Should you use Airbnb

Airbnb has been in the news a lot with numerous stories from racist hosts to accommodation that doesn’t exist. With terrible customer service and unreliable hosts getting a name for themselves many travellers have been taking a stance against using Airbnb. What the site promises often isn’t what is now on offer.

Back in 2014 I wrote a post suggesting using Airbnb was worth the risk based on my experiences. Generally over the years, we haven’t had any issues with accommodation booked on Airbnb. So, I’m still a believer in what Airbnb was created for, I just don’t have the time to trawl through the options and find the decent and affordable accommodation, or deal with difficult hosts. However I will still use the site from time to time.

Why use Airbnb

Airbnb started life as a site for people to list, find, and book affordable and local accommodation around the world. It’s not so cheap any more but you can still find some good options and of course get the local experience too. You just have to sift through quite a few listings, checking reviews, etc. to find them.

Many of the apartments and houses, are often just companies or hoteliers running their business via the site. If you compare these to the likes of say booking.com you might find something cheaper, but there is a risk that the host will cancel and leave you without an alternative. I personally prefer booking.com.

Recommendations and tips

If you plan to use Airbnb just be careful and consider the following:

Check reviews – Fewer reviews may just mean the host is new on the site, but the long standing and genuine hosts will stand out. The site only permits reviews from people who have stayed and paid for their booking, so you can rely on these.

Check activity – Are they an active user, showing reasonable timescales for responding to messages or logging in? Is their calendar up to date? Don’t waste time with low activity hosts or those that have cancelled bookings.

Check photos – A good selection of quality photos is more likely to interest you anyway, but a lack of photos or poor quality ones should be a warning sign. This, coupled with negatives on some of the other things above, may be a good indication of who to avoid.

Make contact – Always contact your chosen host first and ask any questions prior to making a booking request. Once you are happy the accommodation is suitable you can confirm a booking rather than be stuck trying to resolve inaccuracies in adverts and recovering the fees on cancellations.

What’s your experience with Airbnb… was it good or bad? I still think they are worth using.