The story of airbnb
Airbnb started in 2007 when Joe Gebbia and Brian Chesky, who had met five years earlier at Rhode Island School of Design, were struggling to pay their rent. There was a design conference coming to San Francisco and the city’s hotels were fully booked, so they came up with the idea of renting out three airbeds on their living-room floor and cooking their guests breakfast. The next day they created a website,airbedandbreakfast.com. Airbnb was born.
Today, more and more people are using airbnb to plan their vacations.
Why book an airbnb
The reason why it has become so popular is that it allows you to travel abroad and either book a room or an entire place to feel like a local. You are able to go to the local grocery store, cook at home and save your food budget money. But also have some insights on the best places to go to from people who already live in the city.
It brings more authenticity to your travels and you do not have to stay in a hotel and do the classic touristic tours.
You are the one in control and plan your day like you would do in your own country. Their motto is “don’t go there, live there”. Airbnb is really changing the way we travel and plan our holidays. We more and more look for comfort, authenticity and experience living like a local.
Think about it. If you are traveling to a foreign country and would like to experience the local culture. Do you want to stay in a hotel and do everything as you would do back home, or would you rather stay at a local’s place and experience their culture, their food, their history?
Before you would have needed to have a friend who live in the country you visit to experience this. Now with Airbnb, you have got someone willing to welcome you in their home wherever you go and experience a city like a local rather than a tourist.
How to book an airbnb
So, how should you use Airbnb to book your next holiday?
First, go on the website and create your account.
You can share the listing with other people you are traveling with to get their feedback
You can save the listing for later and add it to your destination list
You can view the photos and get a closer look at the place you are planning on staying at
You can check the rating of the listing. Each listing is rated from 1 to 5 stars. The more stars and reviews made by travelers the better.
You can check the availability of the listing by putting in the dates you are planning on traveling and number of people you will be traveling with. Note that some listing do not accept groups of travelers.
Once you are happy with everything, just click on the “book” button
The process is pretty straightforward and the reviews made by the previous travelers help to get a general idea of what to expect. Once your booking is approved, your host will contact you with more details regarding the exact address of the listing and the check-in process.
During your stay, your host is your main point of contact. If you need anything, just use the message feature in the airbnb application to communicate.
Pro tip: Make sure to keep all communication within airbnb application as it makes it easier for the Airbnb support team to help you in case anything happen.
Restaurants
No ideas where to go out and enjoy a great meal in the new city you visit and tired of all the touristic pricey restaurants? Airbnb offers you a list of restaurants recommended by local hosts so that you can enjoy your vacation like a local.
You can plan your days and do activities you love with locals and have a unique experience of the city you will be visiting. Sure, the guidelines of the experiences remains the same for everyone, but locals often adapt the experience for their guests. So if you have any special needs, do not hesitate to ask them.
Overall, Airbnb is really a great way to experience a foreign city or country you visit for the first time and feel like home. I have used it for the past 2 years as a guest but also as a host ( you can read about my experience in this article The Ultimate Airbnb Hosting Guide) and I am loving it. It really breaks the barriers of traveling to a foreign country and having to plan your days by scrolling for hours on forums or blogs to find what would be interesting to do.
What I love the most it the possibility to customise your trip according to your preferences. From the type of home you would like to stay at to the type of experience you would like to do and type of foods you would like to taste. It really gathers all the elements you need when traveling abroad. This is a proper travel tailored experience and that is the reason why it is changing the travel industry and the way people travel nowadays.
Some websites are even specialised at finding Airbnb hidden gems to experience something unique. Do you want to stay at a luxury villa for a night or two, you can do it. Do you like nature and would like to stay in a wood cabin in the middle of the forest, you can do it. Do you like sea side and would like to stay in a cottage, why not!
I’d say the only downside of Airbnb is for the locals. Indeed, a few cities around the world have seen the rental market prices increase due to the decrease in long term accommodation supplies. Landlords are making more money from Airbnb than they will do with long term tenants. This obviously affects people who live and work in those cities as the cost of living just keep on increasing.
But from a traveler point of view, having that flexibility to tailor made your travel experience is really something powerful and unique.
What about you? Have you used Airbnb already? How was your experience? Let me know in the comments below.
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Safe travels
