Read
the article Dogs, booze and chaos.
Is renting through Airbnb worth it? at http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20160304-dogs-booze-and-chaos-is-renting-through-airbnb-worth-it
and present your
ways of finding accommodation traveling.
Owls are nocturnal creatures. They’re wide awake at night and they sleep during the day. If this sounds like bliss to you, then, like about 20 percent of the population who find themselves most active at around 9 pm, you may fall into the same category as our feathered friend. Night owls often have difficulty waking up in the morning, and like to be up late at night. Studies of animal behaviour indicate that being a night owl may actually be built into some people’s genes. This would explain why those late-to-bed, late-to-rise people find it so difficult to change their behaviour. The trouble for night owls is that they just have to be at places such as work and school far too early. This is when the alarm clock becomes the night owl’s most important survival tool. Experts say that one way for a night owl to beat their dependence on their alarm clocks is to sleep with the curtains open. The Theory is that if they do so, the morning sunlight will awaken them gently and natura...
Comments
Anyway. I have never used Airbnb services so I am not going to give my opinion about it. What I tried was variety of hotels and hostels and my favorite - apartments. I know it might sound extravagant but found out that they can cost less than mid-range hotels while giving you much more comfortable stay. Although it takes more time to find suitable one and it is much tougher decision to choose one. But it's like only my opinion.
I haven't used AirBNB as a host but I did try it as a tenant. The transaction is mildly risky for both paties I think. As a host you may experience some loss due to guests' misbehaviour but as a tenant you may be left in foreign city with no decent place to live. Although as far as I know such events are a rarity.
That one time I got to use AirBNB it was 2 year ago I think. I rented a lovely flat for me and my friends, 4 of us total, in Paris. We didn't even get to meet the host face to face because of our arrival and departure hours but we kept in touch with him via internet before and through our stay in Paris. It was definitely worth it since we got a nice, well located place to rest and it was quite cheap comparing to all the hotels I checked.
Before AirBNB I checked budget hotels, because obviously when we organise a friendly trip money is a great factor, now I check both and make my decision based on price and facilities needed.
For me airbnb is like standard room renting in the hotel the only difference is that in hotel is reception with employees who take care of potential problems. Even in hostels there are listed rules for everyone and you have to sign it before check in room. They take the scan of your ID and they have your signature and you became obligates to follow rules. In case of this lady I would do the same, people who made a damage should pay for it.
For some time now I have been using various apartment rental services when going on holiday, as it is indeed cheaper than hotels/hostels. More often than not, the apartment and location were much nicer than what the hotels offered.
I think services like Airbnb are really great since they provide much more information (as well as some guarantees) than you could get when you were trying to rent an apartment in the pre-Internet era. It is still risky but maybe a bit less so.
That kind of business is very unpredictable (as humans :)): before renting our flat we have to secure our rights, belongings and do some detective work (checking potential client etc.).
I used airbnb as a customer and not all my experiences were good. I stayed at place in Barcelona which had only positive comments on the website. A guy owned a three bedroom apartment in a good place and lived of renting two rooms. He was very well prepared - had all utilities like in a hotel sheets, pillows, towels etc. and was a nice guy... but there were a lot of problems... First of all the room was about 3-4 square meters just to fit a bed and a cabinet which wasn't apparent in the photos in his ad. Furthermore it had a window that looked out on the staircase inside of the building so it was unbearably loud - I'm sure you can imagine - the elevator, people walking, shouting (a weird man lived there and shouted or sang a lot). So I was forced to close the window at night. Then the temperature was so high I had to half-open the door to my room at night and let me tell you... the apartment also wasn't very quiet as well because people kept renting the other room for a day, max two and leaving in the middle of the night. Grr. Complaint over ;)
Even though I had different experiences I still think airbnb is a very good service and I still use it. If you can afford it I highly recommend renting the whole apartment for yourself. It's often nicer than a hotel and I like staying on my own better than in a huge hotel full of people.
The article deals with problems from a host's perspective and in my opinion there are two ways to rent a stranger your apartment/house/room without running into major problems. These are as follows: you rent them your own home, but you don't leave it unattended or you rent them a spare apartment, which you use only to make money out of. In the latter option you need to calculate possible losses into your general profit.
some people do not respect their property. So, there it isn’t a secret that they won’t respect the property of someone.
On the other hand sometimes Airbnb is really good idea for owners and people who rents. Tourists can visit other countries, cities and can feel real life in a particular place and of course owners can earn - it is easy money when tourists are decent.
Is it all worth it in the end?
I think yes, but you got to treat it like a job, not a free income. I agree with Nina, if you are more into getting to know new people and having a good time couch surfing seems to be a better idea.
Although I've never used AirBnb I got certain experience in renting rooms in hotels, guest houses and even whole houses abrod. Mostly I did it via Booking.com like web sites. The basic strategy was always thorough research and reading previous guests reviews. Actually I never had any serious problems and tenants never complained as well.
It might be a good idea to make some extra cash. I can't imagine that totally strangers people live in my home. They do everything what they want, they invite everyone who they want. Never, but I am very wary and distrustful. I rather prefer hotel, hostel and others of this type.
I don't have to read this to know i never wanna try it and i couldn't live with a stranger in my place even a few days.
However, I have some experience as a guest with two most common homestay sites: airbnb and couchsurfing. Let me tell you about couchsurfing first: I never got accepted anywhere and I honestly don't know why. When you create an account on couchsurfing you need to decide whether you have a space in your home to host someone. I think that many people choose an option "I may be a host" but when it comes to actually letting somebody stay at their place - they say that now is not a good time etc. I don't know, maybe my introducing emails weren't cool enough? I stayed with an airbnb host once and I really enjoyed it. My mom, my brother and I went to San Francisco and stayed with an elderly couple in Pinole, a town nearby. The house was incredible. We got our own keys, a parking space and a bedroom with a bathroom. Our hosts were so kind to us, they gave us so many good advice on sightseeing in San Francisco and they even offered us a breakfast in the morning. We stayed with them for 3 days and honestly we couldn't have gotten a better place.
My mom stayed with some airbnb hosts two or three times more and she never complained on anything.
I also have a friend that travels A LOT and always stays with someone from couchsurfing. I think that as a host you have to choose beforehand if you are willing to help your guests around your city or just take them in as a roommate kind of person. From what I have heard my friend made a lot of friends through couchsurfing during his travels and often comes back with some gifts and items to remind him of his hosts.
It always makes me sad when I hear that people rent something (a room, a house, a car etc.) and trash it because it is not theirs. I can't believe that they just do it and don't feel guilty enough to do something with it.
There is always a risk that someone will destroy my property, but it is the same in restaurants, shops, offices and everywhere. It is like with plane crashes, they happens sometimes, but it is very rare and it doesn’t mean that you have to be afraid to have flight in your life because you will die.