My Experience with AirBNB
In the past few months a lot of people have asked me about my personal experiences with AirBNB.
I have used AirBNB in Los Angeles and Seattle to date. As a single white female I am pretty careful about what types of bookings I make in Los Angeles.
As most people know, Los Angeles is a huge sprawling city with lots of great neighborhoods and many pockets of seedy neighborhoods that are part of the landscape of a crazy urban wasteland.
I normally look for listings that have a separate entrance or studio on the property. I do not book listings where it is a private room inside the home of a stranger. I am no longer a college student and do not feel comfortable just crashing in a bedroom in a random house. I have to have my own entrance and bathroom. I am not an expert on Los Angeles but I do try to find locations that are safe.
The first place I booked was a studio attached to a house in Mt. Washington. The listing said it was in a great hipster safe neighborhood and that there was stairs. When I arrived in the dark at 9 PM, I realized it was 65 unlit stairs going up the side of a steep hill and I could not even see the house from the street or the house numbers. Note, this was in Mt. Washington, a steep hillside neighborhood built into the hills of north LA. All the houses are build about 20-50 feet up on the hill and the street was down below in like the "valley" I almost entered the wrong house, but the darkness, dogs barking and fear of being shot kept me from doing that! I had to call the host to find the house and it took a while because my GPS was not working. Eventually I found the place, it was a cute little studio tucked up in the hill, but it was a nightmare trying to navigate the stairs in the dark. I was afraid I would fall on my face. The windows did not all have coverings and I had to hang blankets on the windows.
The couple were married and appeared nice enough but they never officially welcomed me. My gut feeling was off a bit and I felt like they were watching me. The other downside was that the nearest store was located in the ghetto gang neighborhood down the hill or she said I could get back on the freeway and drive to Pasadena. (really?) The host directed me to the nearest grocery store, I was the only white person in the store and the offerings catered to a Mexican housewife. That night I ended up eating cheese and chips because I could not find any salads or fresh deli food.
The second play I stayed in Los Angeles was in Silverlake, a north suburb of Los Angeles near Los Feliz. It is considered a hipster neighborhood. There was a single gal that had a studio off of her house for rent. Once again I went to the wrong door in the dark, but luckily she was home and stood outside to meet me. She lived on a regular residential street. The unit was clean and felt safe. It was easy to get in and out of, however once I got in there, I realized that it was a converted garage with NO insulation. If a car was driving by or a person walking by and talking it felt like they were in the room with you. This is not good for someone like me who can't sleep with a lot of noise. Even with my fan on and my earplugs it was too loud. So each night I was there I dragged the blankets into the bathroom and slept on the bathroom floor, because the bathroom was part of the original house so it had insulation and was quiet. If I would of known I was paying $85 a night plus fees to sleep in a garage I would of not done it!
My most amazing experience with AirBNB was in Seattle. I rented an entire house in the Portage Bay neighborhood in Montlake. It is an upscale neighborhood adjacent to the University of Washington. The house was a mid century modern house with views of the water on Portage Bay. There was 3 large bedrooms with down comforters, two main updated bathrooms and over 2,500 square feet. For around $300 a night we had pleanty of room for my family and my parents. I was also able to invite about 20 people over for a meal. The house was gorgeous and well worth it!
I love the option to have AirBNB but I have to say you get what you pay for! What I learned from my experience is that I need to do a bit more research on the neighborhoods - because you don't want to end up staying in a place where you don't feel safe leaving the house at night. It will be difficult to avoid the converted garage though. Its not everyday I sleep in a garage or on a bathroom floor..but i try to be flexible. (:
I have used AirBNB in Los Angeles and Seattle to date. As a single white female I am pretty careful about what types of bookings I make in Los Angeles.
As most people know, Los Angeles is a huge sprawling city with lots of great neighborhoods and many pockets of seedy neighborhoods that are part of the landscape of a crazy urban wasteland.
I normally look for listings that have a separate entrance or studio on the property. I do not book listings where it is a private room inside the home of a stranger. I am no longer a college student and do not feel comfortable just crashing in a bedroom in a random house. I have to have my own entrance and bathroom. I am not an expert on Los Angeles but I do try to find locations that are safe.
The first place I booked was a studio attached to a house in Mt. Washington. The listing said it was in a great hipster safe neighborhood and that there was stairs. When I arrived in the dark at 9 PM, I realized it was 65 unlit stairs going up the side of a steep hill and I could not even see the house from the street or the house numbers. Note, this was in Mt. Washington, a steep hillside neighborhood built into the hills of north LA. All the houses are build about 20-50 feet up on the hill and the street was down below in like the "valley" I almost entered the wrong house, but the darkness, dogs barking and fear of being shot kept me from doing that! I had to call the host to find the house and it took a while because my GPS was not working. Eventually I found the place, it was a cute little studio tucked up in the hill, but it was a nightmare trying to navigate the stairs in the dark. I was afraid I would fall on my face. The windows did not all have coverings and I had to hang blankets on the windows.
The couple were married and appeared nice enough but they never officially welcomed me. My gut feeling was off a bit and I felt like they were watching me. The other downside was that the nearest store was located in the ghetto gang neighborhood down the hill or she said I could get back on the freeway and drive to Pasadena. (really?) The host directed me to the nearest grocery store, I was the only white person in the store and the offerings catered to a Mexican housewife. That night I ended up eating cheese and chips because I could not find any salads or fresh deli food.
The second play I stayed in Los Angeles was in Silverlake, a north suburb of Los Angeles near Los Feliz. It is considered a hipster neighborhood. There was a single gal that had a studio off of her house for rent. Once again I went to the wrong door in the dark, but luckily she was home and stood outside to meet me. She lived on a regular residential street. The unit was clean and felt safe. It was easy to get in and out of, however once I got in there, I realized that it was a converted garage with NO insulation. If a car was driving by or a person walking by and talking it felt like they were in the room with you. This is not good for someone like me who can't sleep with a lot of noise. Even with my fan on and my earplugs it was too loud. So each night I was there I dragged the blankets into the bathroom and slept on the bathroom floor, because the bathroom was part of the original house so it had insulation and was quiet. If I would of known I was paying $85 a night plus fees to sleep in a garage I would of not done it!
My most amazing experience with AirBNB was in Seattle. I rented an entire house in the Portage Bay neighborhood in Montlake. It is an upscale neighborhood adjacent to the University of Washington. The house was a mid century modern house with views of the water on Portage Bay. There was 3 large bedrooms with down comforters, two main updated bathrooms and over 2,500 square feet. For around $300 a night we had pleanty of room for my family and my parents. I was also able to invite about 20 people over for a meal. The house was gorgeous and well worth it!
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| With AirBNB you never know what you are going to get! ha ha! |
I love the option to have AirBNB but I have to say you get what you pay for! What I learned from my experience is that I need to do a bit more research on the neighborhoods - because you don't want to end up staying in a place where you don't feel safe leaving the house at night. It will be difficult to avoid the converted garage though. Its not everyday I sleep in a garage or on a bathroom floor..but i try to be flexible. (:
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