Airbnb is an enjoyable travel planner that many of you know, or at least have heard of. Until our last Greece trip, we actually didn't know it this in depth or use it. When we got to know it up close we loved it, and wanted to share right away. Come on, let's get to know this new-generation, technology-friendly site up close together.
If you're new to the site, at its simplest Airbnb brings people together to share accommodation and experiences and provides a secure payment environment. While hosts earn money from this experience by renting out their spare rooms or whole homes for short periods, travellers get in touch with host profiles and plan their trips in the comfort of a home, or sometimes in special places like châteaux, igloos or local-style bungalows.
While researching we learned that Airbnb has been in our lives for about 10 years! It's celebrating its 9th birthday with 3 million hosts and 150 million users worldwide. Its reach is exactly 65000 cities in 191 countries! It's hard to believe that it started in September 2007 in San Francisco when its founders Brian and Joe, two students who were flatmates, couldn't pay their rent, and that today it's a company worth 11.4 billion. The story began with them putting an air mattress each in their living room and an attic room as extra income towards the rent, and sharing cereal and conversation at breakfast. Their first guests were a group of friends, two men and a woman, who stayed paying $80 per person.
DISCOVER AIRBNB
If you want to complete your trip on a smaller budget while meeting new people, you're in the right place. At this point, so that you save time too, we'll introduce the site a little and help you have a trouble-free trip with some small tips..First of all, we'd say take a look at the website and make your account secure by creating a free membership. I think one of the best things Airbnb provides, and one of the reasons it has grown in this direction, is security. Since it isn't an establishment like a hotel, providing trust for both hosts and guests matters. You complete this step with an up-to-date photo, email address, and identity card or passport details added to your membership. As well as reassuring the person whose home you'll stay in, it's never shared with other people. For detailed security information you can click the link.
You've signed up; next comes finding a place to stay. To find the best option you should definitely use the filters. You can do a detailed search using filters like room type, price range, instant booking, rooms and beds, amenities, facilities, neighbourhoods and the host's language. You can also search for neighbourhoods by clicking different locations on the map.
Making the reservation is actually the last and quickest step; we have a few small warnings. You can make a few types of reservation. Hosts who don't want to approve each reservation add an Instant Book button. As the name suggests, if you've chosen a home like this you can confirm your reservation instantly. For the Thessaloniki travel guide, let's take you here.
For those who want to approve first, instead of this option the "Send Reservation Request" option will be active. To send a reservation request you need to enter your payment details. Hosts have 24 hours to accept your request, and the moment they accept, your reservation is automatically confirmed. If you want to get in touch with the host to ask questions before booking, you can plan the details by talking before booking with a pre-approval or special offer.
KEEP IN MIND WHEN USING AIRBNB
We've signed up, found the home we were looking for and even booked. Next come the tips to keep in mind while all this is happening.The Research Stage
You see that hotels, hostels and couchsurfing have been ruled out for this trip, and you say let me give Airbnb a chance. You've started researching; there are so many options! We're leaving what to watch out for when choosing a home below, but we'd like to stress that on Airbnb making an early reservation can be sooo profitable.Another secret to saving is bargaining! Yes, after all, the hosts on this site aren't people with very strict rules and pricing policies. We've read lots of posts saying "my budget for this trip was this, I can pay this much for your home" and the host helped with the price. What do you think, isn't it worth a try?!
To speed up the research part, another suggestion is that while you have time, and whenever you're free, go into the app and look for different styles of homes in the cities you want to go to. Save them to a wishlist. These lists, which you can categorise by city names and seasons, will both motivate you and be very useful later. For example, the bungalow homes I found for my Bali travel plan have long been hearted; I'm waiting for the day I go! :)
By the way, you can share your wishlist and create a home pool with your travel companions.
Things to Watch Out for When Choosing a Home
Research the home's location well, really research it well!:) We all know the "homes in the centre, very close to the metro" listings. These are the headings chosen for Airbnb homes too, to make the homes visible.. So before your trip check the home's address with Google Street View; remembering what kind of street it was, which building and what was around it will be useful. Especially since abroad you also have internet trouble, saving the location to offline maps is an important lifesaver too!
While we're on the subject, we'd say scan the home's features for your essentials, like Wifi. The House Rules are somewhere you can easily find on every home's page. Definitely read them; especially if you're renting a room, the host's rules matter all the more, read them once more. The rules for using shared areas and whether appliances like the washing machine can be used are important. Or is breakfast included in the price? Will someone else, or little friends, be staying in the home with you? Is the bed an air mattress or a sofa bed? :)
You may have loved the home, but it's worth looking at the host's profile too. Look at the identity verification, the number of reviews and the stars. Read all the reviews! Knowing beforehand who lives in the home will prevent a surprise you might run into. Of course this applies to you as much as to the host. Leave your room the way you found it. With the host's review, you'll build up a profile too. After approval comes for the travel reservation, you need to send a reservation request. And the whole accommodation fee is charged to your card. So for an unplanned cancellation, read the pricing policy. In most Airbnb homes the cleaning fee is extra. Details like this will also help you decide. Something you read in the home's features, said to be there, may not be in the home, or something may not work. The host may notify you of a last-minute cancellation of your reservation. For situations like these I recommend reading the refund policy. In cancellations Airbnb may direct you to another home or give you a refund .
To avoid the problem of an appliance not working, like a coffee machine or modem, if possible check whether the appliances work while the host shows you around the home. Report the problems you run into to your host first; if that doesn't bring a solution, you can report the situation to Airbnb, again within 24 hours. Definitely take photos for situations where you'll go to Airbnb.
Before You Go
Definitely check the check-in and check-out times. If you'll check in at the crack of dawn or late at night, definitely ask the host about this before booking. Likewise, state the time you'll leave the home. On our Greece trip we'd rented a wonderful villa in a deserted village. When we excitedly got to its door, the time was coming up to 5, just as we'd discussed with the host. OK, it wasn't 5, we'd arrived 15 minutes early :) But there was nobody at all at the home to welcome us. Calls, leaving messages in the message box we always talked in.. No answer; just as we were starting to panic, at exactly 5 someone opened the door. Definitely ask beforehand how you'll get to the home and confirm the time.
On the occasion of this memory, let's share our lovely home with you too; a great stop for Greece by car!
Get in touch with the host; making contact before you go will help in understanding each other's expectations. Assuming you won't have internet, save the phone number and address.
Tips for Using the Site
Definitely get the Airbnb app. With the app you'll get many conveniences not seen on the website.Pay attention to the language choice. You can change it in the app settings; the language you choose will also change the country's currency. You won't need to bother converting for your budget.
Availability: thanks to the calendar next to this text, you can check whether the home/room is available on the dates you're thinking of staying.
IF YOU'D LIKE TO TRY
In our view the Airbnb team stands out with one more important service it offers all over the world. Airbnbexperiences gives you the chance of experiences where you can have a great time, well beyond accommodation like homes and rooms. For example, tasting food while touring the city by bike through the streets of Paris with a local, learning to make Paella from a cook in Spain and meeting travellers like you and then tucking in.. It will make your trip unforgettable; this link is worth a look:And of course the posts of the team preparing content for this site, which has created a huuuge sector around the world.. We recommend looking at this site , which has tips for hosts and other users: If you'd like to get to know the system, which is a source of income for many people, up close as a host, there are lovely resources, lessons and coaching programmes to read. For these, we're leaving a few posts that caught our eye and that we liked.
Finally, to sign up to Airbnb and earn 85 TL on your first reservation, click here!