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50 Times People Were Screwed Over By Their Hotels And Airbnbs (New Pics)
Interview With Expert
Like with everything else in life, when it comes to hotels and Airbnb, what you pay for is what you get. But every once in a while, travelers come across places to stay that exceed expectations in all the wrong ways.
So we’ve gathered some of the worst hotel and Airbnb experiences and failures that netizens simply had to shame online. We also got in touch with veteran traveler Monica Stott to learn a bit more. So get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote the worst fails, and be sure to share your own ideas and stories in the comments section below.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
That Went From Horrifying To Unexpected Perk Rather Quickly
RELATED:
#2
My Hotel View. It's Actually Nice To Have Quiet Neighbors
#3
You Won't Be Getting Any Sleep There. Even With The Blinds Closed, You'll Know It's Watching
Bored Panda got in touch with veteran traveler Monica Stott and she was kind enough to share some of her experience with us. First and foremost, we wanted to hear what advice she would give her younger self in regards to traveling.
“You don’t need all that stuff! Find your favorite travel outfit and stick with it and forget about all the ‘just in case’ items. You never need them. But pay for extra cloud storage and backup your photos and videos. Those photos are priceless, look after them,” she added, and for good reason, every single country in the world has something beautiful to capture.
#5
I Found A Pair Of Handcuffs Attached To A Leg Of The Bed In My Airbnb In Tijuana
#6
While My Family With Young Kids Were Staying At This Airbnb, An Old Man Walked Into The Backyard And Started Draining The Pool
The pool was included in our stay. We also rented the whole house which in my mind should include privacy and no interruptions from the homeowner.
When it comes to hotels, everyone has their own philosophy. Some prefer to rough it out and save their money for tickets and activities, while others enjoy living in the lap of luxury. Naturally, given Monica’s experience, we wanted to hear her opinion on when to splurge and when to save.
#7
AC Wasn't Cooling Effectively In My New Hostel Room. Maintenance People Didn't Respond, So I Decided To Take A Look Myself. This Is The Filter
#8
They Said That Hotel Includes A "Private Balcony". It's Just A View Of The Wall Of The Next Building
#9
My Airbnb Host Said: "The Lock Box Is Near The White Door. It Is Silver With Black Plastic"
“If we lived in a perfect world then we’d all have plenty of time and plenty of money and we’d be free to make the choice about which is most important to us. But we don’t live in a perfect world and it’s not normally a choice. Some of us have one or the other, most of us don’t have enough of either!”
#10
The Running Hot Water At My $550/Night Hotel Room In Paris
Nadine Debard 1 year ago (edited)
Paris has old plumbing, so if there was an intervention on the street it's very likely to have ground/rust during the first 5-10 minutes. Edit : yes, plumbery, like I definitely needed coffee and glasses this morning :)
#11
I Found This Camera In My Vacation Rental
#12
I Stayed At Made Hotel In NYC, And This Was My View From The Bed
“Just remember that nothing has to be forever. You might prioritize time at one stage of your life (perhaps when your children are little) and then prioritize money for a while (perhaps in your 50s so you can retire young). There’s no right or wrong, we all just do what feels right at the time,” she shared with Bored Panda.
#13
I Was Staying At A Hotel In Canada. They Were Doing Construction And Didn't Bother To Put Any Signs, So This Morning, I Fell Down 3 Feet
#14
Salad In The Italian Restaurant In Egypt Hotel
#15
My Hotel Window On The 8th Floor Has A Window That Opens From The Bottom And Opens Up Far Enough To Fall Through The Frame
“I definitely prefer traveling slowly and paying less to do so. But do I have 10 weeks to slowly travel around Europe by train? No, no I don’t. So, at the moment, I’ll be taking a quick flight every other weekend to European cities for a 2-night break!” After all, as this article shows, not all hotels are made equal, so it’s best to know what to look out for.
#16
I Stayed At A Hotel With Giant Fleas On The Wallpaper
#17
Welcome To The Underground
#18
This Has Made Me Laugh
We also asked Monica to share her own tips on how to prepare for a trip. “I don’t like to over-prepare because it can take the joy out of stumbling upon things and enjoying the moment. There are a few things I like to do though: Book my accommodation, know how I’m getting from the airport/train station to my accommodation, and roughly know how much things will cost.”
#19
View From The Hotel Room. They Claimed We Would Get City Views
#20
The "City View" From My Hotel Room In Istanbul
#21
I Tried To Open The AC Vent At The Airbnb I'm Staying At On Vacation And Found This
“Have a short list of things I want to see, a few restaurants I’d like to try and plot these places on Google Maps so I don’t get lost.” If you want to learn more travel tips, check out Monica’s Instagram as well as her blog. For those who weren’t turned off hotels and Airbnb from this article, check out some travel ideas for 2024.
#22
My Airbnb Assured Me They Have A "Very Safe" Baby Gate
#23
At The Hotel I’m Staying At. Definitely Not Suspicious
#24
The Airbnb Has A Window From The Shower To The Living Room
#25
I Saw The Full Mirror In My Hotel Room Randomly Shake And Discovered This Space In The Wall Behind It
Apparently, the hotel tried covering up damage done by a previous guest.
#26
The Sheets At My Airbnb. Homeowner Wouldn't Answer The Phone Because It Was The Sabbath, And He Couldn't Work
#27
The Staircase At My Hotel Room Just Drops Off
#28
TV In My Hotel Room
#29
First Day Of Vacation And Our Half Of The Hotel Doesn't Have Power. Guess Who Might Be Going Home Early
#30
Why Hotels Do This
WindySwede 1 year ago
Never have the number of your room on the card! I hope it just was for this photo!
#31
The Hotel Advertised Having A Balcony. This Is The Balcony
#32
The Charcuterie Board At My Hotel
#33
Hotel Manager Decided To Come Into My Room While I Was Still In There To Paint The Door That Didn't Even Need Painting, In My Opinion
#34
Sprinklers In My Hotel Room
"Remove after installation" written on the cap.
#35
Notice To Airbnb Guests
#36
My Hotel Made The Walls Of The Bathroom Fully Transparent
#37
$160 A Night In This Disgusting Hotel Room In Midwest USA
#38
Got An Airbnb Just For The Tub
#39
I Found This Gem At A Hotel In Wisconsin
#40
Me And My Girlfriend Stayed At The Hotel, Where The Valet Driver Decided To Take My Car For A Joy Ride And Ran My Car Up A Curb
#41
Someone Urinated (I Think) In My Hotel Room's Bed
I’ve been sitting on top of the duvet for the past 3 hours. I showered, then pulled the covers back to find this… Smells funky.
#42
Safety Precautions Inside A Hotel I Was Staying At In Bali
#43
Yep, I'll Definitely Know What To Do "In Fire Emergency", Hilton Garden Inn Cherry Creek (Denver)
#44
I'm Staying In A Hotel Room And Found This License Plate Hidden Under The Mattress
#45
I Arrived At My Airbnb In Sao Paulo At 3 AM And Found This Mess
#46
Airbnb Asking For Tips After Charging A Cleaning Fee
#47
What In The World Is That?
#48
The Hotel I Stayed At Last Night Said They Provided Free Breakfast
#49
Hotels Should Make Blinds Useful Again
Rebelliousslug 1 year ago
This would drive me crazy. I want my hotel room dark until I open the curtains/blinds.
#50
This Hotel Provides Hair Dryers But Tells Their Guests Not To Use Them
Jrog 1 year ago
Bad communication, but it clearly means do not plug an air drier in the outlet clearly marked "Shavers only". Those appliances are rated for a couple hundred watts, while an hair dryer goes easily into the 2000s. You are of course welcome to use the provided hair dryer, that has a properly connected inbuilt cable.
#51
The Airbnb I'm Staying In Says It's A Laundry Room, So I'll Be Wearing Dirty Clothes All Week Because I For Sure Won't Be Going There
#52
My Daughter's Budget Hotel View Over Liverpool
#53
Airbnb Really?
Dianellian 1 year ago
Stop using Airbnb. I’ve found they often also advertise on ‘normal’ websites like booking.com for much cheaper.
#54
I Paid 300 Bucks For 3 Nights At This Specific Hotel Because They Advertised Free Continental Breakfast. This Is Their "Continental Breakfast"
#55
This Airbnb Host's Kitchen Rules
#56
The Men's Restroom At My Hotel
#57
I Paid Extra For A "Tower Room" At Our Hotel And Were Told We'd Get A Nice View Of The River
#58
The Shower Drain In My Hotel
#59
I Cannot Stop Laughing At The Vegetarian Starter My Friend Was Given In A Hotel
#60
The Airbnb I'm At Has The Toilet So Close To The Sink That I Can Wash My Hands And Poop At The Same Time
#61
My Parents Are Staying In A Hotel That Promised To Serve Them Breakfast During Their Stay. This Is The Breakfast They Were Given
#62
They Said There Was A Sea View At Our Airbnb
#63
You Can Now Poop While Showering
#64
This Bathroom Mirror In My Hotel Room. I'm 5'2" And Can't Use The Bathroom Mirror. No Step Stool Provided
#65
This Is Very Strange
#66
Sometimes, Hotels Make The Weirdest Design Choices
#67
The TV Remote In My Hotel Wasn't Working. It Felt Too Light, So I Checked The Batteries And Found This
#68
The "I Ran Out Of Paint And Got Lazy" Aesthetic
Catlady6000 1 year ago
Wonder if they were trying to achieve an ombre effect and just...got lost
#69
The Light Switches In My Hotel Room. I Accidentally Turned The Lights On Twice While Sleeping
#70
Salt And Pepper Shakers At My Hotel Room
#71
Floor Lights In Front Of Hotel Elevator. It's Very Easy To Trip Over Them
John Mosley 1 year ago
I would argue it would take a certain type of person to trip over those. And I am that person.
#72
The Highlight Of My Day Was When I Stood On The Bathroom Scale In My Hotel Room This Morning And It Literally Exploded
#73
Hotel In Dublin Installed The Anti-Fog Mirror Upside Down
#74
This Very Annoying Emergency Exit Light In My Room
#75
Hotel Key Card That Doesn't Fit In Your Wallet
#76
Apparently, Not Only My Room Wasn't Ready
On vacation with my kid, I went to check in at 2:30, and my hotel asked that I come back in an hour to pick up my key card because my room wasn't ready yet. Later, I came back to a long line with 100 more people behind me. They had only one single working bathroom and no water.
Weezy 1 year ago
This happens all the time in hotels. Weddings, conferences, etc., everyone comes in at the same time to check in. If you come back in an hour the place would be empty. Hard to schedule employees to come in for 1-3 hours, they don't like it that much. Sometimes, you just have to wait.
#77
Airbnb Is Getting Out Of Hand
#78
This Hotel Elevator Won't Let Me Go Down
#79
Impeccable Interior Design
#80
Nice Idea But Badly Executed
#81
Who Approved This "Artwork" At My Hotel?
#82
Arbitrary Stairs In The Middle Of A Hallway
WindySwede 1 year ago
Wounder if there are anything under them, like sewer pipes or anything else?
#83
My Hotel Room In North Carolina
M O'Connell 1 year ago
It would have taken quite a bit less effort to just trim the towel bar to be shorter.
#84
3 Cars Had All Of Their Tires Stolen In The Hotel Parking Lot Last Night
#85
Is This Mold Caused By Water Infiltration? Found In An Airbnb, Unsure Whether Or Not To Report
#86
This Shower That Doesn't Have A Door And Gets The Floor Soaked
#87
Me And My Wife Stayed In This Room Where One Of Those Doors Conjoins With The Neighboring Room. The Little Kids Who Were There Kept Trying To Open It To Our Room The Whole Night
#88
These Random Shower Tiles In The Hotel Where We Are Staying
#89
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel In Guatemala
martymcmatrix 1 year ago
»Ritz-Carlton« and »Guatemela« are ruling each other out anyway...it's like a paradox, or rather an oxymoron...🙋🏽
#90
I Reserved A Suite Months Ago For A Trip To San Diego, Only To Find Out During Check-In That Pool And Hot Tub Are Closed For Renovation
#91
The Shower Drain In My Hotel Looks Like A Trap Door
#92
I'm Glad I Paid For The "Deluxe Room" Upgrade In This 4-Star Hotel
#93
Totally Gonna Use This Sink Water On The Coffee Machine In The Hotel Room
#94
This Useless Half-Wall Nook In My Hotel Room. New Developments Really Just Love To Waste Materials
#95
I Arrived In Prague. This Hotel Room Is Interesting
#96
The Hotel I’m Staying At Forgot To Change Out Both Signs, Leaving Very Different Cleaning Fees
Little Wonder 1 year ago
If you smoke near the wall it's $250, if you smoke in the middle of the room it's $100
#97
A "Perfect" Fit For A TV (At An Airbnb My Girlfriend Stayed In)
#98
I'm Currently In A Hotel And Need To Take A Shower. I'm Sure One Of These Turns The Water On. These Things Are Far More Complicated Than They Need To Be
#99
My Mom's Shower At Her Hotel
Crystal Spencer 1 year ago
I work at a hotel. This is a "handicap accessible" room. Ours are just like this therenis probably a fold down bench behind that curtain. The extra hand shower is so you can have a caregiver assist you while you still get to control where you want your water for comfort reasons.
#100
The Curtains At This Hotel Are Not Movable, So We Couldn't Block Out Any Light
#101
Hotel I'm At Just Charged Me 14 Bucks For A Couple Of Eggos And 10 Tater Tots
#102
To The Guy Saying His Airbnb Had A Sink Too Close To The Toilet… I Wanted To Welcome Myself To The Club
John Mosley 1 year ago
You know, you could also just take a picture of the sink and the toilet from a profile view and we could skip seeing where your boys reside.
#103
This Faucet In My Hotel Makes It Nearly Impossible To Wash Your Hands
1 year ago
I've seen these kinds of sinks way too often. They're usually really short too (I'm 6 ft) so I have to bend down :/
#105
Stuff Like That, Can Give Me Dizziness
Brian Droste 1 year ago
At least every other step of the carpet is off set so you can see the steps. Otherwise it would all blend in and look like one big step or no step at all.
#106
These Charging Ports In A Hotel
#107
A Monkey Broke Into My Friend's Hotel Room Next To Mine By Opening A Very Heavy Balcony Door, Which Was Closed But Not Locked
Apparently, the monkey emptied two tubes of powdered Celsius I had given my friend, so there's an insane macaque hopped up on Celsius.
Mark 1 year ago
This is not on the hotel or Airbnb owners. If you visit a place with monkeys as part of the wildlife, CLOSE EVERYTHING. Those monkeys know the hotel better than you, so lock all doors and windows. I've stayed in a hotel in Koh Chang, a Thai island, and one day the wild monkeys got in and stole a bowl of bananas. It should be written out on a sign, but this should just be common knowledge if you're travelling around SE Asia, like don't bring durian into rooms
#108
The Hotel I'm Staying At Had A Broken Door, So I Fixed It For Them
#109
How My Hotel Decided To Set Up The Bed And The Fridge
#110
Airbnb Host Asks This After A $350 Cleaning Fee While Being Asked To Strip All Sheets, Take Out All Trash And Run A Dishwasher
#111
You Only Get Free Water At My Hotel If You Are "Elite"
#112
Airbnb House, TV Is Hung Halfway Up A Two-Story High Fireplace, Nearly Level With The Upper Floor
#113
This Light Switch That I Have Found In My Hotel Room
#114
This Railing At A Hotel I Stayed At
M O'Connell 1 year ago
Whoever installed the stone treads did an amazing job cutting in around the stair structure.
#115
I'm Staying At A Hotel And Found This Next To The Basin. One Is Liquid Soap, And The Other One Is A Gift Left By The Previous Person
#116
The Hotel Forgot To Put The Bedding On The Beds
#117
A Hotel Room With "Sea View", Cape Town
#118
My Hotel Room's TV. The Funny Thing Is That I Couldn't Focus As It Was Too Far Away. If You Are Too Close, It's Like Looking Up At The Sky While Playing
#119
I Have Never Once Stayed At An Airbnb And Found Non-Stick Pans That Don't Look Like They've Been Sandblasted
Rebelliousslug 1 year ago
I honestly wouldn’t keep replacing them either as people don’t care about the property of others and too many people are uneducated on the dangers of using cookware in this condition. Got my dad’s new pans for Christmas as all of his looked like this. By February two were cut into.
#120
The TV At My Hotel Lobby Has Been Doing This For Over An Hour
#121
The Beach Access Door At The Hotel I'm Staying At. People Without Cards Can Easily Open The Door
#122
I’m In Los Angeles For Work And My Hotel Has The Worst Artwork
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Verena 1 year ago
Take advantage of modern technology in your hands: Check the surroundings on Google Maps, Streetview of various companies and the yearly updated aerial view on the site of the land management body.
TheCrazyBunnyLady 1 year ago
I'm very happy to have my disability, it's a perfect excuse not to have to travel and stay in these places! My in-laws are crazy about family hotel vacations, and I'm happy to be excused.
Rachel 1 year ago
Currently staying in an Airbnb guest house, chose it specifically so my dog could be off leash in the fenced yard. My non-aggressive poodle likes to bark, and the tenant of one of the houses who shares the yard has told me to keep her on a leash, since she barks at him when he comes out every time i took her out to the yard. Their three dogs run around off leash. Owner should have clarified that small, quiet, non-agressive dogs who don't go up to other people may be allowed off leash.
Gypsywolf 9807 1 year ago
Bored Panda has removed all Ukraine flags from their bio. Look. Go fight your own war.
Bodin Suleiman 1 year ago
That's because they're a Putin propaganda machine now. Either out of greed or fear of getting killed when Russia invades Lithuania. Either way, they're soulless cowards.
Load More Replies... Verena 1 year ago
Take advantage of modern technology in your hands: Check the surroundings on Google Maps, Streetview of various companies and the yearly updated aerial view on the site of the land management body.
TheCrazyBunnyLady 1 year ago
I'm very happy to have my disability, it's a perfect excuse not to have to travel and stay in these places! My in-laws are crazy about family hotel vacations, and I'm happy to be excused.
Rachel 1 year ago
Currently staying in an Airbnb guest house, chose it specifically so my dog could be off leash in the fenced yard. My non-aggressive poodle likes to bark, and the tenant of one of the houses who shares the yard has told me to keep her on a leash, since she barks at him when he comes out every time i took her out to the yard. Their three dogs run around off leash. Owner should have clarified that small, quiet, non-agressive dogs who don't go up to other people may be allowed off leash.
Gypsywolf 9807 1 year ago
Bored Panda has removed all Ukraine flags from their bio. Look. Go fight your own war.
Bodin Suleiman 1 year ago
That's because they're a Putin propaganda machine now. Either out of greed or fear of getting killed when Russia invades Lithuania. Either way, they're soulless cowards.
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