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I used AirBnB when it first launched and was absolutely floored that people would actually want to spend the night(s) in a random strangers house with them pres

I used AirBnB when it first launched and was absolutely floored that people would actually want to spend the night(s) in a random strangers house with them present. This was after me experiencing it first hand. It was quite terrible. Fast forward to AirBnB becoming what it is today where the majority of users select “entire house” and it makes more sense. The problem now is that they are essentially the same price as a cheap hotel, which for my money is the far superior option (the hotel), so we’re back to AirBnB making no sense to me again. Perhaps I’m an outlier and the whole couch surfing market is that big, but it seems like AirBnB is balancing being a hotel (entire house) without really being a hotel. That’s a tricky spot to be in when regulators come knocking.

zamfi 7y ago
For some people, the fact that it’s like a hotel (entire place to yourself) but a) in a residential neighborhood, and b) with a kitchen and other amenities of home that are usually missing or very expensive in a hotel (laundry, parking, etc.) If an actual hotel is the superior option to you, then, sure.
- em-bee 7y ago
  exactly this. i'll take an airbnb serviced apartment over a hotel any time.
Krasnol 7y ago
The real joke here is: those AirBnB apartments often belong to Hotels ;)
esotericn 7y ago
My best stays have all been shared with the host. It's a way to experience another culture. I've also rented my own flat on Airbnb. "Couch surfing" is a weird way to put it, and so too is "random stranger". They're not random, you chose them, and you're generally in a bedroom. Maybe this is a cultural thing? Middle class families having lodgers is super normal in the UK, I figured it was the same everywhere. If I wanted a hotel, I'd book a hotel.
arrrg 7y ago
Hotels are superior if you don’t want to cook. That, to me, is the central advantage of AirBnB: you can get one with a kitchen. Otherwise I see no reason to use it and I’m also not opposed to alternatives because I can very well see the destructive effects it’s having. We always want to cook when we go on vacation and that’s not doable in a hotel. So AirBnB it is, most of the time.
sinstein 7y ago
My current use case for AirBnB is when I travel in a group (4+ people) and we would like to stay together. Getting a 2 bedroom AirBnB with a working kitchen and maybe even a private pool is a great place to spend time with closed ones.

zamfi 7y ago

For some people, the fact that it’s like a hotel (entire place to yourself) but a) in a residential neighborhood, and b) with a kitchen and other amenities of home that are usually missing or very expensive in a hotel (laundry, parking, etc.) If an actual hotel is the superior option to you, then, sure.

em-bee 7y ago
exactly this. i'll take an airbnb serviced apartment over a hotel any time.

Krasnol 7y ago

The real joke here is: those AirBnB apartments often belong to Hotels ;)

esotericn 7y ago

My best stays have all been shared with the host. It's a way to experience another culture. I've also rented my own flat on Airbnb. "Couch surfing" is a weird way to put it, and so too is "random stranger". They're not random, you chose them, and you're generally in a bedroom. Maybe this is a cultural thing? Middle class families having lodgers is super normal in the UK, I figured it was the same everywhere. If I wanted a hotel, I'd book a hotel.

arrrg 7y ago

Hotels are superior if you don’t want to cook. That, to me, is the central advantage of AirBnB: you can get one with a kitchen. Otherwise I see no reason to use it and I’m also not opposed to alternatives because I can very well see the destructive effects it’s having. We always want to cook when we go on vacation and that’s not doable in a hotel. So AirBnB it is, most of the time.

sinstein 7y ago

My current use case for AirBnB is when I travel in a group (4+ people) and we would like to stay together. Getting a 2 bedroom AirBnB with a working kitchen and maybe even a private pool is a great place to spend time with closed ones.