Accommodations: Representations, Expectations and Reality

As I sit here writing this, we have just finished looking ahead at our next destination and our reserved accommodation(s). It’s always exciting to “Leap” ( TV series Quantum Leap 1989-1993 reference) into another location and experience. The pictures have been looked over, enlarged, scrutinized and discussed. The filtered “must-haves” are checked. Questions to the host sent and answered and much more.

We use many criteria and sort through dozens and dozens of potential homes, apartments and condos before deciding. Even with all our due diligence, there are always some short falls or even misrepresentations by the host. Some are minor, such as “Coffee Maker” turns out to be an Italian Moka pot (that was a learning curve for someone from the Mister Coffee, coffee maker generation). Others are complete fails (ex: an almost constant stench if every door and window were not left open being the worst so far).

We have yet to arrive at a destination and decide it is not at all acceptable, but we have had disappointments. This post is just a reminder to some and advice to others contemplating slow travel, that all the wonderful influencer videos and accommodation reviews are sometimes skirting around the truth. Think of how many of your own pictures you “crop” to leave out something, or the filters some people use to appear younger, slimmer, taller etc. The same goes for the accommodation business.

As for YouTubers and influencers, there tends to be the drive to make everything appear extra special to avoid being seen as negative or potentially disrespectful to their host and/or host location. We have seen Ex-Pat and tourists' sites on social media when a post with a negative view, regardless of legitimacy, is bombarded with negative or hysterical responses. They go from questioning the veracity of the post, to actual insults and claims that the opposite is true. So, it’s not surprising that influencers shy away from reports of negative experiences and observations about a city, region, country etc.

I will say, out of respect to the many absolutely amazing humans we have encountered so far, I will not publicly point fingers at any exact geographical location so as not to hurt their feelings. I will stick to the topic at hand, accommodations themselves.

We have stayed in at least 11 AirBnB rentals, 3 VRBO rentals, and 3-5 short stays through Booking dot com. We are not extensive travelers yet, but are certainly above average, especially when you consider a third of those were stays of 28+ days.

LESSONS LEARNED

1. Always message the host before booking to ask questions and evaluate their responsiveness. If you don’t see something in a photo, ask. If you aren’t sure of something. Ask. Example: It appears the apartment is on the fourth floor, (FIFTH floor by US standards), is there an elevator, AND DOES IT WORK? Many buildings in Europe do not have elevators, or they are very tiny and suspect safety in our opinion. We have received answers that “No, the elevator is not currently working.” So again. ASK QUESTIONS, even if it seems obvious.

2. Plan to Live Small. We each have about a week’s worth of clothes packed in one carry on and one backpack. The size of most accommodations we choose, due to price and must have filters, are typically pretty small. The bathrooms are much, much smaller, with the showers being unusable by many American sized people. For example, I am 6ft tall and 190lbs. I cannot turn 360 degrees around in most European showers without either an arm or my behind hitting the faucet or inside door handles. The number of times I have bumped the faucet, and the water has either become frigid or scalding is too many to recall. So, my fellow Americans…be forewarned when booking (in Europe)!

3. Amenities change. Just because the original booking says something works or is present in the facility, may not always be accurate when you move in. Is there air conditioning working when you arrive in Southern Italy mid-Summer? Is there a unit on each floor if multiple, or in more than one room? You may see a unit in the bedroom in the photos and assume there is one in the living spaces, when in fact there is not. You may assume there are enough place servings for four people because the ad says so, when in fact there are literally four plates, four bowls, four forks etc. It sounds nit-picky, but unless you want to nickel and dime yourself buying things for your host/apartment, look closely at the pictures and reviews for evidence and ask questions.

4. Read the reviews and read between the lines. We cannot stress this enough. Short-term rental platforms are set up in favor of the host. A host can cancel right up until the last moment, and you are stranded without lodging. If a host cancels prior to you arriving, you cannot leave a review or comment on the platform to inform others.
Any comments you make during a review can be rebutted publicly by the host, and we have personally seen where this has been done. The type of response by the host should be scrutinized to see the intent and veracity of what is said. Some have literally called renters liars and said there were problems with the renter. So, it’s one word versus the other word.
Many renters believe that if they leave a bad review that the host can retaliate and give you a bad review. That sways the reviews in a favorable direction toward the host. We have researched the policy, and this reportedly is not the case, but the perception is still widely out there.

****Other savvy renters will leave nuggets, or “Realtor” language. Cozy = Small.
Private Room = You are staying in their spare bedroom or portion of a lived in home.
Near busy street or very active area = LOUD. When windows are closed it is very quiet = LOUD unless you stay closed off around the clock. Owner fixed issues as soon as we informed them = what and how many issues?

5. Last but not least, nor is this list all inclusive: Use a map program like Apple or Google Maps. I cannot stress this more. You will not know the exact location of your rental until days before your reservation starts. Be a detective. When we use Google Maps and drop the “Little guy” icon onto a street near where the AirBnB map, or VRBO map shows the rental to be we can sleuth-out within a few buildings radius enough to understand the neighborhood. Using the pictures on the rental ad and “walking” the area on the street view Little Guy feature we can compare “big blue building with yellow balcony handrails”. Found it. Now walking the neighborhood with your Little Guy you can feel confident about the party zones or zones you don’t want to walk at night. Believe me. You will thank us for this tip. You may be near shopping, public transportation, all the wonderful things the site says. You may also be near a large construction site or garbage collection area along with those.
Even with this search tool and detective work, don’t be surprised at how “Quaint” or “Out of the way” your actual location is. We have to date stayed in two ground level apartments that were obviously used as a small business previously, and the loud, heavily trafficked sidewalks right outside our door and windows make sleeping very difficult, and peace and quiet in the daytime impossible.

In summary, this is not a post bashing on any particular rental app or rental hosts in general. It is merely intel we have gathered from our own experiences and from watching videos done by those with massive more experience at this than we have. My intent is that you gain a few pointers in the same way we did, so that it saves you some headaches, like we know for certain it has saved us. Knock on wood, we haven’t had a major issue yet, but we definitely had to endure a few unpleasant issues. We also had some spectacular hosts and locations that blew us away, and gave us unforgettable interactions and actual friends made from them.