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by 7Figures2Commas 3985 days ago
> But to play devil's advocate: is there a percentage of business travelers that would prefer an AirBnB experience over the lure of elite status and hotel points?

Looking at the photos of the "business-ready homes" on https://www.airbnb.com/business/signup, I can assure you that there is nothing that would make me prefer the "AirBnB experience" over, say, a stay at the Mandarin Oriental or St. Regis. Hotels generally might get a bad wrap, but the quality of the accommodations and conveniences offered at the higher end of the market are very hard to compete with, elite status and hotel points not even taken into consideration.
2 comments
S4M 3985 days ago
I used to go to four stars hotels in London at my previous job for business trips, costing like 100-200 pounds a night, and really I didn't like it so much. The rooms had a TV with some light on it that was disturbing my sleep, sometimes I could hear the ventilation noise, etc. Many small details that were making it, IMO, a not too good experience, and many times I was happy I was not paying for this expensive accommodation with my own money.
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Erwin 3984 days ago
London hotels are very expensive compared to what you get. Having stayed there many times I was always jaded about the more expensive hotels, but visiting luxury hotels in Berlin or Vienna is a much nicer experience, Hyatt or Sofitel (and sure, Mandarin Oriental if you can afford it). E.g. you can go to Berlin and stay at the 5-star Sofitel which has a top 20 (out of 800) hotel rating at Tripadvisor and pay 110€/night for a 4om² room. I've paid the same at a hotel without a window in London once.

Lisabon is another city good for cheap luxury hotels. Trivago is a great hotel aggregator.

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S4M 3984 days ago
Good point about the quality and price of hotels varying according to the city. Guess Airbnb business will be more successful in places like London than Berlin or Lisabon (Lisboa?).
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jedrek 3984 days ago
At the higher end of the market (let's call it SPG and up), I'm also paying for a certain conformity of experience and comfort-related services. I'm paying for a concierge who'll let me use the 4 hours of free time I have effectively. I'm paying for a bar and lobby.

When I travel privately, I'm willing to pay to avoid all that crap.

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