Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by spaced-out 1036 days ago
>I talked to someone who was renting out their basement apartment on AirBnB for a few months before a remodel was scheduled. They had one tenant try to file complaints about everything, down to the color of the bedding not matching the photos posted online. “Property not as described in listing”.

This doesn't seem unreasonable to me. Maybe the listing should match what they were actually offering to rent?

4 comments

I mean, I actually agree with this take, even though it’s subjective. While guests can be unreasonable, I suspect many hosts are taking glamour shots of the bedrooms and then keeping them in normal conditions while charging a premium.

You see the same thing in fast food advertisements. A glorious hamburger on TV, and a greasy smushed mess when you purchase one.

The question is why we tolerate the latter, not why we should accept the former.

It's extremely unreasonable.
Yeah need more to assess this one. Perfect match? Nah. But should be at least in the same quality / style ballpark and at least matching each other.
Next time I get a hotel I am definitely going to nick pick the sheets they had in the pictures online vs what I see in person.
Hotels have all the same sheets, so much so that a picture of your hotel room can often be traced to a particular address.

It’s insane to demand that the sheet color at an Airbnb match the color on the photo. It’s not materially relevant.

Now if the photo showed a queen bed and you got a twin, that would be a material difference. Perhaps even if the sheets were shown as cotton and you got something else.

But for me if I escape an Airbnb alive, I count it a win.

Hotels aren't selling a boutique experience.
I would say many are and many Airbnb listings are not.

OP's scenario sounds like a shithead (which exist everywhere on every platform) was abusing the system to save some cash.

I guess it depends on the listing, but I once booked a place that was billed as a nice romantic getaway in a beach town on AirBnB, and when we got there the room didn't look anything like the picture, many of the sheets and towels did not match and were low quality, and many of the small pillows, rugs, decorative curtains, and other furnishings shown in the ad were not there.

Yes I insisted on and got a full refund -- they were advertising a boutique, romantic getaway, not a cheap motel near the beach.