Hello fellow budget hunters.
I know I have posted something similar before but I wanted to let more people know about my favourite travel accommodation!
Here are my top 10 reasons for why you should try using AirBnB for your next trip away!
#1: You get to stay with a local!
We all know as travellers that there is nothing better than staying with a local! You can pass on knowledge, learn different languages and maybe even make a life long friend, they normally have such a good insight of the city. With Sweden and Romania, we had our own apartment and had a lot of luck in Italy. So much insider information was useful in places to get the best pizza, local food and gelato!
#2: Explore locations away from the tourists!
A lot of listings do not lie in the heart of the city or main tourist strip, but instead just outside. Make sure you can get transport into the city, unless its walking distance but normally the tourist attractions are super easy to access whilst you stay somewhere so many tourists will never see! You’ll become cultured by the minute!
#3: Your host can give you insider tips!
We know local knowledge is invaluable to travellers! Well with airbnb, your host may just be able to recommend where and where not the eat, how to access the secret pathways which lead to a secluded beach paradise which only the locals know about or just how to get into the city cheaply! Think about all the places you would recommend to a traveller visiting your hometown, that’s what it would be like to live with a local and some will even cook your local dishes!
#4: No more hostel dorms!
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good hostel.. they are places full of crazy travellers that you are bound to get on with but sometimes having your own personal space is a dealbreaker. With airbnb, you get to stay in a house (95% of the time) apartment or even a treehouse! It will come to a point when you get sick to death of sharing a cramped hostel room with 13 other people. Instead, for a cheaper price you could have your own room, living like a local and get cultured by the minute! Everyone loves a few home comforts now and then! IN VENICE WE STAYED ON A BOAT!
#5: It can be cheaper!
Obviously it can be more expensive depending on the country, but if I’m travelling with my partner it becomes cheaper for us to share an airbnb listing than two hostel beds. In Morocco it was cheaper for hotels but it really depends and is better in more developed countries.
#6: YOU WILL FIND SOME EXTRAORDINARY PLACES!
(With help of the hosts) but also good places to eat like in Timisoara where we loved Suppa Bar just off the square which we wouldn’t have found without our hosts advice.
#7: The process is so easy!
With airbnb, the process is not long and drawn out, repeatedly filling out contact details etc. Once you profile is set up, you are good to go! The only unique point is that not every listing is an “instant book”. Generally you can request to stay with a host, give them a few lines on why your travelling, and they can approve or decline your booking request which for good hosts is normally within 24 hours! But don’t worry if you need a room quickly, there are plenty of “instant book” places!
#8: They have an app!
We all love a good app, and airbnb have A GREAT APP! This means you have access to thousands of listings all over the world, right in the palm of your hand. And again, the process is just as easy, which means you can search listings, filter your results based on price, facilities etc, book a room and even read reviews!
#9: YOU CAN MAKE MONEY!
There is nothing better than free money right? Well with their referral programme you can earn free travel credit every time a friend signs up and makes their first booking with airbnb. Use this link to get £25 off your next booking www.airbnb.co.uk/c/ambert1782
#10: The review system is honest and down to earth!
I think pretty much every traveller relies on other travellers’ reviews when deciding on a place to stay. However, sometimes it’s tough to decide whether the reviews are honest, and you never really get anything back once you review somewhere you have stayed. That’s where this site is different. You have 14 days to review a place you stayed at, not only that, YOUR HOST CAN REVIEW YOU TOO!
Hope that’s made you jump over to airbnb now and start browsing!
Until next time,
The Great Ambini
x x x
I have written many more hacks posts :
We were somehow never really into AorBnB due to some bad experiences made in the beginning. But with that list written by you we might give it another try.