airbnb

Tag Archives for airbnb.

Airbnb Trashes Hosts Who Make You Do The Laundry In Announcing Major Changes

by Gary Leff on November 7, 2022

Nov 07 2022

Airbnb makes sense in towns where there aren’t suitable hotels. It makes sense to rent a full house for a large family or when traveling with a group of friend. But the current homesharing model is very broken, and as a result choosing Airbnb makes no sense for most stays.

The company understands that and wants to change that. It’s updating how prices are shown, and shaming hosts that impose bizarre conditions on guests. In fact, the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb is shaming owners who make guests do laundry before they leave.

Luxury Hotels Are In An Arms Race Posting Fake Reviews To Outcompete Airbnb

by Gary Leff on October 30, 2022

Oct 30 2022

Luxury hotels are more likely to post fake reviews than cheaper properties. That appears to be because people deciding on price are less influenced by reviews, while a decision to drop $500 or more per night on a resort will be influenced by more subjective and experiential elements of a stay.

It used to be that hotels would post fake negative reviews of competitors. But they’ve shifted away from that and more towards posting more fake positive reviews of their own properties, as Airbnb has grown.

Owner Discovers Home Rented Out Online When Guests Show Up. Airbnb Wouldn’t Remove Listing

by Gary Leff on October 30, 2022

Oct 30 2022

Just because you own a home, and live there, doesn’t mean that it’s not also listed for rental on Airbnb. There are so many scams out there, including listing homes for rent that are not – in fact – for rent. People pay the scammer, show up at the front door. And do you think Airbnb takes swift action?

Normally if you stick to Airbnb Superhosts offering properties with numerous good reviews, you figure you’re safe. But just because a property has been rented in the past, doesn’t mean the listing isn’t a scam now.

Airbnb Now Adds Resort Fees, Because Cleaning Fees Weren’t Enough

by Gary Leff on October 19, 2022

Oct 19 2022

Airbnb is taking on the worst features of hotels, without mirroring the things that make hotels attractive. Their cleaning fees are legendary, even while hosts give lists of chores for guests to complete (not just taking out the trash, doing the dishes, and washing the sheets but sometimes even mowing the lawn).

Sometimes Airbnb – and competitors like Vrbo – are the best option like when renting a house with a whole family or in a town without hotels. But it seems like they’re working hard to kill that advantage, as evidenced by this reported listing where the owner even charges you extra for booking with them and then adds on a resort fee.

Airbnb Banning Guests For Attending Protests And Walking Dogs Off Leash – Ten Years Ago

by Gary Leff on September 13, 2022

Sep 13 2022

There are towns without suitable hotels, and for family trips where multiple bedrooms and a kitchen make sense, timeshare properties and home sharing sites have a business that’s distinct from the traditional hotel.

You’re going to be in the lurch if Airbnb bans you from their service, and they’re increasingly doing that for stupid reasons.

Warning About Airbnb’s With Good Reviews – But Aren’t What They Seem

by Gary Leff on August 10, 2022

Aug 10 2022

A TikToker booked a night at an Airbnb in Bali for her anniversary. She’d found a ‘villa’ with an infinity pool that overlooked a rainforest. It was part of a larger property with amenities (plenty of hotels sell rooms through Airbnb!). There were good reviews.

She showed up and found an abandoned villa, a pool filled with algae, a restaurant that was shut down – the entire property abandoned. Broken windows abounded.

Marriotts Sell Rooms On Airbnb, Use This To Lower Your Room Rate

by Gary Leff on July 1, 2022

Jul 01 2022

Last fall I found several Marriott hotels sell their rooms for less on Airbnb than at Marriott.com. Marriott isn’t ok with this and cracked down on the specific properties I noted, but the practice continues and one guest even managed a successful best rate guarantee against an Airbnb listing.

Do You Believe Reviews On Airbnb?

by Gary Leff on June 19, 2022

Jun 19 2022

When the police get involve after threats of violence over accommodations reviews that may be a one-off, rather than representative of the platform. But it’s also a reminder that you don’t really know whom you’re renting from – or to.

Airbnb Is Even Worse Than I Thought

by Gary Leff on June 16, 2022

Jun 16 2022

The concerns I have with Airbnb, though, are hardly the only ones. Others have had far worse experiences.

Why Uber Is Great And Airbnb Is Awful

by Gary Leff on June 12, 2022

person holding phone near steering wheel

Jun 12 2022

It’s easy to forget how awful taxis were when Uber burst onto the scene. You couldn’t request cars by app, you couldn’t see where they were or know when they’d arrive, and you couldn’t track your rides. Cabs were usually in terrible condition (with regulated prices and limited numbers of cabs, it made no sense to invest in the product because doing so didn’t help a business earn more). And you had the whole payment process thing at the end of the ride rather than just getting out of the car.