Way back in 2018/2019 I felt I got real value, but last Christmas was a jarring wake up call. It was with Booking.com but I suspect that she promotes on AirBnB too.
I walked into a house with children cooking by themselves in the kitchen - strong smelling ethnic cooking, which I'm usually fine with but this time it was overpowering. Walked two flights to a bedroom where the bed was messily made and likely not clean sheets. There was none of the amenities she advertised like coffee maker and microwave in a photo on the ad. There was no bedside lamp. I sent her a text inquiring about this and within seconds she accused me of being racist.
I never did meet her in person, likely because she wasn't even home. I could have reported her to the authorities since allowing someone into a house with young children - maybe 9 and 7 years old - is extremely irresponsible. I told her that if she refunded my money I wouldn't leave her a bad review. She got even more aggressive. I sent an lengthy comment to the complaints department on Booking.com and their response was - get this - this is between you and the property owner. WOW. Just wow.
I then tried to dispute it with my credit card company and they said that it was up to Booking.com to advocate on my behalf. I explained that I had already attempted this, unsuccessfully. The credit card company said they would need information that I don't have access to as well as both her text and mine, but hers, oddly enough, disappeared from my text thread. So, I had nothing to go on. I was livid.
People are desperate and don't care about their customers, or their children anymore. It was disturbing some of the things she said in her text. So, I closed my Booking.com account and won't ever use any of these services again. Lesson learned. The customer is a target and has zero recourse.
I've had fabulous experience with Airbnb as a host and as a guest. I've had less overall experience with VRBO. I prefer Airbnb's process from both sides, but never had a problem with VRBO.
As a host, my goal was to have 100% satisfaction. I was very proud of the home that my husband and I bought to be an investment property while keeping it in our estate until our son and his wife were able to buy it from us. To get good reviews, I was 100% transparent on the listing. I pointed out some of the quirky features in the house, and I made a comment about a bathroom about the decorating being outdated. I didn't want anyone to be surprised by something that they wouldn't think was perfect. I was very responsive to my guests when they reached out to me, I had a welcome basket of goodies that was not mentioned in my listing, etc. In short, this paid off, my reviews all had perfect ratings and I was rewarded with the highest honor - "Guest Favorite."
As a guest, I spend a good amount of time researching, including reading all of the reviews. I totally understand that you were angry that Airbnb didn't publish your review. I've never heard of this happening and my experience with Airbnb's customer service was always positive whether I needed help as a host or as a guest. After a guest's review is published, the host is able to respond with their own comments. If Airbnb had published your review, it would have been easy for the host to reply stating her policy about check out times and extra fees, including her rationale for doing so. And the beautiful thing for the community who uses Airbnb, we can see both of those reviews and responses when we look at that house's listing, and use our own discernment before renting. Or before we make a decision about renting to a guest.
To help people understand why hosts charge what they consider a high amount for cleaning, even though they are asked to leave the property in neat condition, I'd like to share how the cleaning process worked in my 4000+ sq ft home. If you had rented my property for 2 nights, you would have had to pay the $400 cleaning fee. If you rented it for a week, same fee. I have a list of check out steps for guests, such as stripping sheets off bed, trash taken out, dishwasher started, etc. My cleaning team based their price with the assumption that the check out steps will be followed. And they clean every surface. Even if you think it looks clean when you leave, my team will clean/sanitize all surfaces.
If a guest truly leaves the house in sparkling condition, then my team gets done quicker. And if the house is excessively dirty, then it takes longer to clean. There have been times that I paid the team extra for jobs that took longer. But mostly it works out at the regular price. Even though I pay the full cleaning amount to the cleaning team, I still spend time on each turnover. I take towels out to wash & return, because with 5 beds and only 1 washer/dryer all of the laundry can't be done within the 4-5 hours that they spend at the house. I also take care of the welcome basket and do a thorough inspection of the home to make everything perfect.
I've certainly seen negative reviews for listings. You'll have to ask Airbnb their rationale for not publishing your review. In my opinion, the reviews that work both ways (host & guest) are the secret to their success. As a host I was driven to provide perfect service, rather than just good service, because I coveted the high ratings. And what a genius idea to allow hosts to rate their guests. Without that feature, I wouldn't have been willing to share my wonderful home with strangers.
Both Airbnb and VRBO are transparent about where the fees go. As a host I felt that they drove business to me so they deserve the amount that I agreed to pay. The host for your rental was violating their agreement when they advertised how to go around the companies.
In 2019, we stayed at a corporate owned AirBNB in Matlacha. It was professionally run, although they should have mentioned the very low ceiling (it was very old)… not a problem for us, but it would be for anyone taller than 5’10.
In 2020, we stayed at a VRBO cabin in Weeki Watchee. I think the owners clean it, because it wasn’t up to hotel standards (even though the pandemic called for more stringent standards). The reviews were all great, but it was obvious they knew the owner because of references to “Dr So and So”) so they might have stayed for free at their pastor’s place for free in return for a review. Hubby left a good review because he’s nicer than me.
In 2021, we booked an AirBnB motorhome in Venice FL that showed photos of a motorhome in an empty lot. The name was MonacoXX (an upscale brand). Because we’re less than 2 hrs away, we asked for a preview look because my husband is handicapped so we needed to know if he could climb the stairs. Well, it was a motorhome, but not a Monaco. It was very old and smelled of mold. The most shocking surprise was it was parked in the driveway of the owners’ home (right next to their house!) and they had 3 or 4 cars in the very crowded driveway! We are not partiers nor are we loud, but we like our privacy. Hubby couldn’t climb the stairs, so we were relieved to be able to cancel.
In 2022, we booked an AirBnB in St Pete. It was a 2-story house that had been converted to 4 units, and the units weren’t clearly labeled at all. I called the owners multiple times, telling them we’re here but are unsure where the entrance is in. Since they weren’t answering, I finally tried the code on any door I could find, and we got in. The TV’s settings had been messed with by the previous guests. The owners finally called back hours later, claiming they didn’t realize their phones were off. (Really? When you knew we were checking in? And you say you do this as your full time job?) They were deathly afraid of a bad review, so they let us check out early at no cost if we didn’t leave a review.
So… it’s back to hotels for us, where we know what to expect. We still have a $200 AirBnB gift card, but we’ll probably never use it.
Also august in UTAH--park city. Spent a whole week reading vrbo/airbnb listings and messaged on a few. We wanted to stay downtown and there were many listings. This was week of the heatwave and I wanted A/C. The managers seemed a little cocky and take it or leave it attitude in the messaging. So, since SO many variables about pool being closed or hot tubs out of service or unit with no A/C...I trotted my butt right down to the Hilton and had a perfectly beautiful stay for less than airbnb. The cleaning/resort fees tacked on to the duopoly listings were wildly different like they just pulled them out of thin air laughing to see if ppl would fall for it. The hilton DID overcharge us for unpublished daily 'resort fee', my prepaid week showed $30 for my stay, they billed me after my stay for $30/day more...heard 3 different ppl complaining at front desk at checkout so I knew it was coming. The tide is turning where 'the customer is always right' again....the woke arrogant corporations are gonna go broke. Also just flew Spirit airlines for the first time to tampa last week....IT WAS A FLYING SCHOOL BUS! NO SEATS RECLINE, not even the $$ premium seats in front, I could have told you they would go bankrupt just based on that. When booking, I asked for a reclining seat and they said OK, got emails for a week wanting me to pay for an upgrade to more comfy seat(that does not recline)! NO WATER OR DRINK unless you pay $4...Giving ppl a .15 cent bottle of water would go a long way in the customer service dept. On the bright side...these experiences are what births new ideas, better businesses and attitudes.
Airbnb was great back when you needed a room for the night cheap for a seminar away from home...ppl renting out bedrooms like a B&B. Once stayed in a single womans' home(canadian) in cozumel for $25/nt, she was lovely and picked me up from the airport and felt like new friends, ppl sharing their home with a 'somewhat' vetted renter with positive reviews from prev hosts to see who I was. Those were the days b4 it became corporatized.
I’ve used airbnb a couple times and have been satisfied both times. One owner was fabulous, Seaside OR, very responsive, super clean bungalow. The second one the hostess never responded to me when I was struggling to get in because something was wrong with the lock. A local on-site manager helped me despite not supposed to leave her office. Fortunately it was a lovely condo in Lincoln City, OR. I always make sure I can cancel for a full refund and so far I’ve never used it out of state. If I leave the state, I stay in a nice hotel! I can’t take a chance of some grimy dirty house.
I have actually had mostly positive experiences with both AirBnb and Vrbo, though I admittedly have used AirBnb far more frequently than Vrbo because I often find the exact same places on both platforms and Vrbo fees are inevitably higher. I am with you that the fees are ridiculous, particularly 'cleaning fee.' Look when I stay 1 or 2 nights, (or my family) we leave the place as clean as when we arrived with the exception of any used towels and obviously bed linens (not dirty, simply slept in). It is ridiculous that I should have to pay $75 cleaning fee for 1 night when I didn't make any sort of mess at all. Annoying. I have only had an issue w/4 rentals ever, and both had to with locating the place and/or getting inside the place (wrong codes provided).
Way back in 2018/2019 I felt I got real value, but last Christmas was a jarring wake up call. It was with Booking.com but I suspect that she promotes on AirBnB too.
I walked into a house with children cooking by themselves in the kitchen - strong smelling ethnic cooking, which I'm usually fine with but this time it was overpowering. Walked two flights to a bedroom where the bed was messily made and likely not clean sheets. There was none of the amenities she advertised like coffee maker and microwave in a photo on the ad. There was no bedside lamp. I sent her a text inquiring about this and within seconds she accused me of being racist.
I never did meet her in person, likely because she wasn't even home. I could have reported her to the authorities since allowing someone into a house with young children - maybe 9 and 7 years old - is extremely irresponsible. I told her that if she refunded my money I wouldn't leave her a bad review. She got even more aggressive. I sent an lengthy comment to the complaints department on Booking.com and their response was - get this - this is between you and the property owner. WOW. Just wow.
I then tried to dispute it with my credit card company and they said that it was up to Booking.com to advocate on my behalf. I explained that I had already attempted this, unsuccessfully. The credit card company said they would need information that I don't have access to as well as both her text and mine, but hers, oddly enough, disappeared from my text thread. So, I had nothing to go on. I was livid.
People are desperate and don't care about their customers, or their children anymore. It was disturbing some of the things she said in her text. So, I closed my Booking.com account and won't ever use any of these services again. Lesson learned. The customer is a target and has zero recourse.
I've had fabulous experience with Airbnb as a host and as a guest. I've had less overall experience with VRBO. I prefer Airbnb's process from both sides, but never had a problem with VRBO.
As a host, my goal was to have 100% satisfaction. I was very proud of the home that my husband and I bought to be an investment property while keeping it in our estate until our son and his wife were able to buy it from us. To get good reviews, I was 100% transparent on the listing. I pointed out some of the quirky features in the house, and I made a comment about a bathroom about the decorating being outdated. I didn't want anyone to be surprised by something that they wouldn't think was perfect. I was very responsive to my guests when they reached out to me, I had a welcome basket of goodies that was not mentioned in my listing, etc. In short, this paid off, my reviews all had perfect ratings and I was rewarded with the highest honor - "Guest Favorite."
As a guest, I spend a good amount of time researching, including reading all of the reviews. I totally understand that you were angry that Airbnb didn't publish your review. I've never heard of this happening and my experience with Airbnb's customer service was always positive whether I needed help as a host or as a guest. After a guest's review is published, the host is able to respond with their own comments. If Airbnb had published your review, it would have been easy for the host to reply stating her policy about check out times and extra fees, including her rationale for doing so. And the beautiful thing for the community who uses Airbnb, we can see both of those reviews and responses when we look at that house's listing, and use our own discernment before renting. Or before we make a decision about renting to a guest.
To help people understand why hosts charge what they consider a high amount for cleaning, even though they are asked to leave the property in neat condition, I'd like to share how the cleaning process worked in my 4000+ sq ft home. If you had rented my property for 2 nights, you would have had to pay the $400 cleaning fee. If you rented it for a week, same fee. I have a list of check out steps for guests, such as stripping sheets off bed, trash taken out, dishwasher started, etc. My cleaning team based their price with the assumption that the check out steps will be followed. And they clean every surface. Even if you think it looks clean when you leave, my team will clean/sanitize all surfaces.
If a guest truly leaves the house in sparkling condition, then my team gets done quicker. And if the house is excessively dirty, then it takes longer to clean. There have been times that I paid the team extra for jobs that took longer. But mostly it works out at the regular price. Even though I pay the full cleaning amount to the cleaning team, I still spend time on each turnover. I take towels out to wash & return, because with 5 beds and only 1 washer/dryer all of the laundry can't be done within the 4-5 hours that they spend at the house. I also take care of the welcome basket and do a thorough inspection of the home to make everything perfect.
I've certainly seen negative reviews for listings. You'll have to ask Airbnb their rationale for not publishing your review. In my opinion, the reviews that work both ways (host & guest) are the secret to their success. As a host I was driven to provide perfect service, rather than just good service, because I coveted the high ratings. And what a genius idea to allow hosts to rate their guests. Without that feature, I wouldn't have been willing to share my wonderful home with strangers.
Both Airbnb and VRBO are transparent about where the fees go. As a host I felt that they drove business to me so they deserve the amount that I agreed to pay. The host for your rental was violating their agreement when they advertised how to go around the companies.
In 2019, we stayed at a corporate owned AirBNB in Matlacha. It was professionally run, although they should have mentioned the very low ceiling (it was very old)… not a problem for us, but it would be for anyone taller than 5’10.
In 2020, we stayed at a VRBO cabin in Weeki Watchee. I think the owners clean it, because it wasn’t up to hotel standards (even though the pandemic called for more stringent standards). The reviews were all great, but it was obvious they knew the owner because of references to “Dr So and So”) so they might have stayed for free at their pastor’s place for free in return for a review. Hubby left a good review because he’s nicer than me.
In 2021, we booked an AirBnB motorhome in Venice FL that showed photos of a motorhome in an empty lot. The name was MonacoXX (an upscale brand). Because we’re less than 2 hrs away, we asked for a preview look because my husband is handicapped so we needed to know if he could climb the stairs. Well, it was a motorhome, but not a Monaco. It was very old and smelled of mold. The most shocking surprise was it was parked in the driveway of the owners’ home (right next to their house!) and they had 3 or 4 cars in the very crowded driveway! We are not partiers nor are we loud, but we like our privacy. Hubby couldn’t climb the stairs, so we were relieved to be able to cancel.
In 2022, we booked an AirBnB in St Pete. It was a 2-story house that had been converted to 4 units, and the units weren’t clearly labeled at all. I called the owners multiple times, telling them we’re here but are unsure where the entrance is in. Since they weren’t answering, I finally tried the code on any door I could find, and we got in. The TV’s settings had been messed with by the previous guests. The owners finally called back hours later, claiming they didn’t realize their phones were off. (Really? When you knew we were checking in? And you say you do this as your full time job?) They were deathly afraid of a bad review, so they let us check out early at no cost if we didn’t leave a review.
So… it’s back to hotels for us, where we know what to expect. We still have a $200 AirBnB gift card, but we’ll probably never use it.
Also august in UTAH--park city. Spent a whole week reading vrbo/airbnb listings and messaged on a few. We wanted to stay downtown and there were many listings. This was week of the heatwave and I wanted A/C. The managers seemed a little cocky and take it or leave it attitude in the messaging. So, since SO many variables about pool being closed or hot tubs out of service or unit with no A/C...I trotted my butt right down to the Hilton and had a perfectly beautiful stay for less than airbnb. The cleaning/resort fees tacked on to the duopoly listings were wildly different like they just pulled them out of thin air laughing to see if ppl would fall for it. The hilton DID overcharge us for unpublished daily 'resort fee', my prepaid week showed $30 for my stay, they billed me after my stay for $30/day more...heard 3 different ppl complaining at front desk at checkout so I knew it was coming. The tide is turning where 'the customer is always right' again....the woke arrogant corporations are gonna go broke. Also just flew Spirit airlines for the first time to tampa last week....IT WAS A FLYING SCHOOL BUS! NO SEATS RECLINE, not even the $$ premium seats in front, I could have told you they would go bankrupt just based on that. When booking, I asked for a reclining seat and they said OK, got emails for a week wanting me to pay for an upgrade to more comfy seat(that does not recline)! NO WATER OR DRINK unless you pay $4...Giving ppl a .15 cent bottle of water would go a long way in the customer service dept. On the bright side...these experiences are what births new ideas, better businesses and attitudes.
Just wow… Not a good wow… 😳😳😳 I did not realize it would be this way for Airbnb or VRBO. Thank you for educating us. 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽
Airbnb was great back when you needed a room for the night cheap for a seminar away from home...ppl renting out bedrooms like a B&B. Once stayed in a single womans' home(canadian) in cozumel for $25/nt, she was lovely and picked me up from the airport and felt like new friends, ppl sharing their home with a 'somewhat' vetted renter with positive reviews from prev hosts to see who I was. Those were the days b4 it became corporatized.
I’ve used airbnb a couple times and have been satisfied both times. One owner was fabulous, Seaside OR, very responsive, super clean bungalow. The second one the hostess never responded to me when I was struggling to get in because something was wrong with the lock. A local on-site manager helped me despite not supposed to leave her office. Fortunately it was a lovely condo in Lincoln City, OR. I always make sure I can cancel for a full refund and so far I’ve never used it out of state. If I leave the state, I stay in a nice hotel! I can’t take a chance of some grimy dirty house.
I have actually had mostly positive experiences with both AirBnb and Vrbo, though I admittedly have used AirBnb far more frequently than Vrbo because I often find the exact same places on both platforms and Vrbo fees are inevitably higher. I am with you that the fees are ridiculous, particularly 'cleaning fee.' Look when I stay 1 or 2 nights, (or my family) we leave the place as clean as when we arrived with the exception of any used towels and obviously bed linens (not dirty, simply slept in). It is ridiculous that I should have to pay $75 cleaning fee for 1 night when I didn't make any sort of mess at all. Annoying. I have only had an issue w/4 rentals ever, and both had to with locating the place and/or getting inside the place (wrong codes provided).