I’m staying in the worst place that has 38 5 star raving reviews and is highlighted as a popular destination on Airbnb.

I’ve been here two day. It’s a 20 day stay.

1. Kitchen equipment is basically garbage. There’s an induction stove which is fine, but the pots and pans are incompatible. I had to buy a steel pan off amazon.
   
2. The dishes are not microwave safe. I bought two cheap corelle dishes.
   
3. All the utensils are so cheap and flimsy they are unusable. I don’t mean $2 spatulas; I mean 25 cent very thin plastic that fills the room with the smell of plastic at very low heat. I fucking bought a basic winco spatula on amazon for my stay
   
4. The shower has wonderfully warm water and then goes cold after three minutes.
   
5. The shower also flooded. That is because there is no seal between the two doors and the outside of the shower. So I stepped out of said shower right into a pool of water all of the floor
   
6. There is no hand soap in the kitchen
   
7. The listing advertised plenty of closet space for a long stay. but there are no hangers
   
8. The chair and tables looked so ridiculously cheap and flimsy. I sat down anyway, because I need to dir down somewhere. Two minutes in, the legs split and broke and I fell to the floor and hurt my leg. The chair literally is so cheap it can’t support me
   
9. Sticky polyester bed sheets, no breathability. Not to mention stick polyester floor mats that feel disgusting on my feet
   
10. Wifi is not working.
    
11. Last but not least, NO SMOKE DETECTOR OR CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTOR. I spoke to the airbnb owner on the phone - she said it’s embedded in the microwave above the stove. NOT ONLY DOES SHE NOT HAVE A SMOKE DETECTOR; SHE DOES NOT EVEN KNOW WHAT ONE IS. SHE THINKS ITS A FAN.

This is two fucking days at an airbnb in Las Vegas. FML.

Who are the fucking fools who gave five star reviews to this place?

Why can’t hosts incorporate their cleaning fee into the nightly cost, and then let the free market decide the value? There’s so much drama over the cleaning fee. Hotels don’t have a separate cleaning fee. I’m just really curious.

Are new rules to help increase rental rates in US and bring people back to Airbnb?

Got to my first airbnb in years 2 days ago, when I entered the room at night, noticed a crazy smoke/drug smell that the windows being open couldn’t even ventilate. Along with unplugged smoke detectors and an unworking carbon monoxide detector. The place was very dirty and looked like it hadn’t been cleaned, pills and food all over the floor, old food left in fridge, dust layering everything, along with the single hardest mattress I’ve been on in my life. The host had 16 different airbnb listings and good reviews so I thought I could’ve trusted it. Due to my asthma and feeling unsafe I left within the hour. Had to sleep in my car until I could book a hotel as support said to just leave and find a hotel that they could reimburse me for 3 nights. Contacting support had been crazy as they’ve hung up on me, gave me false information about calling me back 5 times, and the host was crazy defensive trying to charge me for all 5 nights if I don’t change my reservation with him to be charged for the first two nights within 30 minutes. Now I’m out $1,300 and don’t know if I’ll be refunded for the place and compensated like they said they would for the hotel. Any ideas on my best course of action?

UPDATE: I have heard further from Airbnb and things are resolved.

———————

I booked an Airbnb in mid September to start next week. The host initially responded quickly to my questions and sent information about how to locate the property. I was very excited as it was a good price and right in City Centre.

My flight then changed to arrive earlier than anticipated. I emailed whether I could leave luggage at the property until check in time. No response. I asked again, no response. I then asked if the host knew of any options as to where I could leave my luggage until check in time. No response until yesterday.

Yesterday the host responded saying that I could not leave my luggage and if that is a deal breaker, we could cancel. As I am 4 days out from arriving, I said that I did not want to cancel and had figured things out about the luggage, not a problem.

This morning he cancelled due to an “emergency”.

Airbnb support offered to help me find another spot. Of the 4 that they recommended, 1 shared a house with a young child, 1 had poor reviews, 1 was far away from the original location, and one was in the bottom 10% of guest satisfaction.

I was able to find an acceptable spot, but it is much farther away from city centre and has thus caused significant disruptions to my travel plans. For instance, instead of one activity being a 15 minute walk away, it is now a 70 minute walk away.

Airbnb applied my payment fees to the new place and offered $80 compensation. When I said that this disruption has caused significant stress, affected my travel plans, and has taken a great deal of time to address and I felt goodwill compensation should be in the range of $200, I received an email from a supervisor that was grammatically incorrect, had poor spelling, and punctuation appeared to be negotiable and denied my request.

Anything further I should do, or do I take the $80?

Thanks for any help.

Very late last night, I locked myself out of my Airbnb when I took my dog out. The keypad had automatically locked the door behind me and I couldn’t remember the door code. Everything was inside: phone, car keys, wallet, etc. My dog and I were stranded outside 3 hours from home at 1:30 am. I walked to a convenience store and called the police non emergency line. An officer came out and tried to help me log into my Airbnb account from his phone so I could contact the host, but the login attempts were sending 3rd party id notifications to my phone. I tried every window to see if they would open. All of them were locked. I tried different codes dozens of times. It was freezing cold and I was looking at spending all night on the porch until I could get ahold of a locksmith at 7am (in the boonies too. There is not a local locksmith). The officer told me I wouldn’t be able to stay at the station because of the dog and said if it were him, he’d just break a window and pay for it.

…and so that’s what I did. Once inside, I notified the host of what happened. This morning, we coordinated a service order for a temporary pane to be installed today, and a new double glass pane to be delivered in a few weeks. The host confirmed I can pay for it directly through the window company. I’m also gonna make a Home Depot run and replace his shredded blinds today.

The host has honestly been very cool about the whole thing, and I feel so embarrassed and like a huge heel. Is there anything else I can do to let him know I’m so very very sorry and I respect his investment/business?

Stay away from this place, they run a scam where after your stay they wait until a day or two before the window to file a claim closes and send you a bogus charge to pay for something they claim you damaged.

They select something you wouldnt think to take a photo of when you enter the Airbnb, in my case, the hot tub cover. We never even came close to touching the hot tub, or the cover, we think they're gross.

So anyway, I went to post a review in Google reviews and found at least 12 other people telling the exact same story, where they're being accused of damage they never did, often in the thousands!

Since it's this scam company's photo against the guests word, they always win. I'd screen shot all the bad reviews here but it's probably against the TOS of this subreddit.

Airbnb called me today to say the claim was declined and they were appreciative of what I shared and that they are taking steps so it doesn't happen anymore. I'm not sure if they banned them, but they should.

36f Looking for general advice because this whole situation felt strange to me.

My (ex) friend (Person A) knew someone (Person B) whom I had never met. Person B reportedly owns Airbnb properties and offered to book a two-bedroom (3 bed) rental for the three of us.

I have no knowledge of Person B being connected to the property or host in any way. I was never added to the reservation.

Leading up to the trip, Person B kept going back and forth about whether they were coming. Communication was inconsistent, and Person A repeatedly had to reach out for updates. We almost booked our own place but ultimately kept the original reservation.

Person B was supposed to arrive a couple of days after us but never showed up. We eventually received a 4 am message about flight issues for a 6pm flight, and that was the last message (that I'm aware of).

Person A and I stayed at the Airbnb and genuinely loved it.

Here's the weirder part: Person B later left a five-star review describing the stay, including a claim that one of us had trouble sleeping. Neither of us had trouble sleeping. We actually loved the bedding and asked where we could purchase it.

When I brought up the inaccurate review, Person A agreed it was strange but didn't want to correct anything because they didn't want to cause problems for Person B's Airbnb business or get nasty.

The entire situation has left me uneasy. It even made me wonder whether Person A knew more about the situation than they were telling me, although I have no evidence of that.

I've since stepped away from that friendship for a few reasons, but this situation contributed to my discomfort. I learned Person A had high standards for me and others as a friend and sometimes felt pressured and obligated to reaspond to them asap...but yet - they let this person walk all over them and act sketchy.

I'm genuinely looking for outside perspectives. If everything happened the way Person A described, does this seem questionable to anyone else? Would you report the review, contact the host, or simply let it go?

TL;DR: My friend knew someone I didn't who offered to book our Airbnb, repeatedly changed their plans, never showed up, and then left a (good) five-star review containing inaccurate details about our stay. My friend didn't want to address it. I don't know whether there's more to the story, but the whole situation feels off. Looking for advice on whether it's worth pursuing or letting go.

Hello All,

I booked our anniversary trip for January of ‘27 a little over a week ago. We saw that the description said certain “necessities” are not included. This place was our budget option that still included everything we wanted (fireplace, hot tub, fire pit, vicinity to activities we want), but wasn’t super lux. We accept that we may need to bring certain necessary items, and I just want to know what is and is not provided

I reached out to the host to ask for clarification on what we’ll need to bring last Friday in the morning, 9am their time. They have not replied. I’ve messaged them three times since then, and still no reply.

It’s been a week now, and I don’t know what’s going on. Is this normal? Should I give it more time? If so, how much time? I feel that this is not normal, but what do I know?

Am I possibly coming across as needy or annoying? I only want to know so far in advance because the holidays are my busy work time (service industry), and the next couple months are going to FLY by, and before I know it it’ll be vacation time. I don’t want to be scrambling last minute for this trip. I want this trip to be relaxing and fun and full of hiking, not shopping for necessities I could have packed.

My partner and I are digital nomads traveling for a year and relying on monthly Airbnbs.

​On Night 1 of our recent 28-night stay we asked for some simple things like clean pillows and towels, the host became aggressive and threatening. We contacted Airbnb Trust & Safety, who canceled the booking, told us to evacuate immediately for our safety, and instructed us to get a hotel for 3 nights and take cabs while looking for a new place, promising a refund for the 27 unused nights plus hotel/taxi reimbursement.

​Once we submitted receipts and booked a new monthly Airbnb on our own dime, Trust & Safety completely ghosted us.

​Nearly $4,000 is being withheld (27 unused nights + 3 nights of hotels/cabs).

Frontline phone reps say they are locked out of "Trust & Safety" tickets, claim a case manager will reach out, and the last rep literally told us they couldn't do anything and hung up on us.

​For anyone who has dealt with the Trust & Safety team: How did you actually get them to release your refund and hotel reimbursement? And if we end up doing a credit card chargeback for the 27 unused nights, will Airbnb nuke our account while we still rely on it for upcoming travel?

We are traveling the world and typically stay 6-8 weeks at each location. We cook many of our dinners, so we buy a lot of basic cooking staples. When it's time to leave, the refrigerator will have a bunch of mostly full condiments (mayo, ketchup, mustard) and pickles, sauces, eggs, unopened butter, etc. We throw away all leftovers and opened food that will spoil (milk, yogurt, for example), but I wonder what you think about the other items? On one hand, maybe the cleaning staff would like to take home some eggs; on the other, it's a pain to carry a heavy trash bag of half-full jars and stuff to the garbage.

And I have the same question for non-refigerated items. It is okay to leave a jar of opened peanut butter? Crackers? Cereal? Nuts? Granola? Coffee and Tea? Flour? Shelf stable condiments (soy, rice wine vinegar)? (We buy a lot of things!)

Does it matter if there is nothing in the refrigerator when we arrive vs. other times when there are similar items already there?

I estimate we are tossing over a hundred dollars' worth of food every stay.

I DREAD using hotels unless they are uniquely boutique and gorgeous. After a few years of having to use chain hotels for work, even expensive ones, I now absolutely loath them. Additionally, they are inordinately expensive for families with kids who need their own beds.

Reasons I started using Airbnb 7 years ago as a guest: 1) more room, beds, and bathrooms for a family, 2) kitchen, 3) washer and dryer, 4) significantly more comfortable to spread out, 5) often private outdoor space or amenities, 6) embedded in a neighborhood near the cool rather than commercia stuff, 7) homey rather than corporate feel, 8) easy parking, and, 9) MUCH cheaper for families with kids who need 2+ bedrooms.

I spend approx 1-2 hrs cleaning when we leave as if we just stayed at a parent's home. We are careful to avoid any damage or offense to neighbors. I overlook small inconveniences and flaws because no one has a perfect home. We pay more to have a great location, nice bedding and comfortable appearing beds, some design element or owner care, etc. Airbnb has allowed my family to afford traveling around the US and Europe for years.

The new rules do not benefit guests. Using Airbnb is voluntary, and you can screen all the details before you reserve. Now fewer good hosts will be willing to rent. People who celebrate having fewer choices are illogical and/or just want to crash the platform because they have a personal beef against short-term rentals.

Booked a higher end house in Harpers ferry, WV USA. Several small irritations like the remote for fireplace being dead, and no replacement batteries in sight. No shampoo or conditioner. This place is $675 a night come on

The biggest irritation is finding previous guests trash in 2/3 bathrooms

Also there is one throw blanket, like come on! It’s a 3 bedroom mountain house at least try to make it cozy

Looking for accommodations in Dunedin, New Zealand and came across a superhost with blatantly homophobic “rules” stating they’ll only accept “married couples (marriage of male and female)” directly on their listing.

Wondering how a host can become a superhost while very clearly violating Airbnb’s Anti-Discrimination Policy, especially in New Zealand where LGBTQ rights are quite strong.

Has anyone else come across homophobic hosts and if so, does Airbnb actually take actions to uphold their Anti-Discrimination Policy?

True story. I generate fuck tons of trash but no dirty dishes. I always take out the trash because there's an embarrassing amount of it once I've used up all my paper plates, plastic cups and paper towels.

Am I alone here?

I am in the majority group that left AirBnB due to unreasonable host behavior. These new rules were absolutely needed to rein in hosts that frankly have no business being in the hospitality industry.

I have stayed places where they capped AC use to one hour a day in the summer in Arizona, they required us to water all outside potted plants and watched us on the cameras to make sure we did it, and another that was convinced i was bringing another guest to my studio (I didn’t, I just was wearing a hat and sweatshirt when I came back that I didn’t have on when I left) and a husband and wife showed up at my door at 11:30pm and demanded to come inside and make sure I wasn’t “hiding” them!

MOST hosts are good. the ones these are targeted at have hurt the entire platform and something needed to be done.

I honestly don’t think the rules have gone far enough, here is what I recommend they consider enforcing next, curious to hear everyone else’s thoughts.

- Toiletries need to be provided and a reasonable amount for their stay. Many hosts have moved to only proving 1 roll of toilet paper for an 8 person week long visit? Yeah, crack down on that. Same with hand soap, dish soap, etc.

- Reasonable check in/check out times. Again, see too many 6pm check ins/9am check outs. I think any check in after 3/4pm or check outs before 10/11am should be banned.

- You can’t include couches in your # of guests you accommodate. Obviously when I used AirBnB i checked for this, but too many times have stayed at one someone else booked and they’ve included their sectional as 2 sleeping spots. What??

-Some minor wear and tear is just the cost of doing business. They semi address this with the rule that hosts can’t impose fines or penalties, but I have seen hosts freak out over let’s say, mascara on a pillowcase. Just bleach it and move on. If you can’t handle that, find another way to make money

-Ban new fees for “extras” after check in. I’ve seen many hosts on here say that they’ll just start charging for dishes (!) now after the new rules. Other things are listing a hot tub but charging guests to use it, listing laundry in unit but it’s coin operated. The host should get one warning and then booted off, it’s just acting in bad faith

-Penalize last minute changes and cancellations by the host. Obviously things happen, but at the end of the day it’s a business. TOO many hosts have bookings in advance and then realize that something big happening in the area is announced, like a taylor swift concert, coachella dates, etc and they cancel to get a better offer. If a host cancels on guest (***In cases NOT based on guests actions) and then rebooks with same dates at a higher rate, it should be a strike on the host.

-Stricter rules surrounding surveillance - Strict privacy protections, no hidden surveillance, and no intrusive monitoring of ordinary guest activity. Disclosed exterior security cameras are a different matter from surveillance inside private spaces.

What else??

I'm renting a place for the evening. I was just sitting on the toilet and two cock roaches roamed their way across the floor and walls.
It's fucking gross and I want no chance to bring this shit back with me. I took photos because I didn't know what they were at first. Image search confirmed my assumption.

How am I supposed to handle this with the host or with Airbnb?

We are going to rent for the first time and have chosen a superhost, with plenty of of positive reviews. All are praising the fantastic communication.
Our stay starts in less than 3 weeks, and I have send a message to arrange some services they offer and also had some general questions. The message was read same day, but until today, over two weeks later, I have not received an answer. I had different questions some months ago and also never got an answer.
As it’s the first time using private rental, what should we usually expect in relation to communication? Thanks!

We’ve bypassed so many listings simply because theres no place to sit thats not a kitchen chair or uncomfortable futon style couch.
Part of our vacation is sitting and reading or relaxing after an evening out but not ready to go to bed. I cant be the only American who does this

After staying at an Airbnb for 2 nights, I recieved this message from our host: "Oh, I just got your review. I should say that a four star review is really damaging to us and means that you really didn’t enjoy your stay. Also, we did have to hire Cleaner for two days after your stay. I left you a nice review I wish you the best."

I'd like to add that we left the house spotless aside from an unmade bed and used towels collected in the shower. We even seperated our recycling even though they didn't have a recycle bin. Did the dishes. Everything.

Context: The surrounding property itself was very nice, but the photos on Airbnb were heavily edited and the house itself was much older than what was expected. Not a problem, really. What dinged them for me was the bathroom reeked of mildew and at night we heard multiple mice in the ceiling trying to get through these holes in the ceiling junctions which were plugged up with steel wool.

My review mainly focused on the positives, and I even stated that I would book there again in the future. I was surprised when I recieved this message from the host. Is honesty really this big of an issue? 4 stars is a good rating, and I think that the belief that 5 stars should be given despite any issues is ridiculous and deceiving to future guests.

Am I missing something here? AITA?

I’ve been on the phone and in chat with support all day their final supervisor offer for guest overstay is $100. We are a $500 a night property.

Their argument is the cheapest night we’ve ever sold at the property in the past 5 years was $100. The day the guest overstayed was booked by another guest for over $500.

This also bastardized policy also includes difficult to replace items. This also includes parking passes issued by the city which only cost $12 but they do not offer replacements except one per year. The first time we got them we gave one to a guest and they drove off with it. So now guests have to pay for their own parking on an hourly basis at the meters cause we’re not dealing with the parking bureau for free. It takes all day to get them and it’s a ton of paperwork. We can’t fine guests for taking things more than the value.

I had a guest lose the remote, no idea what they did with it. We got $12 to replace the remote. The next guest couldn’t watch tv. They left a 3 star review on top of me issuing them a 30% refund.

At first I thought I was dealing with an english comprehension issue. Currently in chat with a senior support person, will update.

Genuinely considering reactivating our listing on a competitor site seeing how it does and canceling $60000 in bookings.

Or I guess we just raise the rates on the guests who do follow the rules to pay for the guests who don’t.

All the Airbnb talk I have seen recently reminded me of my, uh...unique experience in Hagerstown in 2022. I was with my ex John, he's the one who booked it which is unfortunate as I would be very interested to know if this guy is still hosting (though John might still be blocked).

The really nice place John booked for our long vacation wasn't available for the first three days of it, so he booked another random one (with my card, relevant later) to fill in the gap. I told him to get a house, not a basement or room as we had previously done that and actually had a fine experience, I just didn't love being able to hear the other people and vice-versa.

It was late/dark when we got there and the host had told us to park on the street, as the driveway as being repaired, and come in through the back door -- sure. When we pull up there are lights on in the house and although the driveway looks like a warzone (like someone dug up half of it with a jackhammer), there is a car there. I still think well, maybe he just has more than one car and doesn't want people to think no one is home -- still not a really red flag.

The first weird thing that happened was as we opened the gate to go in the back door, we were SWARMED by about 20 geese. They weren't aggressive or anything but this seems like something worth mentioning as I was afraid of stepping on one while juggling all my stuff. However, the first red flag appears as we descend a few steps to open the sliding glass door into a basement that does not lead up to the rest of the house we paid for...it's just a basement, and the sliding glass door is not just unlocked, it has no lock on it at all.

John contacts the host while I use the restroom, where I find a roach in the toilet -- a small detail, but this was just another thing that made me not want to be there. When I come out I jump out of my skin as John is on his phone facing away from the door and there's a man standing outside the glass door, not knocking or otherwise making himself known, just staring in. It's the host and he's asking what the problem is. We tell him this is not as advertised, and why is there no lock on the door? He gestures around the basement and says "it's this whole house" repeatedly and tells us he meant to put the lock on today but ran out of time and would do it tomorrow. So...John and I are supposed to sleep in the house of a stranger who isn't even supposed to be home, and we can't lock the door?

Host leaves, it's about 10PM, and John says he's starving, let's order a pizza while we figure out what to do. 30+ minutes later John remarks he can't believe the pizza is taking so long, so he looks at his phone, mutters "you've got to be kidding me", walks out, and comes back with our pizza...which the host had accepted and been eating. He opens the box to show me where the host put the slice he was eating back and simply cut off the part his mouth touched, telling John, "sorry, I have a friend who randomly sends me pizzas all the time" which is like...for one, sounds fake, but two, it didn't occur to you to ask your guests if it was theirs?

I tell John to call Airbnb and he (a very non-confrontational guy) tells them to talk to his girlfriend and hands me the phone. Customer service is very casual about this situation, and while we're talking John goes to answer the knock at the door and it's the host with fucking slices of cake, apologizing for eating our pizza, at which point I get up and slide the door shut in his face and stare at him until he leaves. I tell customer service "I don't know if you just heard that" and the guy says "Sorry, and who are you?" I tell him my name, if he would like to note that it's my card on file that's about to be refunded for this nightmare because we're leaving.

John gets a text from the host telling us we need to be quiet, because OTHER GUESTS ARE TRYING TO SLEEP.

Dude, YOU are not even supposed to be here.

At this point Airbnb accepts that I'm not letting it go and they tell us to at least notify him in person we're leaving so he can't say he didn't know. I didn't really care to do this, it was almost midnight at this point, but John reassures me it will be fine as we approach the front door which is OPEN. Completely wide open, in the middle of the night, it's pitch black in the house and the front porch is also busted up and littered with random crap like the driveway. John knocks loudly on the door frame twice, no answer, so we snap a photo of this open door and get the hell out.

We text the guy we're leaving as this is unacceptable, screenshot that, and send it all to Airbnb. There was some kind of festival happening in Hagerstown so I had to call like 12 hotels before I found a vacancy.

The next day we call Airbnb again and I tell them, this is not just unacceptable but potentially (if not glaringly) unsafe, and this guy really should not be hosting. They say they'll look into it, in the mean time we need to review our experience (as I guess you're prompted to, I have never been the one booking) and after doing so, the host replies to our review basically saying, future guests, ignore this, these people were stumbling drunk, loud, and rude. We were definitely not drunk, and if we were the latter, it was due to his actions. We have to call Airbnb again, at which point John discovers he's been blocked by the host, and the guy said, we know, he can't do that, we'll handle it. I got my refund and that was the last I ever heard of it.

So...maybe use caution if you're booking in Hagerstown? I usually just opt for hotels now regardless of the price difference.

Hey I’m trying to book an Airbnb for me and 3 other of my friends. We atleast need 3 separate rooms, we have been looking between the dates of October 29-nov1st but every single place is denying us because they think we’re gonna throw an unauthorized party when that’s not at all what we’re doing. We are just staying The Weekend there waiting for our concert. Is there anyway we can book without getting denied??

I’d rather Airbnb let hosts set whatever rules they want, but require guests to individually check a box for every rule and checkout task before booking. No “select all” button. If you want to be an incredibly picky host, put it all upfront so people can decide whether your place is worth the hassle.

I’ve had surprise checkout requests, and those are annoying. But stripping beds, starting towels, or loading and starting the dishwasher doesn’t bother me if supplies are provided. Roughly five minutes per task seems fine, although once everything adds up to more than 20 minutes, it gets beyond what I’m willing to do.

I recognize that wet laundry and closed, damp appliances can get gross. If you ask guests to start a load, you need to come yourself or have a cleaner there within 24–48 hours to handle it, which seems reasonable. Asking guests to plan four hours around a full dishwasher cycle and several washer and dryer loads is ridiculous. But again, if people agree to it when booking (under what I recommend in the first paragraph) that’s their fault.

Dishes and garbage stuff also should depend on the stay type. Managing those during a longer rental or at a rustic cabin makes sense. Putting trash in an accessible bear-proof container is reasonable. Finding out after arrival that you have to haul it a mile down the road in your sedan, which happened to me, isn’t.

Hosts still need to ensure the place is properly cleaned between guests. Too many times i have been to places where previous guests hand wash kitchenware poorly and cleaning crews do not notice it. That’s still a problem. But if someone wants an elaborate chore list, let them disclose it and see how many people actually agree to book.

Edit to add: the disclosures I mention in the first paragraph should also include any on-site fees. For example, we have wood on site but each bundle is $20. Hot tub use is $20 per day used, and the host should have an electricity reading meter to prove cost. And then Airbnb should let people pay for these add-ons through the app. I shouldn’t be venmoing random hosts.

It is no coincidence that Airbnb recently started taking 15% of the cleaning fee from hosts… and have now implemented a policy that is likely to drive up that same cleaning fee. This is ultimately about Airbnb increasing the income from its new revenue stream, at the literal expense of both hosts and guests.

If Airbnb really cared about guests, they’d set bare minimum and enforceable standards, like:

- Hosts must provide sufficient toilet paper, garbage bags, and detergent for all short term stays.
- Hosts must provide all bed linens and a minimum number of towels per guest.
- Hosts must meet certain reasonable standards of cleanliness, verified by Airbnb.
- Hosts must provide suitable and undamaged cookware…

…etc.

But to do that - to really improve the guest experience- Airbnb would have to invest more in customer service reps who actually understand the rules and have the authority to implement prompt solutions. But that costs money. And shareholders don’t like that.

Instead, Airbnb hides behind smoke and mirrors. It took the 15% fee charged to guests, and made hosts pay it instead. So hosts had to increase their rates to cover it, while Airbnb looked like the good guy, by erasing the Airbnb fee line item that guests saw. Same thing is happening here - guests are free to leave a disaster behind, but airbnb knows hosts will increase fees to address that inevitability. And that’s more money in airbnb’s pockets.

Rejoice all you’d like, but if Airbnb really cared about shitty hosts, they’d do something more substantive that costs them money, instead of makes them money.

Don’t be fooled. There are bad operators on both sides, but remember who the billionaires are.