Found a great looking sailboat to stay on in the keys. paid for 3 nights. did airfare and rental car and another night at a hotel in Miami. Got a reminder on Tuesday of this week that they are looking forward to our visit next week. Got an email last night that the owners canceled our reservation. No explanation, nothing. The email had a spot that we could click if we wanted to use the money that had been billed for another reservation. When we clicked it we were asked to find a site. When we did, it asked for credit card info. Nothing hinted at the fact that we were using monies already put on the card. The way the site is run I was not anxious to throw more money down a drain that so far I could not get it out of. The other button was for a full refund. I clicked it…..and was taken to a page that dealt with referring friends to AirBnB…are you kidding me?!?!?! Again…no sign that another button on this page would get me my money back. It was like me taking a toaster back to the company I bought it from because it did not work…the person at the desk asks me how many egg timers I would like…..What……I want to take something back that is broken…don’t ask me about buying more. Will NEVER use this airbnb crap again.
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.
Smelly, loud, and dirty. A terrible place to stay in Paris.
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/947097 We booked this nice-enough-looking place for our stay in Paris. Our host contacted us and told us that we wouldn’t be able to check in until after 4:30PM. We made the necessary travel arrangements to accomodate. There are only so many international trains per day between southern Switzerland and Paris. On our way into Paris, the day of our reservation, our host contacted us again telling us we needed to check-in before 5:30PM, leaving us the slim window of 1-hour to check-in after traveling internationally. Somehow, we made it on time. When we arrived, the host showed us around very quickly and then left. He said he might not be able to meet us for check-out, so we should leave the keys on top of his mailbox. The kitchen smelled like rotting vegetables. The stove needed to be lit with a grill lighter and the only available utensils and cook-ware were covered in food. There was a load of laundry in the washing-machine. We were left with two towels for a 5-day stay, one of which had a giant hole in it. The sheets provided has a small blood-stain on them. The apartment was also quite noisy. The noise ranged from being able to hear a neighbor’s cellphone vibrating on the floor above us to hobos screaming down the street at 3AM. Also, from the pictures, an Eiffel Tower view is suggested but there was no such view in sight. The host told us if we weren’t happy with the apartment we could contact airBnB on the first day for a refund. As much as I would have loved to, that would leave us on the streets of Paris with nowhere to stay for 5 days. Not a viable option. The host claimed that we broke glasses and stole his keys. The keys were left in the decided-upon location and we were not even provided with any glasses. The whole experience felt like a scam from start to beginning and the host is now requesting more money from us.
Beware of this Airbnb in Honolulu
Well my first host scheduled was supposed to secure a place for me Jenny excellent room with ocean view Honolulu hawaii seemed great we emailed and text and when her other hosts said in review she picked up from airport thought that was great only to find out she wanted to charge me three times as much as a cab or shuttle to her would normally be when I told her to this age was sort of shocked I did the research then after that it sort of went down hill she avoided my texts until at least day before I was supposed to fly out told me to get a cab never told me to meet her or when she would give me a key and didn’t want to be homeless in hawaii so after numerous talks with our B and B agents I canceled her thank God and was told to book hotel and because if this I could get maybe three night s reimburse or help on finding a new letting I got one hotel night which I had to prepay then air b gave me refund after that thanks then they send me a couple things that were not close to where I needed to be and said they would increase my credit which they did do thanks again but because it was last minute and u was in Honolulu I couldn’t find anything avail and was almost homeless in Hawaii until I reached out to an old letting that I had previously looked at a small room in an old house Raymond and Rachael in Hawaii pahai go valley, Honolulu and that’s where the fun hell began …the host Raymond was a raging alcoholic who fell asleep with Kit cigarettes every night that I had to intercept so it didn’t burn me in whole house down there were cockroaches every where they left there doors open all the time they acted weird because I wanted a key when I keft to lock door and at first were reluctant to give me key the railings are not attached and when you hold on to them they wobble and are old wooden and have huge holes in them fifty steps up kafir safety hazards think the house was haunted because the doors would open and shut and reopen and shut several times in repetition for the day so always having to prop up stuff against door cockroaches the size of mount rush more every where the room was ok mid size and cable ok here’s the clinchers he said in his add is near a bus stop wasn’t syre if I wanted a car yet so took him for his word what you don’t know is that he lied the bus stop is twenty to thirty minutes away by walking up two massive high. Hills and down a third one which is very steep hill which also essentially not lit for cars either any who I fell down this steep hill and a few days later in the hospital found out I broke my ankle in three places and sprained and cut on Raymond’s street I stated there for rest if trip till I had to fly home .while I stayed there one time he had a date over and I came out for water whith my crutches and he told his date I was faking and I liked to get attention I was fit to be tied at that point but had to stay as I was flying out in a few days also as for renting his cars they aren’t cheap for guests staying there over 35.00 per day and the bike is 35.00 per day not ten if if u want to take it out in trade and weed his jungle home for the day with rusty cutters impossible. Beware single lady’s he now is sepersted from his wife she was there greedy and moved out she seemed nice but didn’t talk much I think because if situation with him so she diesent live with him in his house now he offered to rent one of his cats to me at a higher price then offered then mumbled something about it not being insured and I immediately said maybe I’ll rent one from someone else every night was a recant about the marriage and hiw his wife was this and that which I just shook my head at and tried to avoid beware this place bugs alcohal cigarettes dark energy fairy railings and stairs old house dust coming from deteriorating ceiling barking dogs constantly next door rains all the time even if waikiki is sunny too far from town at least half hour by car always unlocked at owners request even if ur guest ur treated like crap I think this person just needs the money and has too many problems to be concerned with hospitality as a host too bad I lost money time and peace if mind for my vacation and too much money spending on cabs cause too far away from town a total mess now recovering from broken ankle because if the lies and because if the steep as hill connected to his place beware Raymond Orange Honolulu old house small room
Swindle through the Airbnb platform
My daughter found a flat in NY on the Airbnb website. She received an email from the ‘host’ of the flat and also one issued by a fake Airbnb email address (express@airbnb.com pretending to be the real Airbnb, used its buzzwords / terminology and carried the Airbnb logo. It said: “Welcome to Airbnb!” and added that to “get started” they needed her email address. It was signed “Thanks, Airbnb Team” etc. This started correspondence with a duplicitous platform whose sole purpose was to swindle my daughter into paying an Airbnb Inc account with Barclays Bank for a reservation it confirmed with payment instruction. By the time payment was made. We contacted Customer Support and we were told, after rigorous checking of our credentials (how ironic or cynical) that they consider the host to be a security risk – but that we would have to be informed properly by their safety team. There were a number of conversations – each with the same rigorous check (I wonder for what purpose?) and each ending with how they care about their customers; how sorry they are and telling us to wait for contact by the Safety department. This took about 2 weeks. Despite the statement about how much they care, no interest was ever expressed to view the fake exchanges and perhaps learn how their customers are being cheated. This is amazing because for a company that is valued as high as Airbnb, it is obvious that they are operating a platform that ‘leaks’. Either third parties, or perhaps third parties aided by insiders working at Airbnb or ex-workers of Airbnb who are familiar with the engagement process themselves operating these fake operations. We do not know – but it is equally obvious that this scam was not designed for single use but is intended to score many hits. Presumably it does. There is however no-one to talk to at Airbnb. There is no interest on their side to learn more. They continue to operate a leaky platform that confuses and dupes their customers and this can be remedied by regular pop-ups or the use of passwords that protect private information AND by checking their hosts BEFORE they support their fraud by placing their ‘property’ on their website. Is it stupidity or naivety on their part as business managers that stops them from doing this – perhaps it is all too much for them? In any case, Airbnb is remarkably similar to the fraudsters who work as parasites on their sites. Once there is a problem there is no-one to talk to and their use of ‘no-response’ mails has similarities to the email addresses used by the swindlers and purporting to be issued by Airbnb which eventually are returned with the message ‘your message to express@airbnb could not be delivered”. I think this level of care is the lowest I have encountered on the web. I think the disregard for customers losses is unequalled in a travel business. I believe that no-one should use Airbnb as it is a company that is not interested in advancing itself or improving its services to its customers. Its concern is to turn away from the deceit practised around its activity and tell us how much they care and how sorry they are. Don’t bother using them – and running the risk of a swindle that may be encouraged by a leaky platform. Use a hotel. The customer feedback on travel sites for hotel bookings I have found reliable and authentic. Moreover, in entering someone else’s property – God knows to what you expose yourself (leaving aside Airbnb’s platform abuses), especially when you know that (no matter what they say to the contrary) their level of care is abysmal and you are on your own. On the face of theirs appears a hopelessly defective model.
We Got Not What We Booked
The management and arrangement for this Hong Kong Hostel that provided extremely poor service. The hotel named as New Lucky House which located at Nathan Road, HK. We feel extremely disappointed to the irresponsible person in-charge, Zoe for the extremely poor arrangement for our stay in Hong Kong on the last 2 weeks (18-19/9). We booked the room few weeks before we travel to Hong Kong, but by the time we reached the ‘hotel’ and called her for check in, she told us to wait her by the roadside because there was some issues for the room. We reached HK on 18/9 but we only book her room for 18 and 19/9 because we stayed at Disneyland Hotel on the 1st night. We dropped her several emails regarding our arrival in HK and the rough timing that we will be checking in her room the next day. She told us that there was no more room that available for us when we reached because she had rented it to some new arrival guests and she needs to bring us to the other guest house which was not the one that we originally booked! This is totally unacceptable. What’s the point for us to book the room in advanced and we’ve fully paid the money? She didn’t even and never informed us regarding the issue from the 1st place, although we contacted with her few times after we reached HK. What we felt was, it was totally not an issue for her because she kept saying that she was helping us to solve this issue. Well, that’s the issue she created for us, not that our problem. The attached link https://www.airbnb.com.sg/rooms/6682671 was the one that we booked original and please see attached photos that taken from the guesthouse she arranged for us. We are totally disappointed and mad on this – irresponsible host and extremely poor service from the host. Attached with the room photos from the guest house that she offered us – the room was not done the housekeeping completely!
Hosts never responded, stayed elsewhere
We wanted to book a room, the room had good reviews. Put the card in and nothing. We gather that hosts don’t have to bother to reply if they don’t want to book you in. Personality, just a reply saying they are unable to do so, for whatever reason, is fine, but not nothing. We were not really sure they even got our message. We ended up going elsewhere. And you couldn’t write a review of this as there was no place to put it as we hadn’t actually stayed. For a first time user, this left a bad taste.
Does my mistake excuse their potheadedness?
So I will start this off by saying…my dog somehow managed to jump thru a screen window at my host’s place while I was away for a few hours, because I don’t usually need to kennel my dog. Not only that but who the f*ck can possibly, logically presume the creativity of their pets to find a way to jump thru a window screen? However, yes he did this (no excuse), but my host and his wife were ACTUALLY THERE when it happened, and total potheads to the point that they were kind enough to NOT even bother to show me the simple courtesy of calling or spending 15 seconds of their time to send a message to let me know it happened…so I could hurry my f*cking ass back there to attend to the problem I created. So I arrived at ~3 PM that day to find my dog wandering their neighborhood, my hosts not even there, but away from their property. And upon returning later they didn’t even address the fact that they didn’t let me know it happened but were so fucking lazy with following up on it later in their Airbnb claim was to go on Amazon.com and look up window screens (since Amazon.com has the most diverse solution/market for window screens) and pick the most advanced solution available for their flimsy, aluminum window screen my dog ruined – which was probably 3 times more than it was worth – and request to charge that premium. And on top of that tacked on a pillow that had a stain – which I didn’t even use because I brought my own orthopedic pillow – but the claim they made had me reimbursing them for a set of pillows rather than one. All of this after their untrained farm dog attacked my dog at one point during my stay to the point that they had to pull their dog off of him… Thanks Airbnb…I really appreciate the ‘services’ you provide…
AirBNB ruined my trip in Italy
I will NEVER use AirBNB again. My host did not let me into the apartment for over 5 hours nor did she have any intention of letting me in despite the confirmation. She was out with her friends and could not be inconvieced to return to the apartment despite the fact I had given her my arrival information far in advance . No apology. I was stuck outside of Rome with little money, no phone, in a dark no traffic area. In the middle of the night a man let’s me into the apartment as I am starting to wander aimlessly into the night. The bathroom light did not work making it near impossible to shower. I wish I could end there however this is just the start of my bad expierences with Air B and B. The night before my host took me to the wrong apartment and I wasted the entire day packing my belongs and waiting for him to move me to the correct location. Again, no apology. The host had the audacity to blaim me because I did not correct him. Excuse me, but how am I suppose to know. This host also lied about the location of the apartment. It turned out to be a completely different part of the city. The list goes on and on. Again, I am NEVER using Air BNB again. NEVER!!!!!!!
Airbnb guests find a filthy flat, and can’t leave a review!
It appears if you cancel a reservation, you cannot review the property on Air B n B. We just arrived in Amsterdam to what was originally advertised as a “beautiful canal flat” in the center of Amsterdam. It was described as 2 bedrooms and modern. The truth is, that it is a squalid, filthy apartment. The second bedroom was an alcove beside the living area with no door. The “modern” touch was obviously the disco ball above the bed. The modern furnishings appeared to be cast offs with electrical tape holding together the foot stool. The TV stand looked to be from the early 60’s (remember the hardware from captain’s bed’s). The wall’s were filthy and need a good washing and paint job. The carpet was not installed properly and was just cut and put on the floors. We cancelled immediately and Air B n B gave me $218 as a refund for $1034!!! I have to wait 10 days to start the resolution process!! The host was not in town and we were let in by the cleaning person. I contacted the host by phone and the host did suggest he would have the apartment recleaned, but I told him it was impossible because the walls needed to be painted the windows cleaned and a door installed on the “second” bedroom. My phone was out of power and could not take pictures, but in no way did the photos on Air B n B resemble the photos on the website. Amazing how the walls show perfectly white in the photos and in real life they are filthy…
Airbnb Verifications Are An Intrusion of Privacy
Airbnb’s verification process is an intrusion on privacy. There is no place for processes like this. People should not use this site. There is absolutely no reason for them to request all of your profile details in order to book an apartment. Passport and mobile number should be more than enough. For example I don’t want airbnb snooping through my data trying to sell crap to all my friends.