794Kviews
33 Folks Online Are Roasting Airbnb Hosts For Having The Most Ridiculous Requirements
Since its foundation in 2008, Airbnb has become a popular platform for people to rent short-term stays, most often for vacations or business trips. It was a cheaper alternative to hotels and it provided a cozy and more home-like atmosphere.
In the last couple of years, it seems that people have been changing their minds and don’t like how the service is evolving. Many people have noticed that hosts have started listing various chores the guests must finish before leaving, even though they pay quite high cleaning fees.
The topic was brought up once again by comedian Caleb Hearon who tweeted that he’s done with Airbnb and their ridiculous requirements for guests. He expressed that it isn’t worth it and he will be staying at hotels now.
Image credits: calebsaysthings
Image credits: calebsaysthings
Image credits: Open Grid Scheduler / Grid Engine
More info: Twitter
This post may include affiliate links.
I dont really get the criticism against Airbnb in this site. It must be a USA problem. I used Airbnb for years in several european countries and i had never had an issue. For a very low ammount you get an entire house with bathroom, living room and kitchen.
Lol have you not read any of these posts? There are valid reasons in here to complain.
Load More Replies...
I have a big family wedding to go to out of town. Everyone wants to get an Airbnb that works out to about $300 a night each (those service fees add up). I laughed at them all and said no I will be staying at the resort with room service and maid service and amenities and a pool. Oh and no chores
After BAD experience with Airbnb I will stick to hotels . Thank you .
Oh that poor man, had to take out HIS trash and wash HIS dishes and couldn’t be bothered to water the plants.
For the right price sure, otherwise a hotel is a better deal.
Load More Replies...
I stayed at an Airbnb apartment last weekend without any problems. The owners cleaned after I left so I didn’t have to do anything. I could just relax
What kind of a disgusting, disrespectful slob are you if you can't even be bothered to do your own f*****g dishes? Most of the time you are staying at someone's house, and the cleaning fee is not for baby-sitting your laziness: it is for scrubbing the toilet, disinfecting the kitchen, and other not so fun stuff that you would balk at doing. Jesus Christ, what kind of entitled morons frequent Airbnb these days?
I've been a host and Air Bnb is entirely geared towards grovelling to the guests, even the horrible ones who trash your place, to the point where it became unworkable for me. I can understand some hosts having to stipulate some basic housekeeping as too many people are pigs with a property that isn't theirs. They have an attitude that because they've paid they can be subhuman.
Why do you say about people that want you to clean your dishes and take out your trash, that they have lost their minds? seems like obvious things a decent would do without needing to be told.
never used an Airbnb, but with everything I have heard, some are bad yes, but most times it's just people who have forgotten that they chose to use a CHEAP solution which includes that they are in other people's homes so there will be some / many things or rules that are not in hotels
After seeing these posts, they remind me of Auckland landlords. Blech.
If I paid to stay I'm not cleaning. I'll wash my dishes.pull the sheets. That's it.
Don't get it. Do visitors expect the host to clean after them? I mean when they finish their dish then they don't leave them on the table. It's AIRBNB, you are living in someone's house which you pay for every night, not your hotel or restaurant. Doubt those Airbnb hosts "losing their da*n mind" when you signed the agreement for living in THEIR house, not a dog house! Eventually during the COVID pandemic or not. I don't think this is worth roasting Airbnb hosts when they just wanted to be free from their responsibility.
I have always hated hotels, having traveled a lot as a child. Now I choose airbnb for the kitchens, the access to nature and the quiet.
Airbnb's are also fun!!! I like to eat at the local restaurants and emerge in the culture so miss me with the hotel food, bars, and poolside drinks. I'm tryna go to the famous bar on the corner that was featured on food network. I want to enjoy street tacos while enjoying the scenery. And I love cooking in the airbnb I stay in, I can wake up and make a midnight snack and not worry about room service generic a*s menu.
Then the cleaning fee rate shouldn't be as high as it is.
Load More Replies...
Caleb Hearon was a stand-up comedian in Chicago, but now has relocated to Los Angeles and creates content mainly on Twitter. He also has a podcast with Shelby Wolstein on which they reflect on art, media and culture in a comedic way.
Caleb has 242k followers on Twitter, so a post going viral is not a surprise. One of the most recent ones that reached a wider audience than usual was a tweet about Airbnb.
Clearly they wanted you to pay the fee...and clean up everything better than it was before you arrived.
In that post, Caleb says that he is done with this service because the hosts list the most ridiculous requirements like having a curfew or a list of chores to do. On one of the most recent stays, Caleb was instructed to take out his trash, do his dishes and water the plants. Airbnb was supposed to be an alternative to hotels, but Caleb would rather choose them over an Airbnb stay.
The tweet currently has almost 400k likes and nearly 3k people joined the conversation. Most of them agreed with the original tweet and gave examples of their Airbnb hosts listing the things they can, can’t and should do.
As you can imagine, Airbnb is mostly used by tourists and the purpose of their stay is a vacation. They pay for the service, but the hosts tell them to bring their own sheets, to start the laundry or to throw away the trash. That can make a vacation feel less relaxing as it seems that you didn’t escape your home and you paid someone only to do your own chores.
There were also some Airbnb hosts in the comments and they defended themselves, saying that it is their home and they shouldn’t even be asking for the guests to clean up as it is just common courtesy.
Other Twitter users had a big problem with that view and showed screenshots of the bills they would have to pay for some stays, which included cleaning fees reaching and surpassing $100, so they don’t think these hosts have a right to ask them to do chores.
Hosts would clap back saying that people don’t leave messes in hotels either and it is just nice to collect trash and put your towels into one pile before leaving. They claim that it’s the same, but Airbnb is a better choice because it’s cheaper.
I haven't used the service yet but aren't your hosts usually gone during your stay?
Also, the hosts have to deal with damaged things and get their things stolen, so they want to be compensated for that risk. On the other hand, a lot of people get scammed because the photos don’t reflect reality and they might come to a place where there is a huge hole in the ceiling.
To make sure their homes are kept safe, the hosts might set up cameras, but then the guests feel uncomfortable and creeped out, especially if those cameras are in the bedroom or such a place like a hot tub.
The discussion in the thread seems endless, as for any complaint a guest has, a host has a counterargument. However, there were a few people who had quite a logical explanation to this whole situation.
Colby Howard explains that new Airbnb homeowners just didn’t know what they were getting into. And they definitely don’t know how the service industry works.
He presents a scenario of a host hiring a cleaning person, but they quit after two months. Or you are at work and get a call that something broke at the house, so you have to fix it if you don’t want to receive a bad review. To make their own lives more convenient, the hosts just put those responsibilities on the guests.
Colby thinks that “Airbnb stands for Air Bed and Breakfast for a reason.” One of the thoughts he expressed probably sums up really well what most guests think: “You’re getting paid to provide a great experience and put up with all the c**p that you yourself give hotels and rentals when you vacation. That’s the deal you made.”
Do you agree that Airbnb hosts are asking for too much from their guests? What were your experiences with Airbnb stays? Do you think people are just entitled and think they think they are too good to take care of someone else’s home? Let us know your thoughts on the topic in the comments!
That is wayyy to much, wouldn't a hotel be cheaper? I'm assuming.
"Excessive paper towel usage"....wow. Is there a bounty for Bounty?
Oh, how convenient, they put the trash in a convenient location for you to recycle! lol
Cleaning the trash $300 Taking out the trash $100....not getting any more clients....priceless.
"I'm a 15yo drug dealer, who gets A LOT of deliveries, and needs WiFi to call foreign contacts. Can I pay you in cash?"
Setting an early alarm my last day of vacation to make sure I can shower before I start the laundry, run the dishwasher, and take the trash to the dump and be out by 10 sharp!
“Oh, and please blow all the leaves off the driveway and patio too. Leafblower will not be provided, you can use your own. If you’re too loud, there’s a $200 noise fee. Thanks for staying at Palm Cabin!”
Five pages... Oh goodie! kindling for the outdoor grill to cook my steaks on!
No...that is what the Cleaning Fee is for. To pay for a cleaner to come in and do it. (Mind you, the cleaners likely only receive $20 each.)
That is illegal, is it not? Contact someone in the City and State to see about having them chat with creating a Life Threatening situation for a tenant. -- I equate this to a landlord turning off the heat in the middle of the winter.
I´m curious. I´ve stayed at airbnbs before but through friends I've stayed with. So I´m curious when it comes to situations like these. Was the airbnb advertised with that warning or do you find out you can´t cook meat after you booked it?
A lot of these were more expensive than a high end hotel, ffs. Why would you spend more money to do someone else's chores?
Sometimes it’s nice when you want a full kitchen, laundry, and/or a multi room house for the whole family. Otherwise, I’m going to the hotel.
Load More Replies...
My neighborhood is mostly empty houses. All Vacasa and Airbnb and they stand empty 3/4 of the year while families struggle to find housing and people live in tents on the freeway.
Yes sir! My daughters family can't find a home in the greater Seattle area without being outbid by these buyers
Load More Replies...
I'd be fine stripping the bed(s) and leaving the linen in a pile in the room or by the washer. I'd be fine washing the dishes I used. If there's a small amount of trash, no prob to leave it. If there much more, smelly, or many people contributing to the trash, I'd take it out. At a hotel, they do this stuff for you, an Airbnb can be different. Now if we went past the basics, and caused a huge mess and didn't clean it, I'd understand being charged a cleaning fee. If I'm being charged a cleaning fee regardless, then I plan to do little to no cleaning at all. They can earn that fee. Many of the rules these people want are beyond ridiculous and makes me wonder how they even get people in. And a few make it sound like the the owners are also in the home, not just next door! Why stay if the owners are there also? Creepy!
I hate the nickel & diming they do to make their rates seem low. The whole house for $79.99 a night!? Wow! …. Oh.. plus $300 cleaning fee, $55 a day parking fee, $120 online booking fee, $86 sales tax, $98 hotel tax, etc. and suddenly what looked like a great deal costs $738.99
Remember the old good days of Taxis and hotels motels ? Now it's always a 3ed party running the original service for the provider and the customer. Uber, Airbnb, linkdln, yalp.
I would use taxis if they had an app that worked liked Uber. I’m in a smaller city and it was always awkward to get a taxi by phone and you had to have cash because smaller companies didn’t take cards.
Load More Replies...
I've only stayed at an AirBnB once and I had a good experience. Yes, they asked me to wash my dishes and strip the bed before I left, and that was fine and easy enough for me. They were also quite accommodating when I unexpectedly ended up in the hospital and was unable to check out until the next day. I offered to pay the extra day (of course, my items were still there, and the room was locked/I had the key) and they refused the money and had flowers and a card for me when I got back. Very sweet. Not counting my extra day, it was originally a 3-day weekend stay and only $120.
Sounds lovely. Where did you stay? ;-) PS: hope you are doing well now.
Load More Replies...
So what's the business model here, I'm confused. I thought ABNB was super cheap, hence the rules. If it's expensive why are people bothering?
That is how it started and many hosts are still kind, helpful and inexpensive. Unfortunately it just blew up and is destroying what was once great. There are investors buying up properties just to airbnb causing housing crunches, evermore fees imposed so the list price is practically meaningless anymore (can literally double after fees) and of course rules/cameras etc of general assholeness. Its a shame, it was a great idea and a cool way to travel for a good couple years.
Load More Replies...
I hate airbnb. But not as an user but we had many in our neighbourhood. I favour the hospitality but many tourists ignore that their surroundings are not the same but local people getting up early for work, kids... and do not want to hear loud music and scream til morning cause someone has a holiday and wanna have fun. Sometimes we manage to contact some group and ask to respect the rules, but then a new bunch arrives and everything goes again and again. When the municipality iniciated the discussion about airbnb (which is not fully legal here), lot of people opted for regulation or prohibition at least in historical city centre.
The list of things to do afterwards is ridiculous, I agree. But how many of these very specific rules are because of one a**hat who pushed the limits of hospitality too far?
I'm sure that's why most of them are because of that one @$$hat who was the @$$yist of hats, but I think thats one of the risks you take when you rent out your house to strangers on a short term basis. Just because a few were nasty as Satan's dingleberries doesn't mean you get to dump on everyone else.
Load More Replies...
I always strip the beds, take out the trash, and wash the dishes. Anything else is for the cleaning service.
As I said in an older, similar post: I stayed in over 60 different airbnb places over the past few years. In all different kind of West European countries. Most of them were great. A few average. Never bad. Mostly we try to stay in smaller towns. Nicer folks, better food, better value. More calm and quiet. We chose to stay at airbnbs a bunch of years ago because we decided that our dog will travel with us from that time (until today). And having a whole apartment or even a house is great. More space for the dog, less noise than in a hotel. And many times some outside space. Really enjoyed it and met lots of wonderful hosts along the way.
I'm an avid user of Airbnb and have been staying with hosts in the US; Australia, NZ and a couple of European countries. After reading these I feel very lucky that somehow I've avoided crazy hosts so far. My experiences were almost entirely positive. I'm booking Airbnb mostly because of two reasons: When it's cheaper than hotels and because I usually book whole appartments and therefore have much more space than in an hotel.
I'm also an avid user of Airbnb and have had nothing short of wonderful experiences, which I guess is now out of the norm. I have used Airbnb in the United Kingdom and Europe only so I cannot speak for anyone's experiences in the United States. Before leaving we were kindly asked to wash dishes and strip the beds-- the rest would be handled by a cleaning service. I think people sometimes forget that you may actually be staying in someone's home so you have to treat it as such. Airbnb does entail a considerable amount of detailed planning and THOROUGHLY reading all reviews, researching the location, and researching other options for hotels around the area. I have always been treated with respect by the hosts and the properties were gorgeous and well-maintained.Thus, I am always confused with the amount of negative reviews so I am wondering if this is more geared toward the U.S.
Load More Replies...
Hotel any time. Never going to pay crazy money for a remodeled chicken shack, no matter how unique and rustic it might be.....
I wish couchsurfing was still a thing. A good 10 years ago I was traveling through the world and Couchsurfing was great. People used to be really friendly, they let you sleep on their couch for free, even made you dinner sometimes, guided you through the town or picked you up at the airport. Met a bunch of great people through this. Then airbnb came and nobody wanter to do couchsurfing because why would you do that if you can do the same for money. And then it changed even more, airbnb became a hotel like experience but worse. And it started destroying cities because rents were up and whole apartment blocks became airbnb, destroying the culture and often making more mess than benefits. I hate airbnb with my whole heart.
I've stayed at dozens of AirBnBs in the last few years. Never encountered anything like what was described above. Can't remember ever having to pay any cleaning fee. Also, putting out trash? Do the laundry? Feeding the cat? Really???? I believe it must be a US thing to have these issues. That said, I do prefer to stay in hotels because of better privacy and often more comfort. I was doing the AirBnBs because they were much cheaper. Off lately they have become so expensive that hotels are often the cheaper choice. PS. I do clean up after myself and take the linen off the bed etc. because I do not want the host to have unnecessary work. But that is just being polite. No one asks me to do that.
I stayed at an Airbnb one time. Paid hundreds of dollars in cleaning fees, only to get to the house and find out there were two rolls of toilet paper for five women for five days. One roll of paper towels. Four actual towels. And the sounds of mice running through the walls nonstop all night long every night. And expected us to strip beds, start laundry, dust, and sweep the floor. That was my first and very last Airbnb experience. Add to that the fact that Airbnb owners are quite literally destroying the housing market, and that’s enough reason for me to just stay in a hotel.
Is there a third party ABnB review site where bad hosts are named and shamed?
The "start a load of laundry" before you leave thing doesn't seem outrageous to me (or the "take out the trash," and "do your own dishes") *if* it's a place that's offering a substantially. lower rate than professionally-run accommodation of similar type in that location. If they're charging full-service prices, they can provide full service.
Oof, I lucked out on mine. I've only used one once for a few days away. Took my trash out because I was passing the bin as I left anyway and got a super lovely message from the host thanking me for leaving the place so clean. Didn't have to strip the bedding or wash it or anything. It's almost like she was expecting the place to look like someone had been staying there...
I could write volumes about my Airbnb experiences, most of them terrible. Why pay good money (often a LOT) to rent a place where the owners are trying to find ways to charge you more? Why stay somewhere that is often uncomfortable, not private and, in too many cases, with people who are hardly welcoming. If I wanted to do chores, I'd stay home! Nope, even a cheaper hotel is better than most AirBnBs.
If the cleaning fees and booking fees are more expensive than a hotel, I’m booking a hotel. Also I don’t mind gathering trash and gathering linens but that’s it. If you don’t have trash after you clean during housekeeping (and thus you could take my trash with you at the same time), then you’re not cleaning.
I've stayed in Airbnbs lots of times but generally when renting a room in someone's house rather than the whole place. Meet some great people. I miss the days before Airbnb got money hungry.
okay some of these people are just bitching, it’s not hard to take out your trash before you leave lmao and the owner is not responsible for buying you toilet paper and stuff like that, that’s your job. i’ve stayed in tons of airbnbs and rentals and you always have to clean up the mess you bring in and buy your own necessities, that’s pretty well know and expected
Sure it’s not hard, but if you’re being charged a $150 cleaning fee it also shouldn’t be expected. That’s the rub.
Load More Replies...
Okay but are y'all really bitching about doing your own dishes & taking out your own trash? Watering The plants... okay fair.... but are you really expecting & air bnb host to clean your dishes & take out your trash? That's just common courtesy... it's not a hotel. I would do that regardless if they asked me to or not. Like... they're not your fucken maid. If you didn't do that in my home after staying... I'd charge a cleanup fee. NGL. Nothing crazy. But like $30 maybe. Just be a decent human. Clean up after yourself.
I found that strange myself, like not just "ugh, that's such a chore" but the "FU". Like, to me cleaning services is probably more so for vacuuming, dusting, perhaps Covid stuff, not basic things you do around your own home. Makes me feel horrible for hotel maids even more so than I already did.
Load More Replies...
What turned me off AirBNB is the fact that they evaluate YOU. Oh, I pay you money for your shitty kitchen shack, and then you will also publicly evaluate how likeable you found me?! NO THANKS
When i stayed at a hostel and shared a room, had to strip the bed on check out it cost me $15 per night. No hidden fees or rules, exactly what i paid for. When i booked an air bnb by accident through booking.com they changed the address on me so we had to go even further out of my way to stay there
I wouldn’t want to stay somewhere where random people cleaned the space before me. Someone that doesn’t care about it being truly clean
You mean like in a hotel? It has to look clean, not actually BE clean. (yes, have done the job, have listened to the women with experience describe shortcuts) Motel, Air BNB....basically anyplace...."random people cleaned before me" So, are you planning to keep purchasing new homes, or are you planning to top to bottom clean every place you ever stay?
Load More Replies...
Stayed at one which told us to bring our own sheets and towels. If you used theirs, you had to fully wash, dry, and fold them in their miniscule, non-working washer and dryer, which could fit about 2 towels at a time. I shudder to think how many people just used the linens and then folded and put them back because it was too big of a hassle. Also, we had to take the garbage with us. Citing bears. Like bears would break into the house in the few hours between check out and the cleaning people arriving, despite this not happening during any of the times we went to dinner or hiking. The dump they directed us to was closed on Sundays, the most frequent day for check outs. So we got to drive 20 minutes with people crammed in the back seat with literal bags of garbage until we found a McDonald's and snuck it into their dumpster. They charged a $90 cleaning fee.
The one I stayed at last week in upstate NY was delightful. No cleaning up other than the dishes I used. I had NO chores to do, not even to take out the garbage.
I travel with a disabled person and choose hotels. The bed is often too high and maintenance helps me lower the bed. I tip them and leave it and they put the bed back together again after we leave. Beds are made while we are out. Handicap equipped bathrooms with roll-in showers are provided if you call ahead and book. Always get fresh clean towels as needed. I have enough to to do with the handicapped person, I don’t need to do more chores and cleaning. The hotel was often lower in price than the airBnB options.
It is funny how many people have problem with the quiet hours. Can you not just act like bunch of appes? Just stfu and stay quiet.
I am really starting to think these are from the United States. I am originally from the United Kingdom and have used AirBnB in Europe and have had nothing short but great experiences. Perhaps I am in the minority here, but all the places I have stayed have been affordable, well-maintained, and the hosts have also treated my family and I will respect (a vice versa). Maybe it it just the countries I have been staying in have less tourists. However, I also realize that I am staying in someone's home (a lot of people seem to forget this) or property and that there may indeed be rules that I need to follow. AirBNB has a tendency to be much more affordable in Europe and the United Kingdom and offers economical housing for backpackers and travelers. However, you do have to do a considerable amount of research beforehand to assure that the host has good reviews and that the place you will be staying is in a well-commuted area.
Load More Replies...
None of these sound legal. I guess owners can charge what they want, but it seems AirBnb risks bad press if things continue like these examples.
Airbnb gets heaps of bad press tbh, but they do try to bury it. Aside from creating housing woes, the thing that’s really turned me off the site is having to do hidden camera and pest (like bedbugs) sweeps upon arrival. It’s pretty disturbing
Load More Replies...
Hotels, no airnbnb. Besides alot of airbnbs have hidden camera's, SCREW THAT
And I told him I didn't care what he did in the bedroom but that he needed to use headphones so as not to disturb anyone else and that he needed to leave the next morning instead of spending the 2nd night he had paid for. I refunded the girls money and his extra night and cancelled my Airbnb account. Never again.
I did Airbnb once. Had 2 empty bedrooms at my apartment in Gothenburg Sweden. Reasonable price and I didn't have a cleaning fee etc as I was there. Two girls aged 20 got the bunk room. $30 for both including breakfast. A guy aged 40 took the double room. Same price. Girls turned up about 7pm with takeout and invited me to eat with them so we ate and chatted. About 9pm they used the bathroom and went to bed just as the guy was arriving. He didn't want to eat or chat, just used the bathroom and went to bed. So I did the dishes, went to the bathroom and then bed. Then realised there was an odd type of music playing, p o r n music.. So I went into the hallway and the girls were there as well. We just looked at each other and I told them I'd take care of it and they went back to bed. Knocked on his door and he said come in. I opened the door and he was on the bed n*ked and had his member in his hand and his eyes on the p o r n playing on his laptop. He didn't stop or cover himself
i am not paying 300 a night to do chores. either i pay in money or labor. not bith
AirBnBs are also destroying the rental market and a total pain to regular neighbours. Stay in hotels! Or holiday appartments if you want to cook.
Airbnb, like most stuff, started out great but then was ruined by incredibly selfish people with no concept of treating their fellow humans decently.
The housing shortage in San Francisco is caused mostly from air bnb + vrbo.
If I'm charged a cleaning fee, I'm not doing chores. I'm not leaving the place a pig sty, but I'm not going to perform a service that I'm paying for.
Wowsers. I had a great experience using Airbnb when I was a tourist in France and Spain. On 2 separate occasions our hosts picked us up. One cooked traditional Spanish sardinas for us. It was cheaper to use Airbnb than to even stay in hostels, let alone hotels, and often we'd get a whole house to ourselves. Maybe it's different now?
Like I said up above, I think every single one is different. From huge house to yourself, to bedroom w/ bath you share with the family. Best bet is to read the reviews.
Load More Replies...
I’ve stayed in a cabin once that required we start a load of laundry and take the trash out and wash the dishes we use which was fine, but most of them didn’t have any requirements that were outlandish. But I agree that it’s getting more expensive with more work when we can just go to a hotel.
We had to spend a week in a hoarder’s apartment. No space to hang our clothes, even the oven was used as storage. Glad we didn’t pre-heat it. We could barely move. Awful.
'Had' to spend? Did you read any reviews? Why did you book it then?
Load More Replies...
Once again, what could have been a good idea (renting out a room short term at a cheap price to help both host and guest), ruined by greed. It happened the same with Bla Bla Car, a website to meet people who were carpooling. You'd share gas expenses if the went in your direction. Until car owners started charging full price of gas on the passenger and then some more to make a profit of a trip they had to do anyway. So it's hotels and train or couch for me now.
So...why do people use Airbnb? I would rather just pay for a hotel and get treated like a guest.
I'd rather stay in a hotel. I've looked into air bnbs before and compared to hotels. In most cases they were either the same or more expensive. If I'm on vacation I do t want to clean someone else's house.
Me and my grandparents went to one in oregon and none of the photos looked the same as the website, it smelled like smoke and my stomach felt like trash but as soon as we left or went down town, it felt fine. Same thing with my sibling
I use VRBO and have been really lucky with all of my vacation rentals. I mean, a few of them were filled with tons of mid-century antiques and a laundry list of "don't touch" but otherwise, I've had good experiences
Got invited to stay at an airbnb in Prescott, Arizona for a wedding. I opted for a hotel - thank goodness. When we went there after the bar we realized our friends had been duped. The ad said it had two separate sleeping areas. There was a bed in one photo. In a photo that LOOKED LIKE A DIFFERENT ROOM, there was a pull-out couch. When the couch was fully-pulled out it actually connected TO the bed. You couldn't get past the front door without literally climbing over a piece of furniture. My poor friend wandered off into the night to the nearest hotel and thankfully found a room. He wasn't planning on sharing a bed with two other people.
My upstairs neighbor moved to Paris on the profits from her illegal Brooklyn Airbnb. Twice her tenants overfilled the bathtub & flooded the place, causing a crack in my bathroom ceiling. Her reply? I should tell the landlord to fix it.
We're finishing a house to be an Airbnb. We'd just want the garbage out (so it doesn't stink) the dishwasher run (see above) and the beds stripped. None of that together takes more than 10 minutes, and that's all stuff you did before you left your house when you left for your vacation. We're providing coffee, creamer, sugar, plenty of toilet paper, napkins. slippers. bathrobes. soap. tooth brushes sunscreen (stuff in case you forgot yours) bug spray. . soda. granola. coupon to local lobster shack. Candle to bring home. Kayaks to use. We're trying to make it feel like a home away from home. No neighbors to complain. No cat to feed. No chickens to bother. no spy cameras. no wifi limit. just relax and enjoy your vacation . All stuff to make you feel at home.
But do you charge a cleaning fee in addition to having them do chores?
Load More Replies...
While many of these may be legitimate complaints, a lot of these requests of owners just sound like being considerate to another human being who has invited you to their place. Airbnb is for unique experiences, hotels are for service, at airbnb you are a guest, in a hotel you are a customer. Just because you are paying someone (who still has to pay taxes and fees, and probably doesn't have an army of underpaid maids to clean your s**t up) doesn't mean you can treat them and their place as your servants. They have invited you to their home. And the 5 minutes it takes you to strip the bed or do dishes doesn't mean they don't have still hours of cleaning to do after you leave, so of course there will be a fee. If you are more into hotel services, and can find a comparable hotel, go for it! But I have found that Airbnb is usually either cheaper, or offers much more unique locations. I have used it at least 20 times in Europe, Africa and Asia, and I have never been dissappointed.
Invited me into their homes? Really? It's a business. I don't recall paying for the privilege of staying with friends whenever they invited me to theirs.
Load More Replies...
A lot of these were more expensive than a high end hotel, ffs. Why would you spend more money to do someone else's chores?
Sometimes it’s nice when you want a full kitchen, laundry, and/or a multi room house for the whole family. Otherwise, I’m going to the hotel.
Load More Replies... My neighborhood is mostly empty houses. All Vacasa and Airbnb and they stand empty 3/4 of the year while families struggle to find housing and people live in tents on the freeway.
Yes sir! My daughters family can't find a home in the greater Seattle area without being outbid by these buyers
Load More Replies... I'd be fine stripping the bed(s) and leaving the linen in a pile in the room or by the washer. I'd be fine washing the dishes I used. If there's a small amount of trash, no prob to leave it. If there much more, smelly, or many people contributing to the trash, I'd take it out. At a hotel, they do this stuff for you, an Airbnb can be different. Now if we went past the basics, and caused a huge mess and didn't clean it, I'd understand being charged a cleaning fee. If I'm being charged a cleaning fee regardless, then I plan to do little to no cleaning at all. They can earn that fee. Many of the rules these people want are beyond ridiculous and makes me wonder how they even get people in. And a few make it sound like the the owners are also in the home, not just next door! Why stay if the owners are there also? Creepy!
I hate the nickel & diming they do to make their rates seem low. The whole house for $79.99 a night!? Wow! …. Oh.. plus $300 cleaning fee, $55 a day parking fee, $120 online booking fee, $86 sales tax, $98 hotel tax, etc. and suddenly what looked like a great deal costs $738.99
Remember the old good days of Taxis and hotels motels ? Now it's always a 3ed party running the original service for the provider and the customer. Uber, Airbnb, linkdln, yalp.
I would use taxis if they had an app that worked liked Uber. I’m in a smaller city and it was always awkward to get a taxi by phone and you had to have cash because smaller companies didn’t take cards.
Load More Replies... I've only stayed at an AirBnB once and I had a good experience. Yes, they asked me to wash my dishes and strip the bed before I left, and that was fine and easy enough for me. They were also quite accommodating when I unexpectedly ended up in the hospital and was unable to check out until the next day. I offered to pay the extra day (of course, my items were still there, and the room was locked/I had the key) and they refused the money and had flowers and a card for me when I got back. Very sweet. Not counting my extra day, it was originally a 3-day weekend stay and only $120.
Sounds lovely. Where did you stay? ;-) PS: hope you are doing well now.
Load More Replies... So what's the business model here, I'm confused. I thought ABNB was super cheap, hence the rules. If it's expensive why are people bothering?
That is how it started and many hosts are still kind, helpful and inexpensive. Unfortunately it just blew up and is destroying what was once great. There are investors buying up properties just to airbnb causing housing crunches, evermore fees imposed so the list price is practically meaningless anymore (can literally double after fees) and of course rules/cameras etc of general assholeness. Its a shame, it was a great idea and a cool way to travel for a good couple years.
Load More Replies... I hate airbnb. But not as an user but we had many in our neighbourhood. I favour the hospitality but many tourists ignore that their surroundings are not the same but local people getting up early for work, kids... and do not want to hear loud music and scream til morning cause someone has a holiday and wanna have fun. Sometimes we manage to contact some group and ask to respect the rules, but then a new bunch arrives and everything goes again and again. When the municipality iniciated the discussion about airbnb (which is not fully legal here), lot of people opted for regulation or prohibition at least in historical city centre.
The list of things to do afterwards is ridiculous, I agree. But how many of these very specific rules are because of one a**hat who pushed the limits of hospitality too far?
I'm sure that's why most of them are because of that one @$$hat who was the @$$yist of hats, but I think thats one of the risks you take when you rent out your house to strangers on a short term basis. Just because a few were nasty as Satan's dingleberries doesn't mean you get to dump on everyone else.
Load More Replies... I always strip the beds, take out the trash, and wash the dishes. Anything else is for the cleaning service.
As I said in an older, similar post: I stayed in over 60 different airbnb places over the past few years. In all different kind of West European countries. Most of them were great. A few average. Never bad. Mostly we try to stay in smaller towns. Nicer folks, better food, better value. More calm and quiet. We chose to stay at airbnbs a bunch of years ago because we decided that our dog will travel with us from that time (until today). And having a whole apartment or even a house is great. More space for the dog, less noise than in a hotel. And many times some outside space. Really enjoyed it and met lots of wonderful hosts along the way.
I'm an avid user of Airbnb and have been staying with hosts in the US; Australia, NZ and a couple of European countries. After reading these I feel very lucky that somehow I've avoided crazy hosts so far. My experiences were almost entirely positive. I'm booking Airbnb mostly because of two reasons: When it's cheaper than hotels and because I usually book whole appartments and therefore have much more space than in an hotel.
I'm also an avid user of Airbnb and have had nothing short of wonderful experiences, which I guess is now out of the norm. I have used Airbnb in the United Kingdom and Europe only so I cannot speak for anyone's experiences in the United States. Before leaving we were kindly asked to wash dishes and strip the beds-- the rest would be handled by a cleaning service. I think people sometimes forget that you may actually be staying in someone's home so you have to treat it as such. Airbnb does entail a considerable amount of detailed planning and THOROUGHLY reading all reviews, researching the location, and researching other options for hotels around the area. I have always been treated with respect by the hosts and the properties were gorgeous and well-maintained.Thus, I am always confused with the amount of negative reviews so I am wondering if this is more geared toward the U.S.
Load More Replies... Hotel any time. Never going to pay crazy money for a remodeled chicken shack, no matter how unique and rustic it might be.....
I wish couchsurfing was still a thing. A good 10 years ago I was traveling through the world and Couchsurfing was great. People used to be really friendly, they let you sleep on their couch for free, even made you dinner sometimes, guided you through the town or picked you up at the airport. Met a bunch of great people through this. Then airbnb came and nobody wanter to do couchsurfing because why would you do that if you can do the same for money. And then it changed even more, airbnb became a hotel like experience but worse. And it started destroying cities because rents were up and whole apartment blocks became airbnb, destroying the culture and often making more mess than benefits. I hate airbnb with my whole heart.
I've stayed at dozens of AirBnBs in the last few years. Never encountered anything like what was described above. Can't remember ever having to pay any cleaning fee. Also, putting out trash? Do the laundry? Feeding the cat? Really???? I believe it must be a US thing to have these issues. That said, I do prefer to stay in hotels because of better privacy and often more comfort. I was doing the AirBnBs because they were much cheaper. Off lately they have become so expensive that hotels are often the cheaper choice. PS. I do clean up after myself and take the linen off the bed etc. because I do not want the host to have unnecessary work. But that is just being polite. No one asks me to do that.
I stayed at an Airbnb one time. Paid hundreds of dollars in cleaning fees, only to get to the house and find out there were two rolls of toilet paper for five women for five days. One roll of paper towels. Four actual towels. And the sounds of mice running through the walls nonstop all night long every night. And expected us to strip beds, start laundry, dust, and sweep the floor. That was my first and very last Airbnb experience. Add to that the fact that Airbnb owners are quite literally destroying the housing market, and that’s enough reason for me to just stay in a hotel.
Is there a third party ABnB review site where bad hosts are named and shamed?
The "start a load of laundry" before you leave thing doesn't seem outrageous to me (or the "take out the trash," and "do your own dishes") *if* it's a place that's offering a substantially. lower rate than professionally-run accommodation of similar type in that location. If they're charging full-service prices, they can provide full service.
Oof, I lucked out on mine. I've only used one once for a few days away. Took my trash out because I was passing the bin as I left anyway and got a super lovely message from the host thanking me for leaving the place so clean. Didn't have to strip the bedding or wash it or anything. It's almost like she was expecting the place to look like someone had been staying there...
I could write volumes about my Airbnb experiences, most of them terrible. Why pay good money (often a LOT) to rent a place where the owners are trying to find ways to charge you more? Why stay somewhere that is often uncomfortable, not private and, in too many cases, with people who are hardly welcoming. If I wanted to do chores, I'd stay home! Nope, even a cheaper hotel is better than most AirBnBs.
If the cleaning fees and booking fees are more expensive than a hotel, I’m booking a hotel. Also I don’t mind gathering trash and gathering linens but that’s it. If you don’t have trash after you clean during housekeeping (and thus you could take my trash with you at the same time), then you’re not cleaning.
I've stayed in Airbnbs lots of times but generally when renting a room in someone's house rather than the whole place. Meet some great people. I miss the days before Airbnb got money hungry.
okay some of these people are just bitching, it’s not hard to take out your trash before you leave lmao and the owner is not responsible for buying you toilet paper and stuff like that, that’s your job. i’ve stayed in tons of airbnbs and rentals and you always have to clean up the mess you bring in and buy your own necessities, that’s pretty well know and expected
Sure it’s not hard, but if you’re being charged a $150 cleaning fee it also shouldn’t be expected. That’s the rub.
Load More Replies... Okay but are y'all really bitching about doing your own dishes & taking out your own trash? Watering The plants... okay fair.... but are you really expecting & air bnb host to clean your dishes & take out your trash? That's just common courtesy... it's not a hotel. I would do that regardless if they asked me to or not. Like... they're not your fucken maid. If you didn't do that in my home after staying... I'd charge a cleanup fee. NGL. Nothing crazy. But like $30 maybe. Just be a decent human. Clean up after yourself.
I found that strange myself, like not just "ugh, that's such a chore" but the "FU". Like, to me cleaning services is probably more so for vacuuming, dusting, perhaps Covid stuff, not basic things you do around your own home. Makes me feel horrible for hotel maids even more so than I already did.
Load More Replies... What turned me off AirBNB is the fact that they evaluate YOU. Oh, I pay you money for your shitty kitchen shack, and then you will also publicly evaluate how likeable you found me?! NO THANKS
When i stayed at a hostel and shared a room, had to strip the bed on check out it cost me $15 per night. No hidden fees or rules, exactly what i paid for. When i booked an air bnb by accident through booking.com they changed the address on me so we had to go even further out of my way to stay there
I wouldn’t want to stay somewhere where random people cleaned the space before me. Someone that doesn’t care about it being truly clean
You mean like in a hotel? It has to look clean, not actually BE clean. (yes, have done the job, have listened to the women with experience describe shortcuts) Motel, Air BNB....basically anyplace...."random people cleaned before me" So, are you planning to keep purchasing new homes, or are you planning to top to bottom clean every place you ever stay?
Load More Replies... Stayed at one which told us to bring our own sheets and towels. If you used theirs, you had to fully wash, dry, and fold them in their miniscule, non-working washer and dryer, which could fit about 2 towels at a time. I shudder to think how many people just used the linens and then folded and put them back because it was too big of a hassle. Also, we had to take the garbage with us. Citing bears. Like bears would break into the house in the few hours between check out and the cleaning people arriving, despite this not happening during any of the times we went to dinner or hiking. The dump they directed us to was closed on Sundays, the most frequent day for check outs. So we got to drive 20 minutes with people crammed in the back seat with literal bags of garbage until we found a McDonald's and snuck it into their dumpster. They charged a $90 cleaning fee.
The one I stayed at last week in upstate NY was delightful. No cleaning up other than the dishes I used. I had NO chores to do, not even to take out the garbage.
I travel with a disabled person and choose hotels. The bed is often too high and maintenance helps me lower the bed. I tip them and leave it and they put the bed back together again after we leave. Beds are made while we are out. Handicap equipped bathrooms with roll-in showers are provided if you call ahead and book. Always get fresh clean towels as needed. I have enough to to do with the handicapped person, I don’t need to do more chores and cleaning. The hotel was often lower in price than the airBnB options.
It is funny how many people have problem with the quiet hours. Can you not just act like bunch of appes? Just stfu and stay quiet.
I am really starting to think these are from the United States. I am originally from the United Kingdom and have used AirBnB in Europe and have had nothing short but great experiences. Perhaps I am in the minority here, but all the places I have stayed have been affordable, well-maintained, and the hosts have also treated my family and I will respect (a vice versa). Maybe it it just the countries I have been staying in have less tourists. However, I also realize that I am staying in someone's home (a lot of people seem to forget this) or property and that there may indeed be rules that I need to follow. AirBNB has a tendency to be much more affordable in Europe and the United Kingdom and offers economical housing for backpackers and travelers. However, you do have to do a considerable amount of research beforehand to assure that the host has good reviews and that the place you will be staying is in a well-commuted area.
Load More Replies... None of these sound legal. I guess owners can charge what they want, but it seems AirBnb risks bad press if things continue like these examples.
Airbnb gets heaps of bad press tbh, but they do try to bury it. Aside from creating housing woes, the thing that’s really turned me off the site is having to do hidden camera and pest (like bedbugs) sweeps upon arrival. It’s pretty disturbing
Load More Replies... Hotels, no airnbnb. Besides alot of airbnbs have hidden camera's, SCREW THAT
And I told him I didn't care what he did in the bedroom but that he needed to use headphones so as not to disturb anyone else and that he needed to leave the next morning instead of spending the 2nd night he had paid for. I refunded the girls money and his extra night and cancelled my Airbnb account. Never again.
I did Airbnb once. Had 2 empty bedrooms at my apartment in Gothenburg Sweden. Reasonable price and I didn't have a cleaning fee etc as I was there. Two girls aged 20 got the bunk room. $30 for both including breakfast. A guy aged 40 took the double room. Same price. Girls turned up about 7pm with takeout and invited me to eat with them so we ate and chatted. About 9pm they used the bathroom and went to bed just as the guy was arriving. He didn't want to eat or chat, just used the bathroom and went to bed. So I did the dishes, went to the bathroom and then bed. Then realised there was an odd type of music playing, p o r n music.. So I went into the hallway and the girls were there as well. We just looked at each other and I told them I'd take care of it and they went back to bed. Knocked on his door and he said come in. I opened the door and he was on the bed n*ked and had his member in his hand and his eyes on the p o r n playing on his laptop. He didn't stop or cover himself
i am not paying 300 a night to do chores. either i pay in money or labor. not bith
AirBnBs are also destroying the rental market and a total pain to regular neighbours. Stay in hotels! Or holiday appartments if you want to cook.
Airbnb, like most stuff, started out great but then was ruined by incredibly selfish people with no concept of treating their fellow humans decently.
The housing shortage in San Francisco is caused mostly from air bnb + vrbo.
If I'm charged a cleaning fee, I'm not doing chores. I'm not leaving the place a pig sty, but I'm not going to perform a service that I'm paying for.
Wowsers. I had a great experience using Airbnb when I was a tourist in France and Spain. On 2 separate occasions our hosts picked us up. One cooked traditional Spanish sardinas for us. It was cheaper to use Airbnb than to even stay in hostels, let alone hotels, and often we'd get a whole house to ourselves. Maybe it's different now?
Like I said up above, I think every single one is different. From huge house to yourself, to bedroom w/ bath you share with the family. Best bet is to read the reviews.
Load More Replies... I’ve stayed in a cabin once that required we start a load of laundry and take the trash out and wash the dishes we use which was fine, but most of them didn’t have any requirements that were outlandish. But I agree that it’s getting more expensive with more work when we can just go to a hotel.
We had to spend a week in a hoarder’s apartment. No space to hang our clothes, even the oven was used as storage. Glad we didn’t pre-heat it. We could barely move. Awful.
'Had' to spend? Did you read any reviews? Why did you book it then?
Load More Replies... Once again, what could have been a good idea (renting out a room short term at a cheap price to help both host and guest), ruined by greed. It happened the same with Bla Bla Car, a website to meet people who were carpooling. You'd share gas expenses if the went in your direction. Until car owners started charging full price of gas on the passenger and then some more to make a profit of a trip they had to do anyway. So it's hotels and train or couch for me now.
So...why do people use Airbnb? I would rather just pay for a hotel and get treated like a guest.
I'd rather stay in a hotel. I've looked into air bnbs before and compared to hotels. In most cases they were either the same or more expensive. If I'm on vacation I do t want to clean someone else's house.
Me and my grandparents went to one in oregon and none of the photos looked the same as the website, it smelled like smoke and my stomach felt like trash but as soon as we left or went down town, it felt fine. Same thing with my sibling
I use VRBO and have been really lucky with all of my vacation rentals. I mean, a few of them were filled with tons of mid-century antiques and a laundry list of "don't touch" but otherwise, I've had good experiences
Got invited to stay at an airbnb in Prescott, Arizona for a wedding. I opted for a hotel - thank goodness. When we went there after the bar we realized our friends had been duped. The ad said it had two separate sleeping areas. There was a bed in one photo. In a photo that LOOKED LIKE A DIFFERENT ROOM, there was a pull-out couch. When the couch was fully-pulled out it actually connected TO the bed. You couldn't get past the front door without literally climbing over a piece of furniture. My poor friend wandered off into the night to the nearest hotel and thankfully found a room. He wasn't planning on sharing a bed with two other people.
My upstairs neighbor moved to Paris on the profits from her illegal Brooklyn Airbnb. Twice her tenants overfilled the bathtub & flooded the place, causing a crack in my bathroom ceiling. Her reply? I should tell the landlord to fix it.
We're finishing a house to be an Airbnb. We'd just want the garbage out (so it doesn't stink) the dishwasher run (see above) and the beds stripped. None of that together takes more than 10 minutes, and that's all stuff you did before you left your house when you left for your vacation. We're providing coffee, creamer, sugar, plenty of toilet paper, napkins. slippers. bathrobes. soap. tooth brushes sunscreen (stuff in case you forgot yours) bug spray. . soda. granola. coupon to local lobster shack. Candle to bring home. Kayaks to use. We're trying to make it feel like a home away from home. No neighbors to complain. No cat to feed. No chickens to bother. no spy cameras. no wifi limit. just relax and enjoy your vacation . All stuff to make you feel at home.
But do you charge a cleaning fee in addition to having them do chores?
Load More Replies... While many of these may be legitimate complaints, a lot of these requests of owners just sound like being considerate to another human being who has invited you to their place. Airbnb is for unique experiences, hotels are for service, at airbnb you are a guest, in a hotel you are a customer. Just because you are paying someone (who still has to pay taxes and fees, and probably doesn't have an army of underpaid maids to clean your s**t up) doesn't mean you can treat them and their place as your servants. They have invited you to their home. And the 5 minutes it takes you to strip the bed or do dishes doesn't mean they don't have still hours of cleaning to do after you leave, so of course there will be a fee. If you are more into hotel services, and can find a comparable hotel, go for it! But I have found that Airbnb is usually either cheaper, or offers much more unique locations. I have used it at least 20 times in Europe, Africa and Asia, and I have never been dissappointed.
Invited me into their homes? Really? It's a business. I don't recall paying for the privilege of staying with friends whenever they invited me to theirs.
Load More Replies...