Why do so many people — myself included — love staying in Airbnbs?

There are so many reasons! Here are the ten that top my list — followed by the reasons you might want to choose a hotel instead.

Why You Should Opt for an Airbnb

Curating Your Stay

When I travel, the primary reason that I like to stay in an Airbnb is that I get to customize my experience. I can choose to look out over the rooftops of Paris …

… cozy up in a conservatory in Milan …

… or hang out with alpacas in rural Oregon.

Everyone has their own priorities — a friend and I once picked a place in Toronto just for its blue velvet couch. I usually end up going for the spots with the best views.

Choosing Your Amenities

Want a pool? A fireplace? A kitchen? All three?

Airbnb’s filters generally make it easy to find the things that you want. You can’t filter for a bathtub, which is unfortunate — but if you scroll through the pictures, you might find exactly what you’re looking for.

The Personal Touch

More and more Airbnbs are run by small corporate outfits these days, but if you search well, you’ll end up in a place that really feels like a home.

Some people prefer the predictability of a chain hotel, but I like the little personal idiosyncrasies that make me feel like I’m walking into a place that I might want to live. To me, this makes my stays more memorable.

Cost

Airbnbs come in at all price points, from the dirt cheap to the exorbitant. If you want to save money and you’re traveling solo, the best option is to stay in a room in someone else’s house. You’ll lose privacy, but your wallet will thank you. This strategy is especially helpful in major cities, where hotel costs can be through the roof. I paid half of what I would have paid for a hotel in Vancouver when I booked an Airbnb room in a nurse’s apartment. She and I hardly ever crossed paths, and I had this view out over the mountains and the water:

If you’re traveling in a group, Airbnbs are often cheaper because you can choose accommodations that have multiple beds and/or couches. So rather than springing for multiple hotel rooms or suites, you can put everyone up in a single apartment or house — and it may even have outdoor gathering space.

More Space to Hang Out

When you’re staying in a hotel room, that’s usually all you get: a room. In many Airbnbs, you have more room to spread out. I love being able to sprawl when I’m on my own, and it becomes even more valuable when I’m staying with family or friends who have different sleep schedules.

Accommodations Off the Beaten Path

Let’s face it: hotels don’t exist everywhere. What if you want to stay out in the middle of nowhere? An Airbnb may be your best (or only) option.

Local Experiences

Some Airbnbs offer great local, insider recommendations — so you may end up in restaurants, bars, or spas you otherwise might never have considered. And if you’re really lucky, you might find one-of-a-kind experiences right on the property. I’ve been lucky to stay in two different Airbnbs that had waterfalls and private hiking trails.

Local People

You may never meet your Airbnb owners; that seems to be the norm. But depending on both the country and your housing situation, you may end up making friends. I’ve had Airbnb hosts share packing tape with me, let me loose in their fruit orchard, lead me on private windmill and waterfall tours, offer me dinner, and even give me a ride to the rental car lot. Plus, I’ve had dozens of excellent conversations that help me get to know the places and cultures around me.

Unusual Spaces

Want to stay in a treehouse? A giant guitar? A tiger’s head? A windmill? A castle? Airbnb has all sorts of wacky and wonderful visit options. I’ve stayed in at least two chicken coops and, most recently, a houseboat (I wrote about that amazing stay here).

Traveling With Animals — And Seeing Them, Too

Some people want to be able to travel with their pets, and many Airbnbs are pet-friendly. They’re especially great if you are looking for a yard for your dog to run around in. Don’t have a pet? An Airbnb may still be the perfect place to see animals right out your window!

I even stayed on one property that had its own resident koala and glow worms (and leeches, which were less awesome). You can find some great things out there.

Why You Should Stay Somewhere Else

I’ve stayed in nearly 30 Airbnb properties in 10 countries over the course of the past year alone, and I’ve had remarkable success. No scams, no property issues. I’m a cheerful Airbnb evangelist. But if you’re having second thoughts, here’s where Airbnbs can turn out to be a problem.

Lack of Consistency

I have a friend who likes nice pillows and a comfortable bed. Who doesn’t? But he insists on them. And if you want consistent, high-quality bedding, a hotel is going to be a better bet.

You might also want consistent quality. There are some countries with which I am less familiar where I have been reluctant to try out Airbnbs. You need to decide what is going to work for you.

Lack of Certain Amenities

Need a gym? Want someone to feed you breakfast? Love tiny bottles of shampoo and body lotion? Almost every hotel will have those particular extras. Most Airbnbs will not — though I have stayed at places that have left me abundant cooking supplies.

Lack of Availability

Airbnbs can be found all over the world — but one thing that I’ve learned in my travels is that they are more abundant in some places than others. In some areas, you’re better off going with booking.com; you’ll just find more options that way. For example, my sister and I loved our little apartments below in Kythira, Greece, but they weren’t an option on Airbnb.

Cleaning Rules & Costs

When you leave a hotel room, you can leave as much of a mess as you want (but please leave a big tip if you do!). Airbnbs often come with cleaning rules: wash the dishes, put the towels in the hamper, take out the trash. So leaving an Airbnb can actually take a bit of time and effort.

On top of that, most Airbnbs have a separate cleaning fee. I get that they need to be cleaned, of course, but the cleaning fees sometimes feel disproportionately pricey. I’ve seen a room for $90 for one night come with a $150 cleaning fee attached — at which point, what you have is a $240 room.

You Don’t Necessarily Know What You’re Getting

With years of practice, you can get very good at parsing Airbnb postings. But even so, it’s not always easy to suss things out on Airbnb when you’re staying in unfamiliar territory. I’ve ended up in a cluttered, not-super-clean Brooklyn walk-up, a very sketchy Charlottesville neighborhood, and a spot in rural North Carolina with a beautiful pond …

… but truly offensive Black lawn jockeys and advertising memorabilia. I also booked a room in someone’s house in Monterey and ended up in a political conversation that I did not enjoy. There are ways to avoid some of these sorts of issues, but even if you read every review and scour every posting photograph, you still may end up having some encounters that you don’t love.

Poor Customer Service

If you have a problem with an Airbnb, you may not have much recourse. At a hotel, you can complain to a manager; it’s much harder to complain when you’re dealing with Airbnb. I’ve only had one major issue in over 10 years of using the service: I had no entry instructions for an Airbnb apartment in Venice, and the host was not responsive to my texts. Airbnb did eventually track him down, but in the meantime, I was left sitting outside at a chilly cafe for three hours in January, well beyond the supposed check-in time. I was not amused. Neither the host nor Airbnb offered me any kind of apology or recompense.

A Final Note of Confusion

Airbnb started out as a way for people to rent their homes or spaces within them to other people. It’s now become a multi-billion dollar company, and you won’t just find homes anymore; in some instances, you’ll find inns, guest houses, resorts, and small hotels. So now your Airbnb may be a hotel.

If you end up in a small hotel, you can solve some of the Airbnb problems (lack of consistency and amenities; customer service), but you’ll lose some of the charms of a home. Just make sure that, as you’re booking, you pay attention to whether you’re getting a hotel — the Airbnb posting should let you know.

Want help finding the best Airbnb for your stay? Here’s my step-by-step guide.

Wondering how to prepare for long-term travel? Read my complete guide and planning checklist.