinely prefer it that way. Or they cannot afford a "true" all-inclusive resort experience but still want to go on vacation in a nice location.

In some countries at least the latter is a well-established tradition that long predates Airbnb. Like, you'd literally just drive or take a train to some coastal town and then look around for signs that say "vacancy".

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#495

Post by cameldrv »

snowwrestler wrote: post #353
cameldrv wrote: post #241

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are plenty of hotels where you can get multiple rooms and a washing machine. When traveling with kids, one big advantage of hotels is predictability. The last thing I want to do when I'm pulling in after a long flight an hour past the kids' bedtime is to deal with potentially dealbreaking problems with the place. In a hotel, they generally have maintenance on staff and extra rooms to switch into in case of prob…

The parent led off with the value of having a full kitchen, which you have dropped—obviously because there are extremely few hotels in the U.S. that include this. Your description of how well hotels are run does not match my experience. I’m sure it’s true of very nice hotels. It’s also true of very nice AirBnB’s! And VRBOs, which are not as well known but similar idea.

There are a whole lot of hotels that include a kitchen in the U.S. Many extended stay/suite hotels have a stove, microwave, utensils/dishes, refrigerator, and some a dishwasher. It's more rare to have an oven, although I have seen it.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#496

Post by olelele »

This article reads like pure marketing drivel to me; comparing Airbnb founder to Steve Jobs and side selling Altmans new projects…

This app based disruption shit that was fed by zero interest rate policies can go somewhere very far away as far as I’m concerned. Like Mars.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#497

Post by msarvar »

hansvm wrote: post #340
xyst wrote: post #119

Explains why ABB recruiters have been filling my inbox with invites to interview. Note they have a fucking ridiculous interview process of at least _6 rounds_. Absolutely bonkers. I was tempted to go for it but fortunately have many other companies in my pipeline with much saner interview processes. Good luck to whoever gets those positions. Seems they pay quite well, but the question is whether ABB push to expand wi…

It looks like senior roles top out at $220k and staff at $250k, with another $10k or so in indirect financial benefits (401k matching, ESPP, etc). The pay is certainly enough to be well-off, but it's on par with what any random startup offers, so for the sort of person likely to qualify for an ABB position I'm not sure cash would be the motivating factor for choosing them over the other options.

where are you getting that info? ABB total comp per levels.fyi 449K for senior and 626 for staff. Their compensation is pretty competitive. I don't know any startup that offers that much that is also liquid comp.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#498

Post by sershe »

I think Airbnb is net better than hotels, including places with agents that are basically condo hotels. Much more variety.. hotels are OTOH more predictable and reliable. If I don't need variety (a kitchen? A place very close to some obscure spot? Fancy? Cheap?) i'd pick a hotel. Or if I need weird checkin times and the airbnbs have in person check in.

Contrary to other comments I wish they'd actually focus on both the agent and the random host scenarios...

But personally my favorite things are weird places that are a bedroom in a house.

The mild form is when they have a dog you get to pet/play with. The less mild is staying with people who are weird in a non dangerous way.

My only bad experience was also with dogs, a place where when you step out to the bathroom at night two formerly friendly large dogs shadow you, growling cause, a rando walking around at night! Really helps the bowel movement.

And the weirdest experience I had was 2 girls roommates who advertised their open floor plan living room as a "separate bedroom" (it was not instant book and I'm very obviously a dude). With a cat that slept at my feet, and a dog that woke me up in the morning (they did offer to lock up both). Then when I was talking to one of them in the kitchen she told me without any context that they were not lesbians. I am in a relationship and it was pretty awkward so I didn't develop the subject further, but I am still wondering.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#499

Post by meva »

lifestyleguru wrote: post #315
meva wrote: post #293

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I booked an AirBnb in Spain, no cameras mentioned in the listing. When I arrived, I found two, one of them pointed at the bathroom door, so most of the bathroom was visible when the door was open. Also, even though photos mostly matched the apartment, the address in the listing was not the real address. The host directed me to a different address in private messages. Reported it all to AirBnb, they ignored it.

Cameras in short term rentals in Spain is another level of insolence. If you rent over airbnb and booking in Spain there WILL BE camera(s) in the apartment. They will frivolously say "it's disabled right now". I have no idea how they are not sued into fucking oblivion. I know about "ocupas", but I am not "ocupas" and I'm paying you 100 euro per night for this shithole with cameras inside.

It creeped me out that I didn’t find a camera in the bedroom. There was one pointing at the bathroom and one at the general living room and kitchen area. The bedroom had so many decorations that I couldn’t tell if there was a hidden camera. I made sure to only change in the bathroom with the door closed, but I (female, traveling alone) still felt uneasy. Up until then I stayed in Airbnbs plenty of times but I haven't stayed in one since then and don't plan to unless there's no other choice.

Re: Airbnb is in midlife crisis mode

#500

Post by mvdtnz »

jillyboel wrote: post #314
cameldrv wrote: post #241

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are plenty of hotels where you can get multiple rooms and a washing machine. When traveling with kids, one big advantage of hotels is predictability. The last thing I want to do when I'm pulling in after a long flight an hour past the kids' bedtime is to deal with potentially dealbreaking problems with the place. In a hotel, they generally have maintenance on staff and extra rooms to switch into in case of prob…

> There are plenty of hotels where you can get multiple rooms and a washing machine Ok... Can you show me some like that in the EU? > This is all not to mention being asked to strip beds, take out trash, etc, after you've paid thousands of dollars, including cleaning fees for the place. Just don't do that.

> Ok... Can you show me some like that in the EU?

Yes, trivially. There are filters for it on booking.com. Here's a link for rooms in Paris suitable for 2 adults and 2 kids with 2 bedrooms, a kitchen/kitchenette and a washing machine.

https://www.booking.com/searchresults.en-gb.html?label=gen17...

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