Air BNB question

rowan222

Up to now I've generally avoided Air BNB because I'm not really comfortable renting and staying in someone else's property that they still live in with all their personal possessions around. For this reason we always book dedicated holiday cottages/apartments etc. 

However, I've recently noticed a couple of holiday properties that also advertise on Air BNB. So maybe I've been unreasonable in not considering Air BNB. Is there any clear way to tell if a property on Air BNB is a dedicated holiday accommodation or just someone renting out their property while they are away for a while?

Newly_retired

In my experience most places make it clear that they are offering either an entire property to rent for a short time, or a room in their own home. If you read the description and the reviews it should be clear whether a cottage/ apartment is a holiday let or their own home they are renting out. If in doubt, contact the owner and ask for clarification.
i have stayed in numerous Air BnBs and they have all been proper holiday lets, often a wing of a house, or a converted garage, for example, usually with the owners living next door.
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Ms_Chocaholic

Yes we too have stayed in cottages through Airbnb and they are just like any other holiday cottages, as long as you choose "entire home" when searching, there's been no sign of the owner's personal belongings.

Ms_Chocaholic

If you scroll down to the bottom of the listing it gives details of the owner, sometimes the owners have more than one property so clearly they are not living in them.

rowan222

Yes I've selected "entire home" but I do see an awful lot of items that look like personal in some of them. I guess that I'll just have to message and ask. 

bagand96

Whenever I've found properties on AirBNB that are obviously holiday rentals, I've been able to find the same property cheaper elsewhere. Either Booking.com or directly finding the business online (usually easy by the AirBNB account name)

I assume it's because their platform fees are higher. 

user1977

It's usually pretty obvious from the photos, otherwise look at the availability - if it's generally available at any time of the year then it's not somebody's home. I can't say I've noticed any "whole home" listings which appear to be somebody's main residence.

Some may be used as holiday homes for part of the year by the owners, with a locked cupboard with their personal stuff (or in the case of a Swedish property I rented, a non-locked cupboard including the trusting owners' cellar of expensive booze!)