[stevescoots]

Due to some sad news earlier this year we had to bail out of our US holiday and write off the cost as insurance did not cover it, seems a parent being diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and being given 6 months to live is not good enough reason for a pay-out. I managed to recover a bit by changing the holiday to a business trip, during which unfortunately he passed away, just 3 months after diagnosis
I digress, so now we are looking to take a break after all affairs have been sorted but as we our out of pocket a few grand looking to lower the cost. I have never used Air BNB and whilst I understand the concept easily enough for private homes and small independent hotels, has anyone used them in resorts? I have seen some amazing prices at a few resort hotels operated by big chains. I am guessing that these resorts sell Villas and apartments and then the buyers rent them out. In one case I found the Hyatt DaNang hotel (where I have stayed before) rate was approx $400 US per night, the Airbnb was 65% less. My question is, has anyone encountered any problems this way apart from, as I would expect, not being able to charge expenses to your room?

Whist I am on the begging stool, any Air recommendations for Malta, Singapore, Penang, beach front Vietnam? As you can see we have not fully made up my mind yet!

[LuganoPirate]

Morning Steve, First my condolences on your recent loss. These moments are never easy and always sad.

Re AIrBnB, I have no personal experience, but my ex and my daughter do, and they have always been impressed and never been let down or had any major problems, bar one occasion where a sink (not major) was blocked. The owner came out at 11pm within 10 minutes of being called along with a big plunger, and the problem was solved.

I’ve other friends who’ve used them at resorts and while very pleasant and much cheaper, they missed the 24 hour concierge, room service, buffet breakfasts and services offered by a 4/5* hotel. But they saved over EUR200 a night so took consolation in that and with the savings went to the large hotels for breakfast, drinks etc.

You do read of horror stories in the good old DM but they are very few and far between so while i personally don’t use them from what I’ve heard I wouldn’t put anyone off.

[CathayLoyalist2]

Stevescoots, when you ask for Air recommendations for Singapore if you mean Airbnb then hosts in Singapore can only take a minimum 3 month booking. Anything less is banned by the government as the hotel industry was complaining!! Hosts who have taken a booking of less than 3 months have been fined in true Singapore tradition.

[KennyK14]

I have used Airbnb quite a few times on business trips, with only one rental letting me down (that was in an industrial area of Paris, where the host had apparently been clubbing all night, and had great difficulty in using a key, or anything else; very amusing, in retrospect).
Otherwise, I have had great experiences, and I have even rented out a room. The latter have been the best experiences, when travelling on my own, as I get to meet locals, who can really point me in the right direction for restaurants, groceries, bars etc, lend me a bike or just have a safe chat.
The secret is to really read the reviews given by guests, and read the listing carefully.

[canucklad]

Hi Steve
Just back from an AirBnB short stay in Bugibba, Malta.

The accommodation was fantastic, and our host was very friendly and helpful . My huge mistake was that I didn’t read the rental description very well . It came as a bit of a surprise to find that he would be in the apartment during our stay. Totally my fault because I’ve become used to booking accommodation and having the run of the place. As a result it was a bit awkward, kinda like waking up in your girlfriends parents housed for the first time !!

Totally recommend Malta , first time there and it really surprised me, and if you follow KennyK14’s advice totally recommend AirBnB. My personal advice is to sign up , have a wee treasure hunt about what’s available and you might not look back.

I’d also add my condolences for your loss …..

[stevescoots]

Thanks for the responses. on the ones I have looked at I have made a point of asking the host if anybody else will be in the property, including them

1 user thanked author for this post.

GivingupBA

[SwissExPat]

@SteveC..

My Sympathies on your personal loss..

Also keep in mind that AirBnB is not the only game in Town.

I often have a look at VRBO.com (Vacation rental by Owners) which is also part of the HomeAway group.

I have used VRBO a few times… I also have a property of mine up on this site (managed by an Agent) and this seems to me to be maybe even more or a private temporary letting (i.e with AiRBnB implies the owner is living on the property) but the VRBO means you have the property to yourself.

[capetonianm]

I am not sure how credible this article and contents are, but I thought it worth posting as there is undoubtedly evidence that the AirBnB business model is open to abuse by both owners and users. I decided a while ago that I wouldn’t use it unless the property had been personally recommended by someone we knew and trusted.

https://www.wired.co.uk/article/airbnb-scam-london
I stumbled across a huge Airbnb scam that’s taking over London

The curious tale of a man called Christian, the Catholic church, David Schwimmer’s wife, a secret hotel and an Airbnb scam running riot on the streets of London.

[cwoodward]

We have used airBnB a few times and while they have always delivered more or less what was on the tin often the quality of the contents has been close to the minimum acceptable.
Of course the cost is considerably lower than more up market options thus like most thing in life its a trade-off.
We have decided that going forward we will look more closely at other available options first.

[Johnnyg]

capetonianm,

Thanks for that, and that is another reason why I will not use Air BNB,

[ImissConcorde]

stevecoots ……

Had you included Phuket in your list I could have helped!!
Just stayed at the most amazing property 5 minutes from Layan Beach.
Four bedrooms (3 x double, 1 x twin), large living area and huge pool. Everything was superb.
Central Food Hall nearby now even sells Waitrose products!!.

1 user thanked author for this post.

stevescoots

[ImissConcorde]

CathayLoyalist2 I wasn’t aware of the limitations in Singapore. Obviously neither was my host as I was only there for one night.
And it was not a property that I would want to return to.

[AllOverTheGaff]

My condolences on your loss Steve.

I’ve used AirBnB fairly extensively all over the world and up-to-now I have had no issues. I almost always reach out to the owner in advance of booking to see what sort of person I am dealing with should anything go wrong. (Even just to ask innocuous questions)

Like anything there will be horror stories but all of my experiences are positive. I leave for an apartment next week which I found on AirBnB and it is sublime, if you read the reviews before parting with your hard-earned you should be absolutely fine.

Rgds.
AOTG.

2 users thanked author for this post.

Jacob, KennyK14

[fatbear]

We use AirBnB when we visit Sydney, partly because there are no decent hotels in the part of Sydney we want to stay in, and partly due to the lower costs. The quality has been variable, but adequate for our needs.

[K1ngston]

Again firstly my condolences on your loss, never an easy time! I have to agree there is no AirBnb officially in Singapore if the owner is dobbed in they are in trouble in true Singaporean style, when we lived there my husband and I went on holiday to Europe and I allowed friends from Australia to stay there free of charge and my neighbour questioned the maid to try and tell the authorities, they were local Singaporeans who we just didn’t get on with, so if you are offered in Singapore think again!

As to ImissConcorde’s comments now living in Phuket and there are some amazing offers now, the Chinese are not coming due to the problems there so there is a glut of beautiful properties available on short term rent or indeed AirBnb, if you need some guidance dont hesitate to contact me privately and will be happy to lend some guidance? Martyn has my details if you wish?

[Author]

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