Comment by bambax | Hacker News Reader

Comment by bambax | Hacker News Reader

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I used to like Airbnb. It's not better or cheaper than hotels, but when travelling with kids it makes a big difference.

Until I had a bad experience, that turned horrible. I saw a side of the company that made me think "never again".

I rented a place from a "superhost" that looked very nice on paper. It was in fact very bad. Everything in the description was misleading, photos were doctored to look nice, "windows" opened to a wall on the next building two feet away, there was mold everywhere, the shower flowed into the bedroom, etc.

At this point it wasn't the end of the world; I stayed two nights and went home. Then I wrote a bad review. It was simply descriptive and contained no harsh language of any kind.

The review was immediately taken down; I asked why, and received a barrage of emails from Airbnb (some automated, some maybe not) saying that they were very sorry, they understood this wasn't the outcome I expected, but they couldn't publish it.

Turns out, Airbnb will go to extreme lengths to protect their hosts, because they are much more valuable to the company than one random customer.

But if the reviews are fake or filtered, then I can't trust the platform.

I went back to booking.com; they now have properties in addition to hotels, and are much more professional.

I don't agree that Booking.com handles customer complaints better than Airbnb. I had booked a flat through Booking.com. The host wanted a deposit of my credit card information via an untrustworthy customised Italian website for a deposit before handing over the pin to collect the key. I do not speak Italian. Giving my credit card information to a strange website whose language I don't speak was not part of the agreement. The host then refused to give me access to the flat. My complaint to Booking.com was answered with standard texts pointing out that the deposit was obligatory in the small print and therefore part of the contract. However, the small print, which I admittedly had not read before booking, stated that the deposit was to be paid in cash. It didn't say anything about credit cards. I tried over five rounds of back and forth to get a complaint and a refund via Booking, as I didn't actually receive the flat and therefore didn't get any service. Booking then simply stopped replying. When I then wanted to take legal action and claim the amount, it turned out that I would have had to sue somewhere in Holland. So all the money was gone and I had double the cost for that night because I had to book a room elsewhere. So I've had the worst experience with booking.com customer support.

I booked one with swimming pool, advertising enough room for 6 person.

View was amazing, as advertised. The bed in the living room was inflatable and deflated over night. Only three forks in kitchen drawer. Convoluted scheme to enter the building and room cause they want to hide the fact it's an Airbnb as it's not really allowed in that building. Swimming pool was on maintenance since 2 months.

Airbnb couldn't care less, basically I was being annoying to them. They didn't publish my honest review.

Sure having a kitchen and a comfy place to rest is nice, since that experience I'm very reluctant to take again that risk, especially with kids.

Not as bad as my worst airBNB experience.

Everything from rats to exposed wiring next to a shower!

Review got removed. Full story here: https://pietersz.co.uk/2017/02/airbnb-block-bad-reviews

Same experience here. It was shocking how bad Airbnb’s customer service was. When 95% of the stays are good it doesn’t matter but that one bad stay soured me on the company entirely

Almost every Airbnb I've stayed over the past few years has been subpar compared to how it is advertised. The most recent one in Malaysia had cockroaches in the kitchen. Airbnb is now the last resort after I've exhausted staying in hotels.

At this point, I stay away from serviced apartments altogether. At least with a hotel you can go to reception and demand they fix your issue.

This has been my experience, as well.

The only exception is actual vacation homes that people rent out when they're not there. If it's not clearly a vacation home, I know that it's going to suck in at least one way.

Booking also gives you the final price in search results.

At least in the US now all companies have to as the FTC put out a rule that went into effect.

https://skift.com/2025/05/09/no-more-hidden-hotel-fees-new-f...

This is the same asymmetry why I wont buy a tesla until tesla allows any mechanic to fix problems with it. ie, you are beholden to the manufacturer or seller, and are at their mercy. This becomes more important as the car ages.

In this case also, it appears that the customer has no recourse (bad reviews are taken down.)

In Germany it's apparently illegal to leave a bad review of a business. Even if their experience was bad. Even if you can prove in a court of law that they lied on their listing.

Leaving a negative review is not outright illegal, but it can lead to legal consequences if deemed defamatory or false. If a review contains unsubstantiated claims or personal attacks, the business can pursue legal action for defamation.

The nuances of these laws can vary, so context matters significantly in legal interpretations.

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