[mc32]

So apparently it had A/C in bedrooms but not other areas. Host suggested leaving doors open and having a fan redirect air from bedroom(s) to living area. Looks like guests were looking to work while on a trip, so wanted and expected A/C throughout.

I can see both sides. On the one hand it did have A/C —just not central A/C. On the other hand it was (they claim 100F) and were trying to “work from home.” On the other hand it was $60/night equivalent...

It’s kinda borderline. What would judge Judy decide? Split the diff?

[rudiv]

How is this borderline? Central HVAC in homes is extremely uncommon in developing countries. Standalone AC units for rooms other than bedrooms are also quite uncommon (depends on the economic class of the householder). To say that there is no air conditioning because there is no air conditioning in the bathroom (and this is one of the specific complaints from the OP's reddit thread) is extremely entitled. Not everywhere is the richest country on earth.

[tarsinge]

> Central HVAC in homes is extremely uncommon in developing countries.

In Europe too.

[dandv]

Nobody complained of no A/C in the bathrooms. You've misread Airbnb's social media agent's misguided reply. I'm the OP's roommate and I've clarified things at https://www.reddit.com/r/digitalnomad/comments/d1i53n/its_10...

[bArray]

> So apparently it had A/C in bedrooms but not other areas.

> Host suggested leaving doors open and having a fan

> redirect air from bedroom to living area. Looks like

> guests were looking to work while on a trip, so wanted and

> expected A/C throughout.

To be fair to the host, it's not their fault that the app didn't have the ability to track which rooms did or didn't have air conditioning. On hearing their problem the host also offered a reasonable solution to help them work in their apartment (something the apartment is not supposed to be used for).

> I can see both sides. On the one hand it did have A/C just

> not central A/C. On the other hand it was (they claim

> 100F) and we’re trying to “work from home.”

It wasn't the host's fault that they wanted to work in the apartment, neither was it their fault it was so hot. I've stayed in many places all over the world and half the time you're lucky if the AC works at all.

> It’s kinda borderline. What would judge Judy decide? Split

> the diff?

It would probably go through remediation, but if it went further it would just get kicked out. The most questionable part is their cancellation policy, not the AC description.

[dandv]

Not having the ability to specify 'Partial A/C' is exactly my suggestion to Airbnb.

The "reasonable solution" didn't work - we waited longer than what the host claimed it would take to make the place "cool as a fridge".

Why would we not be supposed to work in the apartment?

Right, it wasn't anyone's hard fault, so if I were the host, I'd charge 3 nights' worth and leave the situation with a clean conscience and quite a bit of cash for spending 30 minutes.

See my detailed reply at https://www.reddit.com/r/digitalnomad/comments/d1i53n/its_10... (I'm the OP's roommate).

[not_a_moth]

I'm kind of leaning towards AirBnB, because it sounds like the travelers didn't bother with any diligence, which is puzzling when having AC was so critical to their trip.

I think it's reasonable to expect AirBnB hosts, like any seller, to try to bend the truth or hide inconveniences in their listing, and it's up to you, the buyer, to exercise caution, read reviews, or ask the host.

That said, if hotels try that kind of BS, I complain until they refund me or upgrade my room, which has worked 10/10 times. This is one area where hotels have a clear advantage over AirBnB.

[whatshisface]

>I think it's reasonable to expect AirBnB hosts, like any seller, to try to bend the truth or hide inconveniences in their listing

If we all pitched in and shamed dishonest sellers (to the point where there was a culture of honesty), we could all have the reliability of hotels without any of the costs of management. It's like how one of the reasons third world countries are so bad is that there is no social trust.

[jobigoud]

That's exactly what is happening through the review system. I find AirBnB reviews to be much more reliable than say Amazon or other easily gamed places. You can and should shame bad hosts and bad guests. You can't see the review text until after both wrote a review so there is no fear of revenge.

[jobigoud]

AirBnB hosts have an incentive to NOT bend the truth and instead manage expectations in the listing. In the long term it's better to not have a guest at all than to have a guest give you even a 4 star review. AirBnB may delist you at 4.3 avg and you need 4.8 to be superhost, so you really only want satisfied guests.

[godelski]

Why couldn't they just work in the bedrooms? There's AC there.

[dandv]

Because there was no "laptop-friendly workspace" in the bedrooms. The host claimed that in the listing, and the only thing that remotely qualified was the dining table in the kitchen.

Context: I'm the OP's roommate. See my detailed reply at https://www.reddit.com/r/digitalnomad/comments/d1i53n/its_10....

[dontbenebby]

>So apparently it had A/C in bedrooms but not other areas. Host suggested leaving doors open and having a fan redirect air from bedroom to living area. Looks like guests were looking to work while on a trip, so wanted and expected A/C throughout.

But was the listing for the whole house, or a bedroom?

[mc32]

Like I said, split the diff. It wasn’t outright deception but it also wasn’t up front about the totality. It didn’t explicitly say either it only had AC in bedrooms nor did it claim to have Central AC.

Plus it was $60/night. Don’t expect Hilton class accommodations for 60/night.

[mhuck0625]

agree 100 percent. Split it. keep the customers happy, but the owners need to make a little too. Fair is fair.

[dandv]

Yep - https://www.reddit.com/r/digitalnomad/comments/d1i53n/its_10....

[forgotmyacc]

The OP was charge $500 for what was essentially 30 minute visit. That's just evil.