Airbnb "over there"

[GoodWishes]

We stayed at about 15 Airbnbs in US, Canada and Europe. We only stayed at entire private units. About 1/3 are very good/above expectation, about 1/3 are ok/meet expectation, about 1/3 are not so good/below expectation.

Pro
Much more spacious
Have kitchen, stove, fridge, some with microwave, washer, etc
Can be cheaper than hotel
Great for traveling with families and friends (we have stayed at 2/3/4 bedroom places)

Con
More logistic for check in/out, unlike most hotels have 24/7 reception desk and just walk in
Sometimes don't meet expectation, we stayed at lots of hotels and we had less surprises with hotels

When looking for Airbnb, we look for
Pictures that show everything, all rooms, all beds, all bathrooms (showing sinks, toilets, showers), etc
Reviews need to be overwhelming positive since there is usually not a lot of reviews unlike hotels
If it is much cheaper than usual, it is probably too good to be true

 

[Scuba]

We have stayed at 2 Air bnb’s, 1 VRBO, and 3 booking.com properties during our four weeks so far in Greece. All of the properties and hosts have been great. A couple of the properties were MUCH nicer than we expected, and all were at least as good as we expected. We have paid less than half of what we would have paid for hotels, and we have had more room, features, and in many cases much better locations vs hotels.

I agree that one needs to research diligently to have this kind of outcome. I spent many hours searching multiple sites and reading reviews. The time investment was really worth it to me. We value premium locations and privacy, and these properties delivered!

The only traditional hotel we booked for the entire 44-night trip is the Sofitel at the Athens airport. It’s the only hotel right at the airport so the convenience was worth it for our first and last nights of the trip.

 

[athena53]

My only gripe was once having my credit card hit when I made the reservation, even though I wasn't going to be there for 4 months. I prefer to be billed after the fact.

That seems to be common, Both of my bookings worked that way. So did one I made in 2016 but had to cancel 3 months before when DH was too sick to travel. We got all but about $150 of that one back. My understanding is that Airbnb holds onto it; the host doesn't get it till you've stayed there.

No worse than the airlines!

 

[JakeinChina]

We did Airbnb in both Ireland and Spain this summer. Both worked out really well, and if your staying for weeks at one place, its certainly MUCH cheaper then if we booked a hotel room. Esp with big groups, you can't beat Airbnb.


My only suggestion is read the details of the property before booking. The flat in Spain was lovely, but it didn't have air con, and no air-con in August was a little too hot. Also, many flats in Europe are older buildings, so the water pressure, and other problems with the building might pop up.

 

[Red Badger]

DW use to be afraid of AirBB. Finally got her into one and now she is on board.

BTW - Here is a photo of the funky little shack (ie. the building with the white door) that we stayed in.

-gauss

DW was of same mind (leery) about Uber a while back. But when we were in Charleston (streets can be byzantine if your are not a local), the Uber experience made her a convert. Many of the Uber drivers, offered water bottles, dining suggestions, etc. Our car never left the hotel parking lot.

In contrast, our last taxi was late night at DTW. We got to the taxi stand, and the driver muttered in broken English, "Twenty dollars, no meter." Too cold and tired to fight to good fight, we went, paying about $15 above market to ride in a smelly old taxi (while the driver was stealing from his employer). So, in return, cabs are now a transport of last option only.

 

[OldShooter]

... More logistic for check in/out, unlike most hotels have 24/7 reception desk and just walk in. ...

Excellent point and something that I neglected to mention in my enthusiastic post #13. Frequently, getting into a property has been a minor hassle. For example, poor directions to an apartment in Oslo where you park, then go down two flights of stairs, through a gate, and another fifty feet along a sidewalk. Other times, trying to connect with a host to get keys. As I said we prefer "amateur" hosts to the professionals but the professionally-owned properties generally do not have this problem. Our solution is to have learned that we need to have a cell phone (for us aka Project Fi) from which we can contact the host if there are issues or if coordination is needed. Not a show-stopper but I have to agree with @GoodWishes that it is a negative..

 

[Fairfax2018]

Booming.com or Booking.com?

Definitely booking! Sorry for my fat fingers!

 

[athena53]

I agree on the difficulties of getting in. In Reykjavik I showed up at about 2 AM and saw the lock box but had no idea how to get in; the owner materialized quickly and let me in- she must have been someplace where she could watch for me? A friend who, by coincidence, was in Reykjavik at the same time, had more trouble. He e-mailed me as his phone was dying; could use Wi-Fi but didn't have an Iceland SIM card and he couldn't figure out where the key to his place was. He gave me 2 phone numbers and I tracked the owner down on vacation somewhere in the hinterlands and he told me which flowerpot concealed the key; I relayed that to my friend. In my case on this one, I found the place, found the lockbox, knew the combination but kept trying to yank the lock open at the wrong place. I called the agency; they sent over a nice young man who opened the front "door" of the lockbox. Oops. I blame that one on the redeye with only 2 hours of sleep.

Travel is never without moments such as this, but next time I'm going to ask for VERY explicit instructions about getting in.

 

[PawPrint53]

Sitting in the Dublin airport reading this thread. We booked a two night stay in a Dublin flat, but ended up staying one night and then moving to a hotel for last night. Location is sometimes an issue, and we didn't realize this flat was on a very busy street. My DH sat on a chair that immediately broke so the furniture quality was a bit suspect. No host either, just a lockbox.

The place in Vienna was great as was the place in Bad Goisern. We were met by hosts at both those places. I think meeting a host is helpful.

We have "issues" with duvets, which every place seems to use, even hotels in the U.S. How do people sleep under those things when it's 60 degrees or more at night? We took out the fluffy middle part at every B&B and every Airbnb we stayed at. Hopefully it made changing the bed easier for the cleaners.

 

[jesaco]

We started using Airbnb because it was always hard to get hotel rooms in Europe that will accept 3 guests (me, wife and minor child) unless you find one that offers" triple room" or Jr. suites. This option can be limited and can become very expensive.

Trying Airbnb for the first time in Rome and Barcelona, we were surprised how easy to use them and the apartments we booked were really nice.Both apartments even had patios at the back where we relaxed, ate fruits and snacks and had wine every evening. Now we only look at hotels as a last option.

 

[OldShooter]

I just had a thought that might help people thinking about AirBnB. Let me try:

Some people like predictability. Me, when I go into a McDonald's in a strange town and know exactly what I'm going to be served. But DW won't even go into one and, I think, will go out of her way to avoid driving by a KFC. We always look for non-chain, locally-owned restaurants. Especially ones with an ethnic twist. One of my most pleasant experiences was an Afghan restaurant in Alexandria VA where I didn't recognize a single thing on the menu! Recent joy was discovering a local Vietnamese restaurant with a totally different choice of dishes than we had ever seen in other Vietnamese restaurants. Sometimes our experiences in new restaurant are less than stellar, but research and yelp.com seem to protect us from disasters.

Motels and hotels are predictability. Choose your level (Motel 6, Radisson Blu, etc.) and you know what you're going to get. For example, inside the Radisson Blu in Addis Abbaba you couldn't tell that you weren't in the states. Even the infrared heaters on the bar patio were identical to the one our neighbors have on their patio.

AirBnB is not that way. Every property is different. Some people (like us) think that's great. Others, not so much. It's a taste like anything else; not right or wrong, just human.

 

[Fedup]

I never say never. I don’t eat at KFC here but in southern France we had the best meal there. Some places in France or maybe this is the whole of France, they stop serving you food after a certain time. So KFC was a decent alternative for lunch. Either that or no food.

 

[Red Badger]

OP here. To pile on about goodwishes comment about the logistics of checking in. Fully agree - it ain't the Marriott. On our travel to Paris, the train stopped for nearly and hour for no known reason. We're supposed to meet our host at X time, but that ain't happening. So, I whip out the phone only to find no service (somewhere in the middle of Belgium/France countryside). So, I email the owner (not the host) and explain our predicament. It all got sorted out and we were about an hour late. A bit unnerving, but I'm sipping a nice Bordeaux from said property as I write this.

 

[audreyh1]

We have "issues" with duvets, which every place seems to use, even hotels in the U.S. How do people sleep under those things when it's 60 degrees or more at night? We took out the fluffy middle part at every B&B and every Airbnb we stayed at. Hopefully it made changing the bed easier for the cleaners.

We can’t sleep under duvets either, and take out the center quilted part and just use the cover.

 

[Nemo2]

Definitely booking! Sorry for my fat fingers!

My initial reaction was "Oh, I've never heard of
that one, I'd better check it out..." - a couple Google attempts later it finally dawned on me.

(OK, so I'm not the sharpest sponge in the drawer.)

 

[deserat]

I'd like to share a funny story. "The Original European Airbnb"

Back in the 90's I was skiing in Austria with a German friend. We had just arrived and had no plans or any idea on where we'd stay. It was about 10PM.

We went into a noisy, very crowded bar for a quick bite and a beer.
My friend disappeared leaving me with a pretty 'English teacher' who spoke no more English that I do Chinese and materialized a half hour later with "Osvald". "This is Osvald!" he exclaimed. "He's going to put us up for the night." Osvald was quite exuberant and very pleased to meet me.

After buying Osvald a few more beers and chatting for a while we followed his car up to his chalet. Very nice. Spectacular in fact. Slopeside to boot.

Os set us up in a guest room; two nice beds in a big room and brought in some bottled water. Showed us how the shower worked. After back and forth in German with my friend, my friend said: "Osvald will make us breakfast...what would you like?" I said whatever he had.
"Vell Zen, gut nacht!"

Lying in bed in the dark, I asked: "So, Hans, Osvald is a great guy... how do you know him?"
"Oh....I just met him at the bar. I don't know who he is!".
Os wouldn't take any money the next morning.

Awesome story!!!! When I was hiking in Europe, I would go hut-to-hut - there are rules that the huts must take people in as they don't like camping in the Alps.....you pay, but not very much and the hospitality is wonderful. Your story is an indication of that mentality....thanks for sharing!

 

[deserat]

Did AirBnB in Rekjavik - actually my friend did it - it worked out well - we had an apartment, kitchen, wifi, bathroom - etc. The key was in a lockbox and we had to wait for a specific time to get the key - I think this particular apartment was an AirBnB business. Nevertheless, for the price and the space and amenities it worked.

I have used booking.com many times in Europe as I travel for business over there and many of my European colleagues use it. So far it has worked out adequately.

I may try AirBnB more, although, I have been fortunate finding some interesting small boutique like hotels for my budget and needs when I travel. In the Baltics, I was staying at former and current convents Very interesting and confirmed that the price was what brought most people to those places....they were all European, no Americans.

What's even better is having friends who can put you up...I shoot for that first and offer to bring American things or take them out to dinner, etc.

 

[Teacher Terry]

Next year when we go to Europe we plan to do this. I just booked a guest house in New Orleans for less than half the price of a hotel.

 

[Scuba]

I’ve found in Greece that Air Bnb was great for Athens but on the smaller islands, booking.cam was better. Either way, much better than large hotels.

 

[morriss003]

We use AirBnB, but usually only for stays of three nights or more. The worst was in Columbus, Ohio, and the place was fine, but the host was flaky. They really are different in different locations. We stayed in a fantastic modern place in Canberra, Aus, but it didn't have internet. Our Madrid apartment was great, but there and in Brisbane a renovation had put a toilet in an unusable location. The best was probably in Sao Sebastiao, Lisbon, Portugal, due to the ease of transport location. In the spring we will stay at AirBnBs in Montevideo, Uruguay, and in Santiago, Chile.

However in two cities we would probably stay in hotels. In Berlin, I recommend the Mitte Garden Wyndham. Far from the center, but a great hotel and easy access to the Uban. In Prague I would stay at Hotel Galileo, probably the best hotel for the money we've ever stayed at, and easy to get to Old Town.

 

[flintnational]

We were in Europe all of September. We stayed in 5 Airbnb's in 4 different countries. Our experience was similar to the OP. We will definitely use them again in Europe. We washed clothes in a couple of locations. This allowed us to take one carry on size suit case each. We also only booked locations with a balcony, terrace or courtyard. If you are a cook, there is nothing like making beef bourguignon in France and eating in the courtyard.

 

[gooddog]

AIR BNB is big in Europe. For the U.S. I would recommend VRBO over AIR BNB. Have had dealings with AIR BNB in the U.S.....and it wasn't good. VRBO tends to rent entire houses in the U.S. and VRBO customer service is excellent. I'm a vacation rental owner, and have experience with both.

 

[sengsational]

The Airbnb in Sighetu-Marmatiei included palinka, the one in Denver, indica. You're not getting that from booking.com!

 

[linnemj]

Great find

We are currently in a Air BnB in Venice. It is in a non tourist but nice section of town. Our windows are directly on a canal and gondolas float by every so often. Nice flat with 3 rooms for under $100 a night in a very expensive city.

 

[Teacher Terry]

We have not had one bad experience in the states with Airbnb. Have one booked in Vacaville in a few weeks because dog having surgery at uc Davis.