• About
    • Contact
    • Terms of Service
    • Disclosure Policy
  • Write for Us!
  • Advertise

Money Propeller

Propelling you toward your money goals by discussing lifestyle, career and savings.

  • Authors
  • Career
    • Career
    • Education
  • Lifestyle
    • Lifestyle
    • Clothing
    • Food
    • Housing
    • Sports
    • Weddings
    • Travel
  • Money
    • Money
    • Investing
    • Saving
    • Stories
  • Observations
  • Link Ups
  • Blogroll

Why I Decided to Give Airbnb a Shot

By Anne 10 Comments

Why I decided to give Airbnb a shot

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.

AirBnB Credit Button with Cute Fence

 

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: AirBnB

About Anne

Anne dreams of financial independence and is working her way towards it, whilst still enjoying life. She has a penchant for gift giving, which got her started with her first blog, Unique Gifter. She also loves money (who doesn't?) and needed an outlet to discuss it. Her likes? Seafood, figure skating, road cycling and skater shoes.

Comments

  1. Biggi says

    November 3, 2014 at 16:38

    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

    Reply
    • Anne says

      November 3, 2014 at 19:20

      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 IdiotsMy Profile

      Reply
  2. Michelle says

    October 3, 2014 at 21:16

    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 RoadMy Profile

    Reply
    • Anne says

      October 6, 2014 at 13:37

      Please do keep me posted!

      Reply
  3. The Asian Pear says

    October 2, 2014 at 15:40

    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 2014My Profile

    Reply
    • Anne says

      October 6, 2014 at 13:35

      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.

      Reply
  4. Michelle says

    October 2, 2014 at 10:58

    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 ReviewMy Profile

    Reply
    • Anne says

      October 6, 2014 at 13:34

      Interesting! You should suggest they add that to their filter. I found the VRBO search features to be really awful for my needs.

      Reply
  5. Jay @ ThinkingWealthy says

    October 2, 2014 at 08:48

    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 PortfolioMy Profile

    Reply
    • Anne says

      October 2, 2014 at 10:13

      but hotels are cool?
      All the places I’ve stayed have been rental units explicitly.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Follow Us:


Subscribe today and receive our calculator for free!

On Your Mark, Get Set, Blog!

airbnb

advertise here

vayable

Free Money!

Tangerine Refer a Friend Open a new Tangerine Account with $100 using my Orange Key 23676924S1 and we both get a free $25.

Popular Content

The 20/10 Rule that Does Wonders!

Airbnb is an affordable and flexible way to travel

Stock up and save big! Have fun while saving your pennies

Affiliates

Money Propeller is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Money Propeller also participates in other affiliate programs from time to time. That means that if you click through a link and make a decision to purchase, Money Propeller will receive some compensation from the vendor, at no cost to you.

The Bottom

You made it all the way to the bottom! Thanks so much for reading.
Did you know that The Bottom is the name of a town on the island of Saba, in the Caribbean? I went there on a trip once.
The other bottoms I think about are my own bottom, and the bottom of the champagne bottle. Often when I find the bottom of the champagne bottle, my own bottom grows. Funny, that.

Thanks for reading!

- Anne

Disclaimer

The content on this website is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as professional financial advice. Should you need such professional advice, consult a licensed financial advisor or tax advisor. This website may be compensated by companies mentioned through advertising, affiliate programs or otherwise. Please click here for disclosure full details.
Copyright Money Propeller All Rights Reserved
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.AcceptReject Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.

SAVE & ACCEPT