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 Supports Fraudulent Listings by Hosts

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I checked into my cabana and it was listed as having two beds. There was one bed in a closet. The previous tenant had busted the TV, left it up on the wall, and had no plans to replace it. The pool and hot tub were freezing. There was no hot water in the shower. The space heaters, which were the only source of heat, kicked off continuously because they were plugged into power strips.

I immediately contacted Airbnb and informed them of the fraud. They told me that I had to give the host a chance to fix it. After four days of no sign of repair, I called Airbnb back and moved out. The host would not even take their phone calls for a week. It’s now three weeks later and I have spoken to twelve caseworkers, a specialist and one manager and now the final answer is I’m not getting my refund because apparently this is all my fault. Airbnb has left me with nowhere to go. They have kept my money, ruined all of my holidays plans and caused a great deal of stress. They are criminals.

Charged in Different Currency Leads to Airbnb Nightmare

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I have an Airbnb setup in Atlanta that was split into three payments. The first payment was on September 16th for 1570.44 USD that went through correctly and successfully. The second payment was on November 12th and it was supposed to be 1485.58 USD; instead, I was charged $1496.08 and a $44.88 international fee because Airbnb charged it in pounds. On the second payment I updated my Mastercard as the primary card on file was stolen.

When I called Airbnb, I first spoke to someone who was absolutely no help and blamed me for the issue. I called again and spoke to someone who said he would escalate it to the software team because it may have been a glitch and I would hear from someone. Nobody ever called or emailed me back. I then called a third day and spoke to someone who transferred me to his supervisor. I had to explain the entire situation all over again and she advised that she would try to process a refund in pounds back to my card and then re-charge me in USD for the correct amount.

She told me she would call me back in an hour. I told her I did not believe she would call back because nobody had returned my calls. She promised multiple times that she would call back but as I suspected, she never did. I called back a fourth time and spoke to someone who once again provided no help and advised he would “try” to get the original agent to call me back. I then called back and spoke to someone who was incredibly rude and said she couldn’t do anything besides request that a supervisor call me back.

I spoke to my bank and they are willing to dispute the charge as fraudulent after I explained what was going on. I am also in the process of filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau because I have never received horrible customer service like this before in my entire life. I will never be using Airbnb again.

Airbnb Host Says There is a “Washer”

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I wanted to find a place to stay in Bacolod for a week that had a washer and dryer. I used the filter to specify for a washer. The host’s listing showed up as one of the results. I contacted her and asked if they had the washer in the unit, to which she responded that they had a “laundry shop” located at the ground floor of the building. Having lived in America for twenty years, I assumed that she meant a laundromat, so I decided to book for a week.

When I arrived at Cityscape to check in, the nosy security guard begged me for two pesos to pay for photocopying my ID. I wondered why he was not given funds for operating expenses. It felt cheap. Guess what? The word “cheap” describes the rest of her offering.

Compared to my previous stay at residences that cost a few more dollars per night, this condo unit offered half the value. The building was so-so, the studio and bathroom was half the size and the balcony was less than a quarter in comparison. That previous place also had a washer in the unit. The interior of this condo was alright, nothing to talk about to folks at home. At least the wifi was better than most places.

When I pulled up the curtain next to the small dining table, the window was not clean. There was a smudge that resembled bird poop. Best to let the curtains down. Then I opened the cupboard and lo and behold, there was a Tetra Pak of cooking oil that was already opened. I was like, “I didn’t ask for cooking oil but boy this is unsanitary and oh so cheap.”

Here’s the reason I asked for a washer and dryer and was willing to pay extra: I had met a handsome young man online who lived in Bacolod while I was staying in Iloilo. He was a sweet, charming, and wanted to become intimate. We met in person and found each other attractive. I invited him over to my place and intended to list him as one of my registered guests. We had an awesome time as you would expect of mutually infatuated adults who scored big.

The next morning, I pulled off the sheets, collected all used towels, and added my worn clothes. I tidied the room and then went downstairs to the “laundry shop”. As it turned out, there were no washers nor dryers in the building. The “laundry shop” was a collecting area where they bag you dirty laundry to be washed and dried offsite. The regular rate meant that your laundry is returned after two days at night time, but by paying double you get your laundry back by the end of the day.

I was obviously pissed off. I wouldn’t have clean sheets and towels nor clothes until at least overnight. I contacted the host and complained about being mislead. She responded by being obstinate and insinuated that it was my fault that I, an American, thought there were actual washers and dryers in the building. She was not forthcoming about the true nature of this so-called “laundry shop”.

I complained to Airbnb directly and wanted them to cancel the rest of my stay and be refunded properly for being duped, but ironically the representative replied by saying that the host did nothing wrong and she was vetted. What a sham. I told the representative that she ought to consult a dictionary to know what a washer is. In fact, I should have referred her and the host to use Google Images to see what a washer actually looks like. If you checked the box that says you have a washer, you should have an actual washer in the facility, not some collection site where they couldn’t get the job done on time compared to having an actual washer in house.

Nothing was resolved and the Airbnb closed the ticket. What a laughable disappointment. I’m glad I only used Airbnb a few times. I’m deleting their app once my week is over. I vowed not to use them again. I have heard horror stories and now I have one of my own to tell.

30-Day Stay Cancellation Policy: Host in Wynwood, Miami

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I made a 30-day reservation on Airbnb for my daughter who moved closer to home. The reservation was about two weeks before the arrival date. Well, long story short, she was not able to stay at the place, so I cancelled seven days before arrival. I only got back approximately $60 out of the $495. Why?

Because it was the host’s cancellation policy, which was not clearly mentioned before making the reservation. It was hidden apparently at the end (after making the reservation) and not very obvious. The $60 was for cleaning and admin fees. I contacted the host and Airbnb intervened too but the host declined to refund the money.

Apparently, there is a loophole in this policy, which Airbnb has not addressed. If you do not cancel a month before a long-term stay like a 30-day or longer stay, then you forfeit the money paid. But this does not account for reservations made a week or two before the arrival date. In theory, this policy should be null and void.

Talking to an attorney, most courts would not enforce this policy. From the advice of an attorney, the best route is pursuing it via the credit card company. There was no service received, it was cancelled timely, and the ad was seemingly misleading (since it was not clear it was a shared room from the site I initially went on, which was not an Airbnb site but directed me to Airbnb). I do not expect any help from this since it seems most people have lost this same cancellation issue too.

My advice: do not book long-term stays at all. Make sure they are one-week stays. Two weeks is cutting it close and apparently it appears to default to the long-term stay policy.

Note: if this has happened to you per a host’s cancellation policy, an attorney said if there are enough of people impacted by this, we could sue Airbnb and the individual hosts together. Airbnb’s practice is arguably similar to the fine print tactics but they hide the policies after booking. It is considered unfair and deceptive business practices under Florida state laws and federal consumer protection laws, with not making it clear of these policies.

Sites like Priceline and other sites make it very clear that the reservation is either nonrefundable or refundable. Why doesn’t Airbnb do the same?

Australia Phone Number for Airbnb Customer Service

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The Australian number I used for Airbnb was 0285203333. From outside of Australia it will be +61285203333. Don’t ask where I found that – my other half, The Fixer, found it; he can find anything.

I’ve not had the pain some have had going by the stories here. However, my login to my account on my phone and laptop became a total nightmare and I couldn’t get in, so I lost our New Zealand stay at the last second, and made a scramble for another stay. My login had me dropping in and out of the site/app which was hugely frustrating. I tried to sort it but couldn’t: even the techs were bewildered. Three months later I took another stab at it and it’s finally resolved.

I just wanted to give a phone number for those that want one. Maybe the Aussie number could direct harried customers to the correct country number.

Worst Airbnb Experience at their HQ, San Francisco

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We rented a unit for a month and regretted it. Read this to understand what you might experience at an Airbnb location. When we arrived, the owner gave us a key, took us through a dark garage, opened the door and wished us luck. When we walked in, the place smelled bad. The owner gets paid for cleaning between Airbnb visitors but it didn’t look clean when we arrived.

However, we had been traveling for ten hours so we just collapsed. There was no welcome card, no information about the area, or even basic information like which day the garbage would be picked up. It turned out that the regular entry to the apartment was down a dark, dank, dusty hall that looks like no one has been there for years. Spooky.

The bedding looked very used. On top of that, the mattress squeaked with every movement. When we took their bedding off, we found stains and rips in the mattress protector. If you are allergic to dust mites, good luck; no amount of Zyertec will help.

The next morning we went to IKEA and bought our own bedding. My husband was starting a new job the next day. When he left for work I bought my own cleaning supplies. There was no mop or broom or anything else to keep the apartment clean. No paper towels. Nothing. Yet the minimum rental is a month. I guess you’re just supposed to let it get dirty.

I started cleaning. It took days. When I mopped the floor, the water was black. Whatever I wiped showed layers of dirt: the tables, chairs, headboard, cushions, the shelves, everything. I took videos to show my family and friends. They couldn’t believe that such an expensive place was in that condition.

We decided it would better if we covered the couch. It smelled bad. There was an old carpet that looked very dusty, and it was. When I lifted it to clean there was a cloud of dust. We set it aside, not wanting to it to foul the air through our visit.

The kitchen utensils look like a mixed bag of whatever other visitors may have left behind. The sprayer on the sink was rusty and there was rust on the refrigerator too. We didn’t want to touch the dishes so we ate off of paper plates and plastic utensils. When we sat down to our first meal at the table, we could see sticky spots from previous visitors.

When you see the picture of the outdoor patio it looks inviting. In fact, all the furniture is covered in dirt and mold. I tried to clean it but it was way too beat up and old. The chaise has a couple of old, moldy cushions. You can’t sit on the furniture anyway because it’s falling apart.

It would be nice to open the sliding door to the patio for the pleasant air. Unfortunately, there is no screen and the bushes are filled with mosquitoes. When we did leave the door open, bugs and flies would come in. On the walls you will find squashed mosquitoes left behind by other visitors. My husband was bitten many times. I took pictures of the red blotches on his face.

The door to the unit is next to the host’s garage. Several times we opened the door to find that their car had blocked our exit. Either we had to climb over the bumper or push through the bushes to get out. This was unsafe.

I hope you’re not looking for a quiet evening. On random evenings you’ll hear pounding on the ceiling. It’s the kids jumping and running around above you.

Now about safety; the address is “2022 A.” The main house is “2022.” The only indication that there is an entrance to “A” is a tiny half-inch letter. If you have any mail or packages, you’re in for trouble. Twice the owner took my packages and opened them. A bigger problem is theft. Two very large packages were delivered at the owner’s door. They were new clothes that I had specially ordered. After a couple of days, I noticed that they hadn’t been delivered to 2022 A. They were stolen, so we had to file a police report. I have my copy.

Here’s something else creepy. I was in the kitchen and I heard a noise in the bedroom. I went to see and found that someone was trying to get in from the main house through the door from the owner’s garage. It was a woman who called herself the nanny. If I hadn’t remembered to lock the door while I was cleaning, the owner and other people in their house could have just come and gone unannounced. Don’t leave anything valuable behind.

We left ten days early, and we were glad to go. I know what the owner will say: “Why didn’t you tell me?” Shouldn’t an owner who constantly rents their property do more to make it livable, clean, sanitary, and safe? Is it our job to point all this out to the host, who lives upstairs?

The second bad experience was trying to post a review on Airbnb. We posted our review at the end of our rental which meant it was available for Airbnb to review at any time. They waited 14 days to see if the owner was going to write a review too.

After 13 days and 18 hours (late in the evening) Airbnb sent an email saying: “I wanted to reach out to you about the review that you left about the host. We wanted to let you know that we investigated the review and in the review you give out the address of the listing which is a violation of the Airbnb Policy, so because of that we will have to remove the review.”

We hadn’t listed the address, only the street numbers because of the problems we encountered. But, okay, no problem. We could make a tiny edit. However, by the next day they said the “time limit” to edit the review was up, so it did not appear.

I called Airbnb four times and also emailed them. The operators were pleasant but in the end, no one would listen. I simply explained that they had not given us any time to make the tiny correction and that we wanted to post the review. We let the host know about our review. She immediately threatened us writing, “Do not spread a bad review and rumors. I would consider it libelous to do so. The Airbnb lawyers will handle this.”

Airbnb prohibits “extortion” saying, “reviews are a way for Airbnb guests and hosts to share their experiences with the community. Any attempt to use reviews or review responses to force a user to do something they aren’t obligated to do is a misuse of reviews, and we don’t allow it.” That includes “hosts asking a guest to take specific actions related to a review in exchange for a resolution to a dispute between the parties.”

Beyond that they say the hosts and guests agree to follow all Airbnb guidelines and policies, including the Extortion Policy and that failure to do so may result in the restriction, suspension or termination of your Airbnb account. “If you think you’ve experienced extortion, please contact us”, which we did. There was no response. I know this is a lengthy review but if your experience was like ours, you will regret not paying attention to this story.

Airbnb Puts Lives at Risk when Everyone has the Keys

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We arrived in Paris at 9:00 AM on November 22nd. We arrived at Urban Flats around noon and stored our luggage with them. They assured us they would be in a secure location. We returned at 4:00 PM and checked into our prepaid Airbnb rental. We had eight people in our group: five adults and three children under 7 years old. That night my son and daughter in law decide they would sleep on the sofa bed in the living room.

My son awoke to someone opening the front door. He spoke out and the person closed the door and left. My son got up, locked the door again and place furniture in front of the door. We thought maybe it was a mistake and went out sightseeing at 10:00 AM. We made sure the door was properly locked.

We returned at 6:00 PM. When I went to my room, I noticed my converter plugs and iPad were missing. We then realized everyone had all their electronics (three iPads, one computer, one smart watch) and chargers missing. Upon further search, we found that all the jewelry was missing. In fact, a carry-on bag was missing and I believe they used it to remove our property.

We went to the Urban Flats office and reported the break-in. The employee went to our apartment and found the spare apartment key in the lock box by the front door. He said that should not have there. He then proceeded to lie to us: first, he said he called the police, and next we had to walk to the police station. At first he said he notified his boss, then he said he could not call him. Lie after lie. In fact, he said we should not worry since travel insurance would cover it. He assumed we had insurance and could not understand why we were upset.

We did file a police report, but they said they could not help us. We called Airbnb and filed a report. The next day they acted as if we never reported anything. We personally notified the owners of the apartment. They were helpful and gave us a full refund so we could go to a hotel, which turned out to be more than we planned on spending. The first time we called, the Airbnb agent said they would give us $250/person for a hotel and then the next day we were told that was not possible.

As far as I am concerned, Airbnb put our lives at risk. This was an inside job since someone provided the robbers with the building code and key box code. I plan on posting on every social media website that Urban Flats is corrupt and dangerous. Airbnb has been no help. I plan on seeking legal counsel due to the fact that eight lives were put at risk.

Airbnb laissez-faire when it comes to customer service

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In April, I booked a room in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico wanting to visit a festival in January 2020. The room was not cheap. The reviews of the host were good. The listing contained a street name. After booking, I asked for a full address. To this day I have no exact address and the confirmation email link leads to a museum.

This feels like a complete fraud. Airbnb already took hundreds of euros off my credit card, offering no refund so far since I have complained. To make sure I did not get stranded or relocated far away from the action, I also booked a hotel (this week) because I think Airbnb is very laissez-faire when it comes to customer service.

I travel alone and safety is a priority. I am done with the fact that they do not check the location of the rental nor do they check if the host has any right to rent it out. Beware because you may be next to get stranded or lose a lot of money. No more Airbnb for me.

Airbnb Service Charges not Returned on Cancellation

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I was interested in a villa in Colombia for March (four months from booking). It was a large villa and I wanted to confirm the guest. I asked the host for three weeks to cancel, rather than his normal 48 hours. He agreed and this was documented clearly in Airbnb Messenger. I cancelled after two weeks as I could not organize the guests and Airbnb refused to return their service charges of $864.79, citing their policy.

The end result was Airbnb Customer Service protected the customer and left the host and the guest out to dry, the complete opposite of customer service and common sense. This wasn’t a last-minute cancellation. This was a documented exception for four months from now. Airbnb protected their bottom line and sold their soul.

I pity the poor people who are getting excited about the Tokyo Olympics with Airbnb. They are lined up for a living hell. Frankly, I think that any normal travel company would never have a strict 48-hour cancellation policy. That really is the opposite of customer service.