I believe it was a warm sunny day in Australia that I discovered Airbnb. Or it may have been a Tuesday. Regardless, ever since I found this website, I almost refuse to use anything else to book my accommodation! Airbnb has been getting bigger and bigger in the past 12 months, with more and more of you hosting your homes to travellers from all over the world. To all the hosts out there, I thank you. You may think that Airbnb is just another online booking site just like all the others. Well, my friend, you are wrong. It is so much more than that, and here are ten reasons why you should try it for yourself!
Plus, just because I love you, you can get $32 FREE TRAVEL CREDIT to spend on Airbnb by clicking here!
#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.
#2: No more hostel dorms!
With airbnb, you get to stay in a house (95% of the time) or even your own apartment! It will come to a point when you get sick to death of sharing a cramped hostel room with 14 other people. So why do it? Instead, for a similar 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!
#3: It can be cheaper!
For so long, travellers have believed that hostels are their cheapest option. But why? Because they are basic, you get a mattress (sometimes!) and a bit of floor space but are willing to spend $30+ per night. Yes hostels have their up sides, don’t get me wrong. But for the same price or a little more, you can stay in an incredible place, apartment, house, TREEHOUSE, bungalow, beach hut! If you are travelling as a couple or even a group, airbnb is definitely a cheaper option! With thousands of locations boasting rooms under $40 per night, when you split that between two or more… You see where I am going with this?
#4: YOU WILL FIND SOME EXTRAORDINARY PLACES!
These are the top 3 places I have stayed using airbnb! I am going to let the pictures do the talking here:
This first picture was one of our favourites costing around AUD$35 per night for two people ($17.50 pp/pn). Located on the beautiful island of Gili Trawangan we have a stunningly clean, air conditioned apartment with breakfast waiting for us every single morning!
This was a splurge, if you can call AUD$100 per night for your own TREEHOUSE over looking the national park splurging! When it comes to Australia, you struggle to find a cheap, dark, damp hotel for $100 per night! Remember, two people sharing meant it was only $50 each!
My final favourite had to be another “splurge” in Bali. We got an entire villa to ourselves, with kitchen, four poster bed, outdoor living area, tropical shower AND OUR OWN POOL over looking the rice paddies for AUD$85 PER NIGHT! For Bali terms, that is expensive, but that’s why SE Asia is a place you can treat yourself without hurting your wallet too much!
#5: 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 (if you want to) but normally the tourist attractions are super easy to access whilst you stay somewhere so many tourists will never see! All these places above except for the treehouse in Noosa (where you needed a car) are super close to town, but are just far enough away to provide stunning landscapes, local eateries and not a postcard stand in sight. You’ll become cultured by the minute!
#6: 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!
#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 credits every time a friend signs up and makes their first booking with airbnb. Not only that, but your friend will get money off their first stay too! So it is a win win! The more people you sign up, the more money you can spend on accommodation around the world! Click below to get your free $32 travel credit to spend anywhere you fancy!
#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! So not only does their profile look great as a host, but yours will have reviews from hosts too, saying what kind of guest you are, which will make booking requests oh so much quicker!
What are your best and worst experiences with Airbnb? Had you even heard of them before? Drop me a comment 🙂
This post does include affiliate links to products or companies which I have personally used and would highly recommend! If you click on an ad, at no extra cost to you, I make a small commission from the sale. All of which goes straight back into my travels and my YouTube channel to bring you even more PsychoTraveller goodness!
