AirBNB 101
For those of you who’ve heard of Airbnb, but have never
utilized the service, here’s what to expect and a few tips and tricks to help
you along the way.
 |
| Outside of our Airbnb apartment in Paris |
What is Airbnb?
Airbnb is a hospitality service that facilitates the rental
of housing including rooms, hostels, castles, villas, and even entire
apartments and houses.
They have over 3,000,000 lodging listings in 65,000 cities
and 191 countries. Each individual host determines the price.
 |
| Our studio apartment in Paris |
How do you use Airbnb?
You can access Airbnb on their website or free mobile app.
To find your perfect home, you can use filters such as price range, location,
lodging type, and dates.
Once your search results are populated, you can look through
photos, read host reviews, and see where the homes are located on a map.
When I was selecting our homes for Euro Trip 2017, this is
where I spent the bulk of my time. It was really important to me to find a nice
looking affordable place in a central location, and to have a host with great reviews who was
preferably a woman. Ya know, since we were also two women traveling in strange
countries… Didn’t want to have a “Taken” situation on our hands. HA!
Keep in mind that not only do you have the option to
review your host, but the host can also review you after your stay and it goes
on your public profile, so don’t be a slob!
There are a few different ways to book your Airbnb. The
first is “Instant Book,” where hosts don’t have to approve the reservation and
you can confirm right away. The second is “Request to Book” where
hosts approve the reservations before they’re final. Hosts have 24 hours to
accept or deny the request.
All monetary transactions are made through the website and you
will never have to give your host cash or credit card information.
 |
| Map of Paris (Our Airbnb is the red marker) |
What’s the check in/out process like?
On our Euro Trip, each of our Airbnb hosts had a different
method of check in/out. For our first stay in London, the host was at home to
let us in and show us around when we arrived, and we simply locked the door and
slid the key back under the door when we left.
In Paris, my favorite host, Sophie, met us at her home, sat
and talked with us for an hour, and gave us her phone number in case we needed
anything. For check out, the door locked automatically, so we just left the
keys on the counter.
On the second go around in London, the host just left the
keys under the doormat and told us to do the same when we left.
So, it’s pretty much up to the host and what they want to
do… Some people have lock boxes as well.
 |
| View from our Airbnb apartment overlooking the courtyard |
Are there additional fees?
There are a few different fees that you want to pay
attention to before you book your stay. Of course, this will all be included in
the total cost before you confirm the purchase.
Service Fee: Each reservation will have a 5-15% service fee
charged by Airbnb. The fees are calculated using the reservation subtotal,
length of reservation, and characteristics of listing.
Security Deposit: The host has the option to charge a security
deposit, but the money won’t be charged unless they file a claim against you.
Cleaning Fee: Some hosts may charge a one-time cleaning fee
to cover the cost to clean their home, which also varies based on their
preference.
Cancellation Policies: There are three different cancellation
policies (flexible, moderate, and strict) in which hosts can chose from. This
will be clearly stated on the reservation before you book.
 |
| Media Center |
Airbnb vs. Hotel
In our case, using Airbnb was definitely cheaper than booking
hotel rooms. The hotels in Europe were rather expensive in my opinion... Almost
$200 a night for a decent one, while our whole Airbnb in Paris totaled less
than $200 for two nights. The ones we stayed in in
London were $100 for two nights.
 |
| Kitchenette Area |
What’s it like staying in someone else’s house?
I know it may sound a little creepy to stay in someone
else’s home but we had pleasant experiences and felt completely safe. The hosts
were nice and pretty much let us do our own thing. If we ever needed anything
or had any questions they were available.
In London, we only rented a room in the host’s homes, while
in Paris we rented an entire apartment. Personally, I preferred the whole
apartment style because I didn’t have to share a bathroom, interact with
anyone, or worry about bothering the host with our noise if we came in late or
were up talking.
In Paris, Sophie had everything we needed. She gave us a complimentary bottle of wine, had a TV with an Xbox and movies, and a fully equipped kitchenette... Literally everything. It was amazing.
Of course the single room would typically be cheaper than an
entire apartment. But, it’s up to you and what you prefer.
Have you ever stayed in an Airbnb? What was your experience
like? Leave me a comment!
-A.
Comments
Post a Comment