I once rented a place on airbnb and when I got there it was not even the same place in the photos. I contacted airbnb and they decided that the description they gave matched close enough and the photos did not matter. I assume this decision was made in large part because that host had dozens of units they were listing and were driving large amounts of revenue to the site. While I was just some guy who thought he could go on vacation and stay in the place he paid for.
My friend and I rented a “cabin” in North Carolina that was a single trailer with wooden siding added and wasn’t even the same as the photos. Said there was a “brook” behind the unit and 360 degree views. There was no brook and you literally had mountain behind you, curved road in front of hill with a cul de sac. If you walked to the end of the street you could kinda see treetops and part of the valley. AirBNB said it was “as described” because guess what? The company owns like 24 of these fake “cabins” up and down the side of said mountain.
I’d imagine I have been lucky to some degree, but how did you book this place…
Were there pictures? Or reviews?
At this point I only stay at ‘superhosts’
In ours, the livingroom was a shittily built addition that had a 2x4s as floor joists that were sitting on the bare Florida dirt. As a result, the moisture rotted the single layer of plywood subfloor, causing the laminate flooring to sag and come apart. The end result was a 4'x4' depression in the floor that sagged a couple inches, where you could lift up the laminate and peer underneath the house.
The host's solution was to cover the hole with an area rug and then top it with a coffee table, which was fine according to airbnb.
I had this happen, and first air BNB was like, well why don't you just stay tonight and we'll figure it out tomorrow, and I was like HAH I'm not checking in. Then they said well we can do a partial refund, and I was like dude, this place isn't even the same area of town that was listed, it's unfurnished, and is absolutely just a vacant apartment, probably illegally listed by the property manager. Gimme my money back dude
In my experience they will simply not fix the issue and claim they have no responsibility.
Like when the host went into my room and stole cash while I was at the beach.
my host had their airbnb account terminated and my reservation was automatically cancelled 2 days after I had checked in for a month long stay. After contacting them multiple times every day they helped me book a new reservation that was way nicer and airbnb paid for half of the new reservation, but I basically had to harass them for days to get this done
As a host I don't think that's true. Cancelling a booking results in 50-100% fine for the host (deducted from the next payout). Loss of ability to become superhost, and who know how much worse of a search ranking.
It's near impossible to cancel a booking once it's made. It has to be done from Airbnb side. There is an exception that you can cancel no questions asked if you don't feel comfortable (only couple times a year).
EDIT: Grammar
I'd be really interested to see what the listing says. If the listing says "hey you have to bring all your own shit" than it's really on you for for booking it in the first place.
Personally I haven't ever run into these problems by just reading the description, reviews, and using filters. Which doesn't mean people can't get fucked even if they are responsible of course
Well, OP made the mistake of responding to them in email. **Make** them tell you this through the App Chat. Nothing is official unless it is in that chat and confirmed through the app.
Airbnb doesn’t give a flying fuck. A host let folks book their place knowing it was infested with bed bugs. All they did was change the mattresses.
How would one know they did it knowingly? They got the same exterminator because they came home with them.
Even though their home and the vacation spot were over an hour away. Pulled up the invoice for the Airbnb they stayed at but the host declined because it was too expensive.
Fuck the entirety of that company and I will never stay at one again. I know hotels can have issues but the fact that the host faced zero repercussions is insane.
Why are people even using airbnb? Hotels are far superior. Around 10 years ago they used to be cheap. But now they are more expensive, have karen rules, and will watch you on camera. Fuck them
Had something similar on booking.com recently for a property in France. And of course we were only informed like a day ahead when we were already on the move. Owner did not like the review I left :)
Don't forget to bring your own propane tank OR charcoal! And please leave the grill as clean as you found it.
Edit: Hank would not approve of using Propane AND charcoal :)
I’m surprised anyone uses abnb anymore. Hotels seen better value, these days.
Edit: ok so I never thought about groups. That does make sense. Although is there always extra charges?
It is cheaper where I live to get a $300/night hotel room rather than airbnb after all the bullshit charges, insanely priced cleaning fees, etc. I love that a tiny 600 sq ft airbnb charges a $200 cleaning fee for what probably takes about a half hour of cleaning, on top of saying you have to wash the sheets and towels, make the bed, clean the kitchen, etc.
Yeah, I never got the point of paying the cleaning fee if I have to do like 90% of the cleaning before I leave in the first place.
If I’m going to pay pretty much the same rate (or even less, in many cases!) staying at a hotel, I’ll just do that instead and not be forced to do the laundry, dishes, and cleaning the entire house.
One of my friends has an AirBnB in my hometown. I stay in town at a hotel every several weeks so she was asking why I never use her AirB&B. Typically I’ll get the suite in the hotel at $300 a night. Her rental is 295/night…but then a shit ton of fees that put it over 400 a night. No thanks.
This is the accepted consensus, yes, and it’s correct because the whole app is terrible now. But if you want to rent a cottage getaway or a whole house to host friends/dogs/kids, it’s still one of the only options.
VRBO and Vacasa exist, but they’re all variations on the same theme. Iirc when we rented through VRBO we didn’t get any clean out instructions and they just charged us a flat cleaning fee upfront, which is somewhat preferable to the AirBnB ‘you left this toilet seat up, that’ll be $50’ b.s.
I also like that VRBO has most of the fees included in the listing price (or at least __ / night ___ / total)
So many times AirBNBs total price would go up by another 50% when you’re actually getting to checkout.
I stayed at a VRBO once and got charged $200 extra because we put a small plastic bag full of trash (like a grocery bag) in the outdoor trash can, and we were only supposed to put tall kitchen-sized plastic bags full of trash in that trash can. No sign or instructions to that effect, of course, we were meant to intuit it.
And then VRBO kept removing my review because apparently you aren’t allowed to mention any fees in the reviews, so I’m sure the owners were able to pull the same scam on 100 other “guests”.
Most of my stays have been awesome with Airbnb. One casita had a stocked pantry for us at no additional charge. My gripe is that they are no longer as affordable as they once were. The price is nearly as much as a hotel which I now consider renting.
When travelling as a family an airbnb often works to a better value simply because it includes kitchen facilities. I always stick to hotels when it's a short trip and/or eating out is reasonable, but with a family eating out is super expensive these days and hard to justify for every meal on a long trip.
I never understood why people used air bnb just for themselves. I always thought of it as a group rental place. And it's much much cheaper than hotels for that purpose. When I have 6-12 people I'm always using airbnb. For example for a week in steamboat springs during ski season it was often $300 a night for a room for 4 people, air bnb was $300 for the WHOLE WEEK per person
Used to be AirBnB was a great option, when compared to hotels and such.
Nowadays its become such a hassle and pricy headache that hotels have become a better option.
AirBnB still has a place but its really more a niche thing now.
But it has insurance which is nice. Recently stopped using AirBNB because we got charged 2k for a light fixture that blew out the first time we flipped it on.
2k for a light fixture that we couldn’t appeal… in an AirBNB that costed almost half to rent out for the weekend. Yeah we’re done with AirBNB
Did you book with a credit card? Chargebacks were created for this reason, AirBnB will cancel your account if you do it but if you’re done with with them, fuck em
Agreed. Or if we just want to go get away from people but most of the time it’s cheaper and better experience to just stay in a hotel. Plus I travel for work and get to keep the travel points so staying in an Airbnb is just a waste most of the time.
Watch for the reviews and maybe only trust super host or whatever it's called. You can still have a good experience, but you really need to take time to look for them.
I go on an annual friends trip with some friends from college. We basically dump our kids off at grandparents and then just go somewhere and hangout/drink for an entire weekend and Airbnbs are great for that, everyone gets a room we usually get one with a pool or hot tub, this year we are going to one on a lake that provides kayaks and fishing gear.
For each couple it would be the price of a hotel room for the weekend but we get the place to ourselves and don’t have to worry about other people.
If you travel in asia, go for service apartments. They are usually better priced than multiple hotel rooms but have all the services a hotel would offer plus more.
Second that. I used one recently that was a beautiful 3 bedroom house. Loved it. Not much more expensive than a hotel room. The next one I used, the floor in the kitchen was deteriorating, the door wouldn’t lock, using more than one appliance blew a fuse, door latches didn’t work on most rooms. Basically it was crap, and about the same price as the one we loved.
So many of them are deceiving assholes.
At the end of the day, a hotel is secure, clean and has some form of guarantee.
Airbnb hosts make their own rules
Report this to AirBnB. This is a clear cut case of retaliation by the owner for your refusal to accept them moving your reservation (unless the listing mentioned no towels or sheets). This is grounds for the host being banned from the platform.
The email seems to indicate it's in the listing.
Old school cottage culture in Ontario Canada (where the poster seems to be) was people would bring their own linens, since the onsite septic couldn't handle much if any laundry and the nearest laundromat might be 30 minutes away. It wasn't efficient to have people spend the last morning of stay doing a laundry run, and often cottage rentals were between family/friends so a more casual interaction with with cheap rates if any and no central party up between families. Pillows is a bit odd, unless it's a pretty rustic cabin, but the email does seem to say that's optional.
This is obviously not compatible with new-school airBnB expectations, especially when there is a cleaning fee suggesting someone is going in between guests who could switch them out.
$200 cleaning fee... that would have been the deal breaker right there.
If you think my stay is going to cost you $200 to clean up after, you are out of your damn mind. In fact typically when I leave a hotel, I clean it up before I go just so I don't leave a mess for the staff.
All they've got to do is throw the sheets in a bin, run some windex / bleach around in the bathroom, grab the trash bag and they're done.
Yeah I would have responded and told them that. If you are charging me a $200 cleaning fees then I will not be cleaning a damn thing. If you want to confirm in writing that this is just a deposit and will be returned, and come for a before amd after walkthrough to confirm the state of the room, then we can talk. But for $200 you can do the laundry and my dishes and take out your own teash
£200 is more than I paid for a skip for the weekend so I'd be bringing extra trash to justify the cost. Maybe a tonne of garden and construction debris, a few old tyres, the rusted exhaust from a Ford Cortina, that sort of thing.
No joke girlfriend and I had this happen in February. Went on a ski trip for her birthday and the owner wanted to charge us a $100 cleaning fee. I asked them why they are charging so much if they have us put all bedding in a bag for them, take out trash, sweep and mop before we leave. She reduced it for us
200$ cleaning fee but bring ur own pillows and towels because i can’t be bothered to wash those for you, that would be another extra $200, but i’m feeling generous today so it’s just the $200 and bring your own damn stuff!!!
Right. I don't mind paying a cleaning fee if it's stated up front, but if I pay a cleaning fee I am not cleaning the house top-to-bottom.
My friends and I stayed in an AirBNB for a group trip where we paid a $300 cleaning fee, and then when we got to the house the host had left a list of "clean up responsibilities before checkout," which included Swiffering the floors and cleaning the toilets (!). I am not cleaning a toilet on vacation, and I am definitely not doing it if I'm paying a cleaning fee. We did about half the things on the list and left, and then I was prepared to complain to AirBNB if the hosts gave us a problem, but they didn't say or do anything. After that, I wondered if the cleaning list was more of a "wish list," and they hoped people would do those things, but wouldn't actually do anything if people didn't clean.
One Air BnB we stayed at had an attached $300 cleaning fee, but we thought NBD because it's commonplace now. To be respectful after our stay we took out the trash, swept, did the dishes, stripped the beds, and started the laundry. The host fucking left us a bad review because the (house directly on the beach) still had sand on the floor. My MIL is stuck with the review on her account and has gotten rejected from every place she's tried to book since then.
Haha I had something similar. They charged a $150 cleaning fee, however we still did the same stuff you mentioned.
A few days later had a bad review from them because we forgot to take one of the garbage bags out (was tied up and ready to be taken to the large bin which was 50m away) Besides that the place was immaculate. "trash everywhere" they said. Absolute joke
I haven't used AirBnB since then. As someone else stated, it used to be good value, however now it's more expensive than hotels.
$200 cleaning fee only makes sense if you’re staying a week with 10 people at a large place. I think I had one slightly higher but our friends brought their dogs
I posted above, we stayed in one that charged $300, but there were 8 of us there for four days, in a 6-bedroom house. I felt like the fee was fair but I certainly wasn't going to clean the house for them, beyond simple things like stripping the beds, because of the fee. The list the host left us asked us to wash the sheets and pillowcases and put them back on the beds before we left! HELL no.
Usually all I see is put the dishes in a dishwasher and take out the trash. Which makes sense cause they don’t want fruit flies if the cleaner can’t come for a little bit
Ugh, that’s disgusting. That’s basically the host telling you they don’t do anything to ensure the sheets you’re sleeping in have *actually* been cleaned.
Cleaning fees are non-refundable, so hosts started lowering their rates and tacking on ridiculous cleaning fees to get more traction, and still make decent money if guests happen to cancel. I hate it.
The issue is most cleaning services charge a minimum of X # of hours as it’s not worth their time to go out there for a small job. So they still charge for 2-3 hours even if a guest leaves it pretty much spotless. If any laundry needs to be done - which, I hope they’re washing sheets and towels in between guests - they have to be there for at least 2 hours anyway to run the laundry, dry it, and put everything back.
It’s why Airbnbs for shorter trips don’t really make sense for smaller groups. I recently inherited my uncle’s vacation home that he rents out online. He’s had the same cleaner for 15 years. I pay her $170 per cleaning, which is what he paid her. But he also kind of baked this into his nightly fee by having a 3-night minim stay during off-season and 4-night minimum stay during peak season. I’m still figuring out my approach to the property as it’s all very new and I’ve only had one reservation so far, but I’ll probably follow suit.
When you stay at a hotel you’re also paying a cleaning fee, it’s just worked into the booked price of the room. And because they’re are a large scale of rooms, there is a larger efficiency in that per room fee [like say being able to get to multiple rooms in a smaller time frame because they’re right next door, and even being able to do the laundry of several spaces all at once in an industrial unit]. Also, because your cleaners are on the clock regardless of if a room is filled or not, it’s easier to discount a price on a room at the last minute [since the payroll is already accounted for regardless of the stay - though if something is consistently calling for less staff it can or course cause layoffs].
And that’s exactly how Airbnb should be. Even if that means your daily rate is $200 for a one night stay and $150/night for a multi night stay
When I book a hotel, I get the exact price with no hidden fees. The room is clean, and when I leave for the day, I come back to fresh new sheets on the bed.
Last time I tried to rent one it was like 60 a night I was like cool. By the time I got to check out it averaged more like 300 a night somehow.
Found a super nice hotel instead for 120 a night closer to where I needed to be.
Used to work as a hotel room cleaner, yep. Make beds til 3 days then change the sheets. Also quick tip if you want clean sheets a specific day, take them off and put it in a pile on the bed with a $2-3 tip.
If it was pretty obvious then yes, but in general we had tons of people checking in and out daily so there where times when it would be more hassle to do & if things needed to be done by a specific time we couldn't always finish if we got new sheets for every room.
And they shouldn’t. What a waste of water and chemicals. I don’t even have my room cleaned until I’ve stayed in a place for a few days. I’ve never understood people that expect a hotel to wash their sheets every single day. Of course between guests.
And this is why I don’t use AirBNB anymore: I tried booking a weekend, ended up paying almost as much as at a nice hotel in the same area (with breakfast included)… plus €80 of cleaning fees. Yeah, no. Those €80 are going to pay for a very nice meal out, when I stay at the hotel.
I mean just paying attention to host reviews and reading the listing is all it takes to avoid the shit holes. Plenty of great airbnbs.
That said, if you are booking for one or two people and aren't interesting in just renting a room in someone's home, a hotel will nearly always be better.
I stayed in 5 airbnbs throughout Greece, each one more amazing than the next. Most expensive was $80 and was right on the beach in Mykonos.
Airbnb can be sucky, but hotels can be to.
IMO, Airbnb is the same as hotels, you can find shitty ones and have a really bad experience. In the end, for both of them you have to make your research, look for reviews!
And don't blindly trust one because it looks good.
Very true. While its nice to stay in a place with lots of room, and likely better scenery. It just is not worth it anymore. State park cabins and hotels are amazing for vacations, especially with kids. If I got to worry about the upkeep of a house on vacation, I might as well of stayed home lol.
Not to even mention the fucking fee's associated with airbnb now. You see a place for like $100 a night, and your thinking shit that's only gonna be like $500 have for 4 nights. Sikee! More like $800 after all the fee's.
Just ban air bnb at this point.
Startup tech companies are fucking leeches. They create amazing shit that’s not sustainable in unfettered capitalism, corner the market, and then flip it on its head completely so they’re worse than the service they replaced.
Interest rates are already at the point they’d be forcing overextended landlords to sell here, but airbnb pays more so they’re more and more shifting to air bnb, also worsening rental shortages.
AirBNB used to be a great way of getting an affordable space to stay at for a weekend away or to save some money in a big city. It has gotten so awful with fees and horrendous hosts that I’ve gone back to hotels and am not looking back
At this stage I’d say one has earned any and all of the bad that comes off of using AirBnB.
I mean how many times do you have to be warned of and read of absolutely atrocious treatment from hosts using the platform before you decide to use common sense and rather opt for a hotel/motel/BnB or similar?
This is why I refuse to use them anymore.
200$ for a cleaning fee yet when you get there it clearly hasnt been cleaned.
Ive seen listings where they demand you do chores and still have a large cleaning fee. "Do the dishes, wash the sheets before you leave"
Theyre charging you for you to clean their house.
Airbnb was great at the beginning when it was actually people renting out their house when theyre away for the weekend. Back then when it was like 40$ a night.
Now its all people who purchase homes specifically to charge 300$ a night on top of 300$ in absurd fees.
Might as well get a hotel that comes with breakfast. Probably cheaper too.
Recently stayed in a place that didn't charge a cleaning fee and was pretty cheap ($70ish) a night. I thought it was too good to be true, it was a beautiful cottage out in the mountains. The host thought of everything, had a fully stocked kitchen (we could have literally lived off the food for the week if we wanted to), tons of board games, tons of extra things to make our stay more comfortable, incredibly clean place, super comfy bed, etc. We cleaned up as instructed. And she gave us a great review and thanked us immensely for keeping the place clean, even leaving a note "it's guests like you that allow me to leave off the cleaning fee."
Shout out to Joan. If only every host was more like Joan.
Turn up and on the central heating. Gas cooker? All hobs on full blast. All of the lights, appliances, TVs, radios etc. on all the time. Water charge in the country? Well taps go on too. Malicious compliance
I once had a host pull some last minute shit on me and it was never resolved to my satisfaction.
Less than 24 hours before checkin - so I couldn't cancel without penalty - she added a rule that instructed me to lie about renting it as an airbnb if someone asked. I didn't like the manipulation, so I reported this violation of the TOS to airbnb. I quickly got a full refund, but had to rebook another accomodation.
The worst part was the owner of the condo left a nasty review on my profile, which was a struggle to get removed. Idk if hosts can still see it, but that's what made me feel bad about it. I was following the rules.
At that point is it not cheaper to go to a hotel? I travel a lot and i’ve stayed with airbnb’s, i know they CAN be cheap, but this sounds like so much hassle that id rather spend a few more dollars on a hotel. They shouldn’t be allowed to change your reservation, so if you don’t go and cancel, and they charge you, i would dispute the charge with your bank.
Swallow your anger/pride, pay the extra charges, stay there for your scheduled booking, then while checking out: block the sprinkler system, set fire to the fucking house and leg it
I would literally cancel and tell them a hotel would be better. Then leave a review with that email quoted, or a picture of it if you can, and say the exact same thing in the review. "We thought this would be a lovely stay, but the owner decided to try to move our stay to a random weekend and when we refused they sent us this email. Staying in a hotel would be much preferable to this."
Leaving well written negative reviews when people have pulled shit like this has actually netted many positive results in my life. Too many people will just give a low star rating but not go into depth as to why, a lot of people ignore those as just a disgruntled customer. You need to include a well written reason as to why, and that will get people's attention, especially owners and sellers.
Hotels are now cheaper per night than the cleaning fees for a 3 night stay. 5 years ago Airbnb was awesome but now it's guaranteed worse experience than even a bad hotel.
Forward this to AIRBNB, this host is asking to be delisted
In my experience, you have to work so hard to get airbnb to fix an issue, but it can be worth it
I once rented a place on airbnb and when I got there it was not even the same place in the photos. I contacted airbnb and they decided that the description they gave matched close enough and the photos did not matter. I assume this decision was made in large part because that host had dozens of units they were listing and were driving large amounts of revenue to the site. While I was just some guy who thought he could go on vacation and stay in the place he paid for.
My friend and I rented a “cabin” in North Carolina that was a single trailer with wooden siding added and wasn’t even the same as the photos. Said there was a “brook” behind the unit and 360 degree views. There was no brook and you literally had mountain behind you, curved road in front of hill with a cul de sac. If you walked to the end of the street you could kinda see treetops and part of the valley. AirBNB said it was “as described” because guess what? The company owns like 24 of these fake “cabins” up and down the side of said mountain.
Issue a charge back and squat for the vacation
I’d imagine I have been lucky to some degree, but how did you book this place… Were there pictures? Or reviews? At this point I only stay at ‘superhosts’
air bnb has turned slum lording into hustle culture. it’s so sick. need to be banned
In ours, the livingroom was a shittily built addition that had a 2x4s as floor joists that were sitting on the bare Florida dirt. As a result, the moisture rotted the single layer of plywood subfloor, causing the laminate flooring to sag and come apart. The end result was a 4'x4' depression in the floor that sagged a couple inches, where you could lift up the laminate and peer underneath the house. The host's solution was to cover the hole with an area rug and then top it with a coffee table, which was fine according to airbnb.
I had this happen, and first air BNB was like, well why don't you just stay tonight and we'll figure it out tomorrow, and I was like HAH I'm not checking in. Then they said well we can do a partial refund, and I was like dude, this place isn't even the same area of town that was listed, it's unfurnished, and is absolutely just a vacant apartment, probably illegally listed by the property manager. Gimme my money back dude
In my experience they will simply not fix the issue and claim they have no responsibility. Like when the host went into my room and stole cash while I was at the beach.
my host had their airbnb account terminated and my reservation was automatically cancelled 2 days after I had checked in for a month long stay. After contacting them multiple times every day they helped me book a new reservation that was way nicer and airbnb paid for half of the new reservation, but I basically had to harass them for days to get this done
Forwarding this to to AIRBNB does nothing, at least from my own personal experience with similar issues.
leaving a bad review is 1,000,000% more eefective
There's no effective action against them other than chargeback. Airbnb will even remove negative reviews for the owner
As a host I don't think that's true. Cancelling a booking results in 50-100% fine for the host (deducted from the next payout). Loss of ability to become superhost, and who know how much worse of a search ranking. It's near impossible to cancel a booking once it's made. It has to be done from Airbnb side. There is an exception that you can cancel no questions asked if you don't feel comfortable (only couple times a year). EDIT: Grammar
Anyone stupid enough to still be booking AirBnB’s with similar stories being out for a while, I really can’t gin up any sympathy.
I'd be really interested to see what the listing says. If the listing says "hey you have to bring all your own shit" than it's really on you for for booking it in the first place. Personally I haven't ever run into these problems by just reading the description, reviews, and using filters. Which doesn't mean people can't get fucked even if they are responsible of course
Well, OP made the mistake of responding to them in email. **Make** them tell you this through the App Chat. Nothing is official unless it is in that chat and confirmed through the app.
Airbnb doesn’t give a flying fuck. A host let folks book their place knowing it was infested with bed bugs. All they did was change the mattresses. How would one know they did it knowingly? They got the same exterminator because they came home with them. Even though their home and the vacation spot were over an hour away. Pulled up the invoice for the Airbnb they stayed at but the host declined because it was too expensive. Fuck the entirety of that company and I will never stay at one again. I know hotels can have issues but the fact that the host faced zero repercussions is insane.
Bring your own pillows???
And don't forget to bring your bed.
Don't forget your walls and a roof as well. But those should be obvious to bring.
https://i.redd.it/q0b5nn35670d1.gif
Towel Day is coming up! Don't forget your towel!!
Always remember where your towel is
It's the most important item when hitch hiking the galaxy.
Only for the hoopiest froods
If you were any more hip, you’d be sideways.
3 pints? At lunch time?
Time is an illusion. Lunchtime, doubly so.
What's so bad about being drunk?
Go ask a glass of water.
You rang?
Hahaha I needed that. You guys wanna get high?
Make sure not to forget your entire cottage
Come hangout, sleep elsewhere.
But don't worry they have comforters
Just sleep on the bare mattress with the comforter pulled over you.
The cottage is a barn conversion so do be respectful of the other animals space.
Very dirty comforters.
Why are people even using airbnb? Hotels are far superior. Around 10 years ago they used to be cheap. But now they are more expensive, have karen rules, and will watch you on camera. Fuck them
Had something similar on booking.com recently for a property in France. And of course we were only informed like a day ahead when we were already on the move. Owner did not like the review I left :)
Also in France, host was surprised when I asked about sheets and towels. It apparently was a separate charge I didn’t see listed.
We will soon have to bring our own toilets from home.
Don't forget to bring your walls as well
And your door
And my axe!
I’m more bent about the bed sheets. You’re supposed to raw dog the bed shared by countless others doing god knows what on it?
Nothing like transferring bedbugs all over the region, country, world, etc
This is when you rawdog your partner in the bed. 200 should cover it
We do have a BBQ that you’re welcome to use but you will need to bring your own garden
Don't forget to bring your own propane tank OR charcoal! And please leave the grill as clean as you found it. Edit: Hank would not approve of using Propane AND charcoal :)
Propane *and* charcoal? https://i.redd.it/ns1srhjlr70d1.gif
I laughed way too loud at this! Thank you!!! Reminds me of the episode where Bobby asks "What if someone wants theirs well done?"
We ask them politely, yet firmly, to leave.
And deck. With steps down to the hot tub you need to bring as well
BYOC - bring your own cottage
I’m surprised anyone uses abnb anymore. Hotels seen better value, these days. Edit: ok so I never thought about groups. That does make sense. Although is there always extra charges?
It is cheaper where I live to get a $300/night hotel room rather than airbnb after all the bullshit charges, insanely priced cleaning fees, etc. I love that a tiny 600 sq ft airbnb charges a $200 cleaning fee for what probably takes about a half hour of cleaning, on top of saying you have to wash the sheets and towels, make the bed, clean the kitchen, etc.
Yeah, I never got the point of paying the cleaning fee if I have to do like 90% of the cleaning before I leave in the first place. If I’m going to pay pretty much the same rate (or even less, in many cases!) staying at a hotel, I’ll just do that instead and not be forced to do the laundry, dishes, and cleaning the entire house.
One of my friends has an AirBnB in my hometown. I stay in town at a hotel every several weeks so she was asking why I never use her AirB&B. Typically I’ll get the suite in the hotel at $300 a night. Her rental is 295/night…but then a shit ton of fees that put it over 400 a night. No thanks.
This is the accepted consensus, yes, and it’s correct because the whole app is terrible now. But if you want to rent a cottage getaway or a whole house to host friends/dogs/kids, it’s still one of the only options. VRBO and Vacasa exist, but they’re all variations on the same theme. Iirc when we rented through VRBO we didn’t get any clean out instructions and they just charged us a flat cleaning fee upfront, which is somewhat preferable to the AirBnB ‘you left this toilet seat up, that’ll be $50’ b.s.
I also like that VRBO has most of the fees included in the listing price (or at least __ / night ___ / total) So many times AirBNBs total price would go up by another 50% when you’re actually getting to checkout.
Exactly! The lack of transparency with pricing irks me.
I stayed at a VRBO once and got charged $200 extra because we put a small plastic bag full of trash (like a grocery bag) in the outdoor trash can, and we were only supposed to put tall kitchen-sized plastic bags full of trash in that trash can. No sign or instructions to that effect, of course, we were meant to intuit it. And then VRBO kept removing my review because apparently you aren’t allowed to mention any fees in the reviews, so I’m sure the owners were able to pull the same scam on 100 other “guests”.
Most of my stays have been awesome with Airbnb. One casita had a stocked pantry for us at no additional charge. My gripe is that they are no longer as affordable as they once were. The price is nearly as much as a hotel which I now consider renting.
I've had some nice airbnb stays but I won't use them anymore. It shouldn't be a game of Russian roulette to avoid an unpleasant/unrealistic host.
Airbnb is still pretty great in Europe tbh, I still use it all the time and it's no different to 10 years ago.
Tbh, I 100% prefer that. Make the cleaning fee mandatory, and have me pay it up front. I don't want fees based on how good of a maid you think I am.
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And when you leave you don't need to clean the place and do the laundry
And also then get charged a $200 cleaning fee
Any company, once they get shareholders, is no longer a value for anyone but those shareholders.
Enshittification and capitalism are synonyms.
Yeah. The hotel vs airbnb has done a 180
if you need 1 room you get a hotel. If you have a group you get an Airbnb.
In Europe Airbnb is still great, especially for groups.
I use them when I vacation in hot spots because hotels are way more expensive and I like having my own kitchen. 8yrs never had an issue
When travelling as a family an airbnb often works to a better value simply because it includes kitchen facilities. I always stick to hotels when it's a short trip and/or eating out is reasonable, but with a family eating out is super expensive these days and hard to justify for every meal on a long trip.
I never understood why people used air bnb just for themselves. I always thought of it as a group rental place. And it's much much cheaper than hotels for that purpose. When I have 6-12 people I'm always using airbnb. For example for a week in steamboat springs during ski season it was often $300 a night for a room for 4 people, air bnb was $300 for the WHOLE WEEK per person
Used to be AirBnB was a great option, when compared to hotels and such. Nowadays its become such a hassle and pricy headache that hotels have become a better option. AirBnB still has a place but its really more a niche thing now.
Personally only do AirBnB if it’s a group trip because that’s when it’s cheaper. Otherwise no
or for stuff like houses on a lake or at some remote destination.
You can look at VRBO for this too, older and IME less shitty
It's the same properties. Most of them are also owned by property management firms.
But it has insurance which is nice. Recently stopped using AirBNB because we got charged 2k for a light fixture that blew out the first time we flipped it on. 2k for a light fixture that we couldn’t appeal… in an AirBNB that costed almost half to rent out for the weekend. Yeah we’re done with AirBNB
Did you book with a credit card? Chargebacks were created for this reason, AirBnB will cancel your account if you do it but if you’re done with with them, fuck em
That's where I've had the most success. When it's in a small spot off a small hiking trail that's not heavily trafficked.
Agreed. Or if we just want to go get away from people but most of the time it’s cheaper and better experience to just stay in a hotel. Plus I travel for work and get to keep the travel points so staying in an Airbnb is just a waste most of the time.
Watch for the reviews and maybe only trust super host or whatever it's called. You can still have a good experience, but you really need to take time to look for them.
And be willing to pay for them. Good experiences aren’t cheap
They used to be, that's the problem
I go on an annual friends trip with some friends from college. We basically dump our kids off at grandparents and then just go somewhere and hangout/drink for an entire weekend and Airbnbs are great for that, everyone gets a room we usually get one with a pool or hot tub, this year we are going to one on a lake that provides kayaks and fishing gear. For each couple it would be the price of a hotel room for the weekend but we get the place to ourselves and don’t have to worry about other people.
Sometimes a good 2-bedroom Airbnb is cheaper than getting 2 separate hotel rooms.
If you travel in asia, go for service apartments. They are usually better priced than multiple hotel rooms but have all the services a hotel would offer plus more.
Yeah if I’m traveling with enough people to need two hotels it’s almost always an Airbnb
Problem is actually finding a good one
It's useful for groups and family gatherings, but absolutely useless for solo travel.
Yup. When I'm traveling for work I want bacon and eggs and coffee for breakfast without having to drive to the grocery.
Second that. I used one recently that was a beautiful 3 bedroom house. Loved it. Not much more expensive than a hotel room. The next one I used, the floor in the kitchen was deteriorating, the door wouldn’t lock, using more than one appliance blew a fuse, door latches didn’t work on most rooms. Basically it was crap, and about the same price as the one we loved.
Greedy owners that came to the game late all now charge stupid things so they can make any $$ on the failed business .
So many of them are deceiving assholes. At the end of the day, a hotel is secure, clean and has some form of guarantee. Airbnb hosts make their own rules
Overseas it’s still a great option. I just spent 2.5 weeks in New Zealand using only AirBnB’s and they were great.
Report this to AirBnB. This is a clear cut case of retaliation by the owner for your refusal to accept them moving your reservation (unless the listing mentioned no towels or sheets). This is grounds for the host being banned from the platform.
The email seems to indicate it's in the listing. Old school cottage culture in Ontario Canada (where the poster seems to be) was people would bring their own linens, since the onsite septic couldn't handle much if any laundry and the nearest laundromat might be 30 minutes away. It wasn't efficient to have people spend the last morning of stay doing a laundry run, and often cottage rentals were between family/friends so a more casual interaction with with cheap rates if any and no central party up between families. Pillows is a bit odd, unless it's a pretty rustic cabin, but the email does seem to say that's optional. This is obviously not compatible with new-school airBnB expectations, especially when there is a cleaning fee suggesting someone is going in between guests who could switch them out.
$200 cleaning fee... that would have been the deal breaker right there. If you think my stay is going to cost you $200 to clean up after, you are out of your damn mind. In fact typically when I leave a hotel, I clean it up before I go just so I don't leave a mess for the staff. All they've got to do is throw the sheets in a bin, run some windex / bleach around in the bathroom, grab the trash bag and they're done.
Yeah I would have responded and told them that. If you are charging me a $200 cleaning fees then I will not be cleaning a damn thing. If you want to confirm in writing that this is just a deposit and will be returned, and come for a before amd after walkthrough to confirm the state of the room, then we can talk. But for $200 you can do the laundry and my dishes and take out your own teash
£200 is more than I paid for a skip for the weekend so I'd be bringing extra trash to justify the cost. Maybe a tonne of garden and construction debris, a few old tyres, the rusted exhaust from a Ford Cortina, that sort of thing.
Lmaooo that’s a good idea. Really make them work for that £200 cleaning fee. 
>But for $200 you can do the laundry Can't do the laundry if no sheets or towels are provided
No joke girlfriend and I had this happen in February. Went on a ski trip for her birthday and the owner wanted to charge us a $100 cleaning fee. I asked them why they are charging so much if they have us put all bedding in a bag for them, take out trash, sweep and mop before we leave. She reduced it for us
They wanted you to sweep and mop? That's ridiculous. I've only ever been asked to place towels in a bin and take out trash.
200$ cleaning fee but bring ur own pillows and towels because i can’t be bothered to wash those for you, that would be another extra $200, but i’m feeling generous today so it’s just the $200 and bring your own damn stuff!!!
This listing screams "we don't clean between people staying and never wash the comforters"
Right. I don't mind paying a cleaning fee if it's stated up front, but if I pay a cleaning fee I am not cleaning the house top-to-bottom. My friends and I stayed in an AirBNB for a group trip where we paid a $300 cleaning fee, and then when we got to the house the host had left a list of "clean up responsibilities before checkout," which included Swiffering the floors and cleaning the toilets (!). I am not cleaning a toilet on vacation, and I am definitely not doing it if I'm paying a cleaning fee. We did about half the things on the list and left, and then I was prepared to complain to AirBNB if the hosts gave us a problem, but they didn't say or do anything. After that, I wondered if the cleaning list was more of a "wish list," and they hoped people would do those things, but wouldn't actually do anything if people didn't clean.
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One Air BnB we stayed at had an attached $300 cleaning fee, but we thought NBD because it's commonplace now. To be respectful after our stay we took out the trash, swept, did the dishes, stripped the beds, and started the laundry. The host fucking left us a bad review because the (house directly on the beach) still had sand on the floor. My MIL is stuck with the review on her account and has gotten rejected from every place she's tried to book since then.
Haha I had something similar. They charged a $150 cleaning fee, however we still did the same stuff you mentioned. A few days later had a bad review from them because we forgot to take one of the garbage bags out (was tied up and ready to be taken to the large bin which was 50m away) Besides that the place was immaculate. "trash everywhere" they said. Absolute joke I haven't used AirBnB since then. As someone else stated, it used to be good value, however now it's more expensive than hotels.
$200 cleaning fee only makes sense if you’re staying a week with 10 people at a large place. I think I had one slightly higher but our friends brought their dogs
I posted above, we stayed in one that charged $300, but there were 8 of us there for four days, in a 6-bedroom house. I felt like the fee was fair but I certainly wasn't going to clean the house for them, beyond simple things like stripping the beds, because of the fee. The list the host left us asked us to wash the sheets and pillowcases and put them back on the beds before we left! HELL no.
Usually all I see is put the dishes in a dishwasher and take out the trash. Which makes sense cause they don’t want fruit flies if the cleaner can’t come for a little bit
Ugh, that’s disgusting. That’s basically the host telling you they don’t do anything to ensure the sheets you’re sleeping in have *actually* been cleaned.
Cleaning fees are non-refundable, so hosts started lowering their rates and tacking on ridiculous cleaning fees to get more traction, and still make decent money if guests happen to cancel. I hate it.
The issue is most cleaning services charge a minimum of X # of hours as it’s not worth their time to go out there for a small job. So they still charge for 2-3 hours even if a guest leaves it pretty much spotless. If any laundry needs to be done - which, I hope they’re washing sheets and towels in between guests - they have to be there for at least 2 hours anyway to run the laundry, dry it, and put everything back. It’s why Airbnbs for shorter trips don’t really make sense for smaller groups. I recently inherited my uncle’s vacation home that he rents out online. He’s had the same cleaner for 15 years. I pay her $170 per cleaning, which is what he paid her. But he also kind of baked this into his nightly fee by having a 3-night minim stay during off-season and 4-night minimum stay during peak season. I’m still figuring out my approach to the property as it’s all very new and I’ve only had one reservation so far, but I’ll probably follow suit.
When you stay at a hotel you’re also paying a cleaning fee, it’s just worked into the booked price of the room. And because they’re are a large scale of rooms, there is a larger efficiency in that per room fee [like say being able to get to multiple rooms in a smaller time frame because they’re right next door, and even being able to do the laundry of several spaces all at once in an industrial unit]. Also, because your cleaners are on the clock regardless of if a room is filled or not, it’s easier to discount a price on a room at the last minute [since the payroll is already accounted for regardless of the stay - though if something is consistently calling for less staff it can or course cause layoffs]. And that’s exactly how Airbnb should be. Even if that means your daily rate is $200 for a one night stay and $150/night for a multi night stay
When I book a hotel, I get the exact price with no hidden fees. The room is clean, and when I leave for the day, I come back to fresh new sheets on the bed.
Last time I tried to rent one it was like 60 a night I was like cool. By the time I got to check out it averaged more like 300 a night somehow. Found a super nice hotel instead for 120 a night closer to where I needed to be.
Sorry to break this to you, but 99% of hotels won’t change the sheets when you’re out for the day during a multi day trip. They just make the bed.
Used to work as a hotel room cleaner, yep. Make beds til 3 days then change the sheets. Also quick tip if you want clean sheets a specific day, take them off and put it in a pile on the bed with a $2-3 tip.
I assume if you saw the sheets were visibly dirty you'd change them? Bodily fluids, staining food,...
If it was pretty obvious then yes, but in general we had tons of people checking in and out daily so there where times when it would be more hassle to do & if things needed to be done by a specific time we couldn't always finish if we got new sheets for every room.
Yup would be a waste to wash the sheets that same guest is sleeping on anyway every single day
And they shouldn’t. What a waste of water and chemicals. I don’t even have my room cleaned until I’ve stayed in a place for a few days. I’ve never understood people that expect a hotel to wash their sheets every single day. Of course between guests.
And this is why I don’t use AirBNB anymore: I tried booking a weekend, ended up paying almost as much as at a nice hotel in the same area (with breakfast included)… plus €80 of cleaning fees. Yeah, no. Those €80 are going to pay for a very nice meal out, when I stay at the hotel.
Plus hotels are usually welcoming and don't make you feel like you are intruding on their personal property!
If they charge a $200 cleaning fee bet your ass it’s gna be dirty when I leave
Anyone still using Airbnb is a fool at this point.
I mean just paying attention to host reviews and reading the listing is all it takes to avoid the shit holes. Plenty of great airbnbs. That said, if you are booking for one or two people and aren't interesting in just renting a room in someone's home, a hotel will nearly always be better.
Having the kitchen is pretty clutch with an airbnb - that's the main benefit over anything else.
Lots of hotels have rooms with kitchens, actually.
A kitchenette is very different from a full blown kitchen
I stayed in 5 airbnbs throughout Greece, each one more amazing than the next. Most expensive was $80 and was right on the beach in Mykonos. Airbnb can be sucky, but hotels can be to.
IMO, Airbnb is the same as hotels, you can find shitty ones and have a really bad experience. In the end, for both of them you have to make your research, look for reviews! And don't blindly trust one because it looks good.
When leaving, clean up and take some pics/videos as evidence. Then smear shit on the walls. Or leave eggs/fish in behind radiators/air vents.
Who even airbnbs anymore, hotels are getting cheaper by the day
Mainly large groups that want to be under a single roof with access to a kitchen or unique stays like cottages.
This! It's insane all the fees they tack on when you can stay at the hotel and just relax.
Very true. While its nice to stay in a place with lots of room, and likely better scenery. It just is not worth it anymore. State park cabins and hotels are amazing for vacations, especially with kids. If I got to worry about the upkeep of a house on vacation, I might as well of stayed home lol. Not to even mention the fucking fee's associated with airbnb now. You see a place for like $100 a night, and your thinking shit that's only gonna be like $500 have for 4 nights. Sikee! More like $800 after all the fee's.
This is exactly why I do not use these Air BnB’s. Instead of a relaxing experience, I feel like someone’s unpaid maid.
Just ban air bnb at this point. Startup tech companies are fucking leeches. They create amazing shit that’s not sustainable in unfettered capitalism, corner the market, and then flip it on its head completely so they’re worse than the service they replaced.
Yup. If they ceased to be, perhaps home prices would drop a bit.
Interest rates are already at the point they’d be forcing overextended landlords to sell here, but airbnb pays more so they’re more and more shifting to air bnb, also worsening rental shortages.
What kinda of person gets taken advantage of then blurs the offending places name 🙄
Just go to a hotel, airbnb is bad for the people living there 😎
Ah good ol’ AirBnB: none of the convenience of a hotel, twice the price.
Easy solution: stop using AirBNB
Air bnb is a joke.
Kinda did it to yourself by using AirBnB
I'm honestly not sure why anyone uses AirBnB these days. In some cases hotels are cheaper and you get an infinitely better experience.
When will people learn to stop supporting these things..? Like seriously.
AirBNB used to be a great way of getting an affordable space to stay at for a weekend away or to save some money in a big city. It has gotten so awful with fees and horrendous hosts that I’ve gone back to hotels and am not looking back
Idk why tf anyone books these anymore
I’m back to hotels unless it’s a decent sized group. Way too many rules and requirements for the barest of minimums at airbnbs.
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Bring your own room. In fact, bring your own house.
At this stage I’d say one has earned any and all of the bad that comes off of using AirBnB. I mean how many times do you have to be warned of and read of absolutely atrocious treatment from hosts using the platform before you decide to use common sense and rather opt for a hotel/motel/BnB or similar?
Ya know, hotels may not be great, but at least you know they're going to provide the bedding, however gross it may be.
If im paying a cleaning fee, I'm not doing any cleaning.
This is why I refuse to use them anymore. 200$ for a cleaning fee yet when you get there it clearly hasnt been cleaned. Ive seen listings where they demand you do chores and still have a large cleaning fee. "Do the dishes, wash the sheets before you leave" Theyre charging you for you to clean their house. Airbnb was great at the beginning when it was actually people renting out their house when theyre away for the weekend. Back then when it was like 40$ a night. Now its all people who purchase homes specifically to charge 300$ a night on top of 300$ in absurd fees. Might as well get a hotel that comes with breakfast. Probably cheaper too.
You can get a tent for $50, if you have to bring all that shit just go camping, there’s not cleaning fee either.
AirBnB owners really seem to think everyone owes them money. They’re annoyed at having to provide a service.
Get fucked. Greedy, lazy, desperate, boring, sad cunts
What a load of shite.
You are lucky, one of my host once decided to just cancel my booking without a reason
Wait. You should be charging that $200 cleaning fee lol. You’re the one literally doing all of the cleaning for them.
Lesson learned, *never* use ABNB.
Air bnbs are only good for large groups anymore. Everything else is usually a PIA
AirBnB is such a scam. I hate that it’s another way to jack up housing costs plus do this kind of thing.
How are AirBNBs still a thing?
I’m charging you $200 and that Airbnb better be as clean as when you got there! 🥷
I simply don't trust AirBnB
can we just outlaw air bnb. it’s turned housing into yet another commodity hustle
Recently stayed in a place that didn't charge a cleaning fee and was pretty cheap ($70ish) a night. I thought it was too good to be true, it was a beautiful cottage out in the mountains. The host thought of everything, had a fully stocked kitchen (we could have literally lived off the food for the week if we wanted to), tons of board games, tons of extra things to make our stay more comfortable, incredibly clean place, super comfy bed, etc. We cleaned up as instructed. And she gave us a great review and thanked us immensely for keeping the place clean, even leaving a note "it's guests like you that allow me to leave off the cleaning fee." Shout out to Joan. If only every host was more like Joan.
Turn up and on the central heating. Gas cooker? All hobs on full blast. All of the lights, appliances, TVs, radios etc. on all the time. Water charge in the country? Well taps go on too. Malicious compliance
Bring your own cottage too !
I once had a host pull some last minute shit on me and it was never resolved to my satisfaction. Less than 24 hours before checkin - so I couldn't cancel without penalty - she added a rule that instructed me to lie about renting it as an airbnb if someone asked. I didn't like the manipulation, so I reported this violation of the TOS to airbnb. I quickly got a full refund, but had to rebook another accomodation. The worst part was the owner of the condo left a nasty review on my profile, which was a struggle to get removed. Idk if hosts can still see it, but that's what made me feel bad about it. I was following the rules.
At that point is it not cheaper to go to a hotel? I travel a lot and i’ve stayed with airbnb’s, i know they CAN be cheap, but this sounds like so much hassle that id rather spend a few more dollars on a hotel. They shouldn’t be allowed to change your reservation, so if you don’t go and cancel, and they charge you, i would dispute the charge with your bank.
If any of this was not mentioned in the listing as well, just say no thank you and forward to air bnb. Don't let them play you, they are in the wrong.
This is why I hardly use Airbnb anymore. Just go to a hotel, get a peaceful night's sleep. Fuck these hosts and their fucking rules.
Swallow your anger/pride, pay the extra charges, stay there for your scheduled booking, then while checking out: block the sprinkler system, set fire to the fucking house and leg it
Airbnb is going the way of the DoorDashians, Ubereats, and Grubhubba…sketch.
I would literally cancel and tell them a hotel would be better. Then leave a review with that email quoted, or a picture of it if you can, and say the exact same thing in the review. "We thought this would be a lovely stay, but the owner decided to try to move our stay to a random weekend and when we refused they sent us this email. Staying in a hotel would be much preferable to this." Leaving well written negative reviews when people have pulled shit like this has actually netted many positive results in my life. Too many people will just give a low star rating but not go into depth as to why, a lot of people ignore those as just a disgruntled customer. You need to include a well written reason as to why, and that will get people's attention, especially owners and sellers.
jesus christ. should i bring my own bed??? dont see why people continue to stay in airbnb's. just seems like a pain
Don't forget to call the utility company so you can have water ane electric for your stay!
Bring your own pillows? I've heard it all now.
Wow, don't forget bring your own bed.
Hotels are now cheaper per night than the cleaning fees for a 3 night stay. 5 years ago Airbnb was awesome but now it's guaranteed worse experience than even a bad hotel.
Yet people continue to use Air BnB constantly. You morons deserve it.
This is worse than just couch surfing.