I’ve been talking about Airbnb a fair bit lately, if you are wondering “what is Airbnb?”, I talked about that already! I also interviewed Jenn, about her experience and decision to rent out her home using Airbnb.
This past spring, my spouse, a friend, her boyfriend and I all went to the Caribbean. When we set out to plan, we knew there were a few different things we wanted to ensure:
- We didn’t want to break the bank
- We wanted to stay in places with two separate bedrooms, not shared
- We wanted to visit several different places, not just stay in one town or on one island for the whole trip
- We really wanted access to a kitchen, in part for cost and in part due to allergies
- We wanted decently located places to stay, not places that were far from the things we wanted to see
- While most of the Caribbean is tourist destinations, staying in places more like where locals live or at least vacation, was attractive
Those were our motivations for looking into Airbnb properties. We also looked at VRBO.com, homeaway.com and ownerdirect.com. Those sites all have their merits, as well. That said, I find their interfaces a lot more difficult to navigate. Here are some reasons why:
- No listed price on the search results page
- Well hidden minimum stays, that still show up after you have put in your dates
- No personal relationship or profile, to get a better vibe for the location
- The other sites frequently listed luxury properties in the Caribbean, though I know they don’t always do that elsewhere. We weren’t looking for $2500/night places, though there were many to choose from!
In addition to those things that made the other sites less attractive (we still booked several things through those sites), we had several problems where the pricing or minimum stay information listed on the site was vastly different than the quotes we received when we went to book. For example, one place came back with pricing that was $75 more per night, and with an additional night minimum stay. When we asked them to honour what they had listed on the site, they said no! I checked again a few weeks later.
They hadn’t updated their listing at all. We weren’t impressed.
This isn’t to say that Airbnb is perfect and has no flaws, just that these were the reasons why I decided to give Airbnb a shot, and the shortcomings I found with some of their competitors.
That, and my good blogging friend The Asian Pear gave me a $25 credit, which helped! Guess what? I can give you a $25 credit, too! If you sign up using any of the links in this post, or by clicking on this button, the credit will be waiting for you whenever you decide to go on your first Airbnb trip. All you have to do is create an account with one of my links.
Interesting post! I just wanted to add that at Ownerdirect.com, we do list the price and minimum stays in the search results, and our customer service reps put you in touch with the owner directly (no bad surprises). You can ask them all your questions about the location, local attractions and all those little details that come up on vacation. We help you through the whole process, being accessible by phone every day of the year.
We are looking forward to seeing you at Ownerdirect.com!
Biggi
HI Biggi, thanks for your comment. Ownerdirect had very few properties in the areas we were looking, so we didn’t spend much time on that particular site.
Anne recently posted…My Coworkers are Idiots
I will be trying out AirBnB this winter and am looking forward to the experience. Will keep you posted!
Michelle recently posted…New Orleans, FinCon14, and Life On the Road
Please do keep me posted!
I really like AirBnB. It is my preferred choice now if the hotels are too pricey. I must admit though, I’d likely only choose it in a North American destination which I’m more familiar with the language, customs and culture. I’m not sure if I’d choose it for… Say Spain or Thailand. I think I’d want a hotel. But nonetheless, pretty good experiences overall.
The Asian Pear recently posted…Month in Review: September 2014
That is a really interesting point, about the cultural differences. I think in some places, like Europe, it could be very interesting. Like you said though, in some places I might inadvertently offend, or just not comprehend the local culture.
I like Airbnb. The only thing I don’t like about it is that you can’t really search specifically for dog friendly places. That’s where VRBO wins for me.
We have used Airbnb plenty of times though. Every single time it’s been places that are just rental units, so Jay (above) shouldn’t worry 🙂
Michelle recently posted…How Your Credit Score Affects Your Life + Credit Sesame Review
Interesting! You should suggest they add that to their filter. I found the VRBO search features to be really awful for my needs.
I still can’t get on board. Something about living in someone else’s house and sleeping in their bed weirds me out.
Jay
Jay @ ThinkingWealthy recently posted…Understand How to Manage Your Portfolio
but hotels are cool?
All the places I’ve stayed have been rental units explicitly.