Category Archives: Airbnb Guest Stories

These are real, uncensored stories from Airbnb Guests.  We encourage our site visitors to read and share their Airbnb Guest Stories to help warn others of the dangers of using Airbnb, and consider using alternative options in the sharing economy.

Airbnb has a Good Marketing Team, But…

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Having used Airbnb for quite a few occasions traveling, I would like to warn people, as Airbnb promotes itself in a way that is not exactly truthful:

1. Some hosts are in fact sexual predators (I have three personal stories to tell, one of which includes a host who was married). If you are alone, be aware of this and choose a host of your own sex. Also be aware of that people may be renting out for less than altruistic purposes. Narcissists love Airbnb because they feed on positive reviews

2. Airbnb offers no security check up or quality control whatsoever, and will not remove a host even after serious allegations. They will just give you empty words. I have heard this from many sources and lived it myself after a married host made sexual advances at me in my own cottage.

3. Hosts often lie in their descriptions and forget to mention that the rural house is by the autobahn (Editor’s note: motorway or interstate), that they are heavy smokers, that there are no buses, that it is dirty, etc. The photos may not be truthful. Be aware of this!

4. People tend to give overly positive reviews. I also have the suspicion Airbnb removes the negative ones. I went to one place that had a “Superhost” label and it was the filthiest place I have ever seen; the host had no teeth and didn’t bother to wash himself.

Strenuous Hike to Airbnb Cottage: Unable to Warn Others

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My wife used Airbnb to rent what was advertised as “a charming fisherman’s cottage” in La Caleta near Salobrena, Spain. There were some nice photos of the view, but no reviews posted. First lesson learned: if there are no reviews, pass on by. The photo showed an uphill path to reach the cottage, but there was no mention of the fact that there were actually over 250 steps, most of the time steeply uphill, to get to the cottage. The renter mentioned the place was “not for [the] disabled” but my wife and I, in our 60s, are both active people; this climb to the cottage was really hard, especially carrying something in the August heat.

A few days after we left the cottage, my wife suffered a complete hamstring rupture in Granada. I am not claiming there was a cause and effect relationship, but a week of doing that climb (and coming back down was also challenging) couldn’t have helped. The information on the cottage should have stated “uphill climb of over 250 steps to reach the front door may be challenging for older renters or anyone with potential leg problems.” That’s all I would ask. Unfortunately, I was too busy tending to my wife’s accident and the aftermath to even think about posting a review on the site before the deadline ran out and there does not seem to be any way to contact Airbnb directly with a problem like this.

I would never, never consider this “service” again. There is no real accountability other than a bad review, but in our case there was no review at the beginning. We missed the two-week window in which to add one. Hopefully, the next renter will be young and athletic. There were a couple of other issues with the cottage, like the fact that the sun shade over the terrace got ripped to pieces by the wind and even after informing the owner, nothing was ever done, making the terrace unusable during much of the midday. But the accessibility was by far the worst part of this story.

Airbnb Nightmare Ends in Police Arriving

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I made the mistake of renting from someone who had never rented before. I should have known it was going to be crazy from the start with the slew of emails. From the moment we arrived we got emails threatening they were going to cancel the booking. I had violated the rules because I had booked for my son and husband despite the fact that the host was notified two weeks in advance that the booking for my son and his roommate. Upon arrival, he demanded the video cameras inside the listing be turned on or he would cancel the booking. He continued to call and email me to the point of harassment. He showed up at the listing four times in one day. After two days of continual harassment my son finally turned the cameras off at which point he showed up and told them to get out of his house. This is when I called the police. We had no idea how this unstable person would act, especially after he said he had loaded weapons in the house.

Airbnb: A Great Way to Ruin your Vacation

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As a young girl new to traveling, Airbnb sounded better than ever, yet it turned out to be one of the most stressful experiences. I highly regret using the site on my month-long travels in Australia. From the very beginning, a host cancelled a week before I was set to leave the states, so I was forced to spend more money on a different Airbnb. My first host kept me waiting for over three hours outside her apartment because she left the wrong key. After finally getting in, I discovered black mold (smelt horrible), no hot water in the shower, her cat whose fur was everywhere, and her whole studio smelt like cat pee; it was just a very dirty environment in which to stay. After staying up all night on my vacation dealing with Airbnb and trying to cancel, I was forced to spend even more money trying to find another place to rent.

Then we arrived at our next Airbnb. Everything was going better. However, I was promised wifi (which was much needed) which wasn’t available and was also told we had access to the pantry food items – so I ate some of course – then after leaving, I got a message from the host saying we had to pay $50 to replace the food. This was never mentioned and when she said “stocked pantry…” she actually should have said “stocked pantry that will cost $50 for a few tiny packages of hard cookies.”

Airbnb has ended up costing me an extra $700 and still hasn’t refunded my money. The customer service is horrible. I get different answers every time I call, I’ve gotten hung up on multiple times, I’ve been forced to hold for what feels like hours, and no one can ever seem to help me. They easily take your money and can’t seem to help you when there are problems or you are extremely unhappy. My vacation has turned into many late night phone calls to Airbnb, stress, confusion, and a lot of money down the drain. I will never use or recommend Airbnb again. Spend the extra money on a nice hotel; it’s not worth the stress on your vacation.

Airbnb Hell-sinki Apartment Nightmare

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In early June 2016 we chose a apartment in Helsinki for three months and I decided to rent in the Hagaa Area (pictured). Normally, this would come to €130 but because it was a long term arrangement the host offered a discount of €100 and told me she couldn’t make this deal through Airbnb; I should pay cash at arrival. Usually apartments in this area rent at about €1,000 a month: they’re very old and under renovation. Some people even block the entrance; my kids had to leave by the emergency exit, which was surrounded by dangerous equipment and tools.

Anyway, I had to pay €3000 a month plus a €70 cleaning fee. When we arrived, the host told us the renovation had been finished and they would clean up the stairs soon. However, the next day we realized the real situation and complained. The host told us she didn’t know anything about it but cut off the electricity and water for many days following our arrival. When we checked out, she sent us a list of damages and quoted us €1,200 for a small kitchen table and €240 for a cleaning service… I had thoroughly cleaned the apartment before we left. Now she’s threatening to report us to the police and slandering us by saying that I committed a crime by damaging the kitchen table. Be careful from whom you choose to rent. You never know what will happen to you.

Host Cancels – and I Lose the Fees!

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This is a very simple story like most of those you read. My host cancelled at the very last minute (while I was at airport on my way to Bali). She told me she did not have the accommodations after all, and offered an alternative which was much less suitable. So I ask her to cancel, thinking (like all standard hotels) that if the provider cancels then naturally all fees will be refunded. Not so in this case. No matter what I did, Airbnb takes a cut from their guests. So a host can cancel under any circumstances and it costs the guest. This is not professional at all.

So, when it works, Airbnb is great. I have had some cool stays through the site, but this experience has just been gouging: taking money wherever you can, trying to navigate their website and so-called resolution process. It is circular and guarantees you either fall over from boredom or fatigue trying to recover small amounts (in my case $150), which is probably half the intent. I realize now: they are more about making money than “providing great experiences”. The brand presents wonderfully but there is a dark side. Hopefully more will realize this: every time they book they take a chance that a host will cancel at the last minute (tolerable) but Airbnb wont refund your guest fee (intolerable and dodgy). Imagine charging a guest anything when they didn’t initiate the change.

This has been a hard lesson but a good one. Bye bye Airbnb! Comfortable in cyberspace and outside international law!

Another Airbnb Scam: Stranded in NYC

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I booked a verified listing that was an amazing apartment near Central Park in New York City. The host contacted me with information on how to receive the keys, and asked about my stay and how he could help with suggestions. After arriving at the “place” only to find that the building had been torn down (the police said three years ago…), I was effectively stranded with nowhere to go; we had to book the only hotel we could find available for $500. When we called Airbnb, we were put on hold for over 20 minutes to finally be told they would refund the amount that we paid. When I insisted they pay for the hotel bill that night, they refused saying they would book us in another Airbnb. When I asked them how they would verify that that building was not demolished either, they had no response…

This is a complete joke of a verification process. At least drive by the building to see if it is still there before allowing scammers to post fake listings. One of the customer service agents agreed to pay a portion of the hotel bill, which I have yet to receive…

First Airbnb Experience: Ripped off in Sag Harbor

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I’m a first time Airbnb user. We were very excited to book our first trip, an entire home called a “charming country cottage” in Sag Harbor. What we found was a house that was not the same as that in the picture in the ad, and we did not have the whole home but one small apartment on the first floor. It was Sag Harbor in the summer; everything  was full and with two small kids we could not exactly sleep on the street. We had to accept the accommodation despite feeling incredibly deceived and ripped off with false representation.

Afterwards we asked for a refund of around 60% of the booking cost which seemed more than fair and we expected the host to be removed from the listings; from previous comments it was clear she had rented by the room. As soon as she saw we were unhappy she turned from nice and charming to throwing mud at us. Now our only comment on our Airbnb profile is by her: “I am speechless how insulting the experience was hosting Carter. I would want to warn other hosts of this guest.”

This is nuts. This is like going to the police because you have been mugged and then the person who mugged you gets to post defamatory comments on your page. Look at the two pictures and guess which one is on Airbnb and which one is the actual house. Then assume from looking at the nice pic you are booking the “entire home” and just get the ground floor… I am so disappointed. We are waiting to hear back from Airbnb as to what action they will take and what refund we will receive. I have found no way to have the owner’s comments removed. I guess this is our first and last Airbnb experience and we have gone from huge enthusiasts and promoters of all we had heard of the brand pre-experience to hard core detractors. It’s such a shame. I still don’t understand how anyone can ever book a home on Airbnb when owners are allowed to post pictures that are not of their actual homes!