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Home > So who here has used Air B&B?

So who here has used Air B&B?

April 2nd, 2017 at 09:09 pm

One of my new year's resolutions was to try to do a couple of weekend getaways this year--one in the spring and one in the fall (plus work will pay for my going to a conference in Las Vegas in June, and I need to take some time to visit my sister in Los Angeles, possibly in July since work is slowest then).

In beginning to think about a spring getaway, I looked at the website for the bed and breakfast that I have gone to a couple of times before--once on my own in the fall, and then I met Patient Saver there last May (the second time we had met F2F). I love that b&b because it is right on the Delaware River, but in northern PA so less pricey than the New Hope area B&Bs, and there were a couple of restaurants within walking distance.

But when I looked at their schedule for this year, I see that they aren't taking reservations, citing health reasons. I'm sorry to hear that one of the owners is ill, and sorry that my nice little weekend getaway is now most likely out of business.

So I began looking at Air B&B places and thought I'd ask about people's experiences with them. Of course, it's going to vary a lot based on the particular place you stay. I only have ever had conversations with two people about their Air B&B experience.

9 Responses to “So who here has used Air B&B?”

  1. rob62521 Says:
    1491168086

    Sorry, I haven't. But look forward to reading others' responses.

  2. Kiki Says:
    1491168795

    I am looking at ABNB for Dublin Ireland next spring and LA in January with family.

    I have a colleague who uses it all the time both domestically and internationally. He loves it and they save a lot of money when traveling internationally.

    Personally I am only looking at separate areas where I have total use of the facility - no rooms in someones home while they are still there.

  3. MonkeyMama Says:
    1491172131

    Another website to check out is vrbo.com

    I've never found either site useful for my own purposes (it will vary widely by region), but a friend of mine did use vrbo.com and had a great experience. & we've used something similar in the past.

    {We probably would have used vrbo in Florida, which makes sense because property values are depressed there so the private rental market is crazy competitive. But we had a free room, so did not utilize}.

  4. jokeabee Says:
    1491174953

    I've never used Airbnb to stay anywhere, but we rent out our basement on it. My suggestion is to make sure there are a lot of good reviews for any place you are interested in staying. Listings with more pictures and a lot of description are better. You can ask hosts questions, but I know I am weary about accepting reservations from people who ask me questions that are very clearly listed in the description. Like, how much does it cost a night, how many people does it sleep, is it available, etc. If those questions aren't answered in the description then I would look elsewhere.

  5. PatientSaver Says:
    1491178872

    Sorry to hear it's closed, although it might not be forever. However, there are so many great places to stay, so now you have a reason to find them!

  6. snafu Says:
    1491191782

    We've recently returned from nearly 3 months in SE Asia. We wanted to rent an outfitted, furnished condo in a specific zone in Bangkok with excellent public transportation within specific walking distance as we don't drive in that terrorizing traffic. We also used Air bnb in other cities in other countries, staying about half in condos and half in hotels. We've also used Air bnb in several American cities. It's important to be specific about what you need and want. We check aerial visuals online looking at the specific street and check services and parking facilities.

  7. My English Castle Says:
    1491243750

    We've used it several times--one was particularly good, another particularly bad.
    In Montreal last summer, a friend and I reserved a cute flat six or seven weeks in advance. As a backup we also reserved a free-to-cancel hotel room, and I'm so glad we did. Five days (eek!) before we were set to leave, the flat owner cancelled on us saying her apt association no longer allows short term rentals. They refunded all our money, but we would have been in quite a pinch trying to fnd something during the jazz festival. I'd read review carefully. But we've had other really good experiences too including lovely places that allow dogs, warm welcoming places with flowers and wine etc. As usual, I agree with snafu.

  8. rob62521 Says:
    1491254147

    I have used vrbo to find the condo we rented on Tybee Island. We were pleased.

  9. MonkeyMama Says:
    1491261228

    @MEC - very smart! That is why I did not consider using at all for our trip abroad. I wouldn't want to be scrambling for last minute accommodations, for a whole WEEK, in a foreign country. When pricing rooms in DC last year, I saw several very highly rated properties that had some one-star reviews for last minute cancellations. The otherwise 5-star reviewed property owners seemed to take great offense that people were upset about their personal last minute emergencies. But I appreciated the heads up. I Was making plans to travel for 10 days with a family of four, so I quickly decided we just had to get a hotel. If I was a single traveler I could probably go a bit more with the flow.

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