[nuggien]

Airbnb is a shitty company. Last october we traveled to Seoul and couldn't find the location of the apartment we booked. Even the local taxi driver couldn't find it after circling the area for ~30 minutes. We called the host during the entire 30 minutes and didn't get through to them.

After about 1 hour of time, we decided to call it quits and go book a hotel because it was 10pm at night and our kids needed to sleep. We were just hoping for a refund with Airbnb. What's their policy? "it's up to the host to decide if they want to give a refund". What did the host say? "i have great reviews and i haven't heard of anyone not being able to find the place." What about the fact that you didn't answer your calls? WTF

Similar situation when we booked a place in Tokyo. We asked the host whether it would be okay since we have two young children who are known to be playful/wild/loud. He assured it was okay and assured us the place was big enough to handle all four of us. We arrive in tokyo and and the place is tiny. The bathroom is literally a 3x3 box with a shower right on top of the toilet. The entire room is taken up by 2 beds with no place to move around, let alone space for luggage and two kids. On top of that, the host's apartment is in a building where the walls are paper thin and the neighbors are super sensitive to noise. We did the hosts' neighbors a favor and went and got a hotel room. Refund from airbnb? Maybe a partial refund? NOPE.

Seriously, I'm never booking anything on airbnb again.

[Jommi]

You're basically conflating different expectations in living conditions to being dishonest reviews.

Your example of Tokyo feels absolutely tone deaf to me as someone who has been there multiple times. That's just the reality of the Tokyo rent market. The places are tiny and that's how the culture is there.

[samatman]

I had uniformly excellent AirBnB experiences in Tokyo, five out of five.

As a solo traveler. Nowhere I stayed was remotely suitable for a family of four.

[esyir]

That's probably by American expectations though. Most of Asia builds much denser (and smaller, roomwise) than anything in the states.

[samatman]

I also stayed with a family of five, so I'm familiar with what family housing in Tokyo looks like.

Small, yes. But comfortable, and nothing like what the top of this thread describes.

[nuggien]

Not my first rodeo in Tokyo in an Airbnb dude, and I’m not conflating shit. I’ve had good experiences in Tokyo Airbnb as well as in Hong Kong and Taipei where space is just as limited. My frustration is with the host where we clearly asked up front before booking whether this would be a good place for my family. And the pics were definitely not representative of the actual space.

[shmageggy]

I friend of mine had her host cancel a couple of days before her several-day Christmas trip. Of course everything else was crazy expensive by then so she ended up missing Christmas. Airbnb refunded her $16.

[vkou]

The host is probably listing the suite on multiple listing sites (Or even just with multiple listings on AirBnB), for different prices. When someone books the more expensive listing, they tell the person who booked the cheaper one to pound sand.

[jdm2212]

Everything in Tokyo is tiny. My dad, my wife and I stayed at a reasonably nice hotel there ($250/night) and the situation was basically how you're describing your Airbnb -- bedroom that's completely taken up by the beds, and a bathroom you can barely turn around in.

Kyoto, Hiroshima, etc. are a different story. But Tokyo is pretty much the most cramped place I've ever visited, both indoors and out.

[partisan]

I find it a bit naive to take small children along with you into unknown situations like that. I question your judgement after repeating the mistake. I think Airbnb floats on questionable judgement and people are starting to catch on.

[nostrademons]

Eh, we AirBnB'd a place for our anniversary when our kid was 4 months old. It was his first night away from home, so we were a little nervous, particularly since he was a pretty noisy baby and had yet to sleep through the night. We only went an hour away so we could bail and come home if it was a disaster.

He ended up having a blast. The hosts had two pre-school age kids, and he was fascinated watching them ride their bikes around the courtyard. He was quiet enough that the hosts didn't even notice him, and he slept through the night for the first time.

Kids are pretty resilient, and if you never stretch into the unknown, you never find out what you can do. We've taken him on another (international this time) AirBnB trip, when he was 16 months, and he had a blast again. Though he did give us a minor heart attack when he woke up from his nap, evaded the baby monitor we'd set up, climbed off the bed, walked across the basement, and ascended a full flight of stairs by himself, only making his presence known by scratching at the kitchen/stair door.

[nuggien]

Our kids have been all over the world and enjoy traveling. It’s a bit naive to think every child is the same. I question your judgment regarding other people’s parenting.

[partisan]

It’s not about the children’s capacity to adjust. They always do. That’s what kids do.

I am talking about taking children into an insecure situation in a foreign country to the point where you have to scramble to find housing for the night.

That said, I have a friend who’s mom had a need to travel frequently when she was young. She’s been all over the world. When I asked her whether it was worth it for her her, she said that it wasn’t. She just wanted to be home sometimes. She just wanted her mom to be happy so she went along, smiling.

[fierarul]

[deleted]

[vkou]

> I assume you were in Seoul for more than 1 day. What stopped you from going to the AirBnB starting the 2nd night? Not answering the call is no proof but I would have insisted to at least see the room I freaking paid for.

Once the person you're transacting with ripped you off, why on Earth would you try to keep engaging with them?

I mean, maybe if you want to waste your time on vacation, by all means, go ahead. I imagine most other travelers have better shit to do.

[prostheticvamp]

> why keep engaging with them?

So you can survive getting second-guesses by random internet people.