3 ms·

In the past 6 years, I've traveled significantly in New England, the New York City region, the Paris and Marseille regions, London, Leeds, Manchester, and Edinb

by p4wnc6 10y ago

In the past 6 years, I've traveled significantly in New England, the New York City region, the Paris and Marseille regions, London, Leeds, Manchester, and Edinburgh, Iceland, Barcelona, Mallorca, Rome, Geneva, Genoa, Munich, Berlin, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Fe, and Austin, across a mix of work-related travel to conferences, vacations, and graduate school that involved time at a foreign program. I have not ever used Airbnb, never found difficulty in getting good hotel accommodations for reasonable prices, never found difficult being shown around the "non-touristy" parts of every place I've visited, either by just asking locals, getting advice from friends, using travel websites, etc., and have really, really valued the nicer accommodations in traditional hotels (especially the extra privacy, standardized cleanliness, and lower variance in terms of noise and sounds that reduce sleep quality). I'm not being snarky or critical of Airbnb, many of my good friends love it and seem to get a lot of value out of it. But I cannot see any aspect of Airbnb that offers value to me or satisfies my search criteria when looking for housing. Given this, it is almost bewildering to me that there is so much demand for Airbnb-provided short term lodging that landlords would even consider the idea that renting an apartment solely as an Airbnb rental is more profitable than traditional rental agreements. I mean, I can't blame the landlords if that's the case. But I sure do feel like the mass of travelers who believe they are getting value from Airbnb simply cannot be correct in their belief that they are actually receiving that value. I just wonder why they think they are.

jacalata 10y ago
I find that Airbnb is most attractive when (a) travelling in a small group, because it can be cheaper to get a place that fits three adults and a kid on airbnb than at a hotel, and (b) when visiting people that live somewhere, since it's frequently hard to find a hotel in the residential suburbs where they live, but you can often find an airbnb nearby or (c) when I'm staying somewhere long enough that I want to be able to cook my own food. In specific cities (like Dublin) it also turned out to be much cheaper than an equivalent hotel.
- p4wnc6 10y ago
  For me, (c) is not really a pro for Airbnb. I'm vegan and cooking is a passion of mine, so I almost always want to cook for myself if I can. I'll even pre-cook meals that can be sealed and go through bag check at the airport just to avoid dining at restaurants. If it weren't for the social aspect, mostly appeasing others, I think I would never eat at a restaurant. But I've always found that even in dense urban areas (and especially in suburban areas) it's always very easy to find an extended-stay suite sort of place that has an adequate kitchen. The huge benefit for me is also that I'm in control of the kitchen, instead of having to deal with someone else's haphazard stuff, personal ticks, etc. In terms of (a) I've rented a lot of cabins and houses for small group hiking vacations, but never used Airbnb for it. I can't say anything about how it works on Airbnb, but on other travel sites and one-off sites like Craigslist, I've always had easy, positive experiences and never found the prices to be anything but reasonable. Obviously (b) depends on exactly who you're visiting. When I visit my family in small town southern Ohio, Airbnb is not an option (too few listings, and I would not trust the safety in that region anyway), so hotels are necessary. I've never had trouble getting cost-effective and nice hotel rooms in suburbia, but perhaps some cities are just much worse than others.

by p4wnc6 10y ago

jacalata 10y ago

I find that Airbnb is most attractive when (a) travelling in a small group, because it can be cheaper to get a place that fits three adults and a kid on airbnb than at a hotel, and (b) when visiting people that live somewhere, since it's frequently hard to find a hotel in the residential suburbs where they live, but you can often find an airbnb nearby or (c) when I'm staying somewhere long enough that I want to be able to cook my own food. In specific cities (like Dublin) it also turned out to be much cheaper than an equivalent hotel.

p4wnc6 10y ago
For me, (c) is not really a pro for Airbnb. I'm vegan and cooking is a passion of mine, so I almost always want to cook for myself if I can. I'll even pre-cook meals that can be sealed and go through bag check at the airport just to avoid dining at restaurants. If it weren't for the social aspect, mostly appeasing others, I think I would never eat at a restaurant. But I've always found that even in dense urban areas (and especially in suburban areas) it's always very easy to find an extended-stay suite sort of place that has an adequate kitchen. The huge benefit for me is also that I'm in control of the kitchen, instead of having to deal with someone else's haphazard stuff, personal ticks, etc. In terms of (a) I've rented a lot of cabins and houses for small group hiking vacations, but never used Airbnb for it. I can't say anything about how it works on Airbnb, but on other travel sites and one-off sites like Craigslist, I've always had easy, positive experiences and never found the prices to be anything but reasonable. Obviously (b) depends on exactly who you're visiting. When I visit my family in small town southern Ohio, Airbnb is not an option (too few listings, and I would not trust the safety in that region anyway), so hotels are necessary. I've never had trouble getting cost-effective and nice hotel rooms in suburbia, but perhaps some cities are just much worse than others.