For those afflicted with a constant urge for spontaneous adventure, it can be hard to find accommodations that meet your immediate needs and budget in a short period of time. Fortunately, one website has succeeded in banishing any and all of your travel anxieties. The vacation rental website Airbnb has revolutionized the way in which we travel. Now, we can travel to a location, book a place to stay for as low at $30 a night within an hour or two of arriving, and repeat this cycle across multiple locations for any extended amount of time. With Airbnb’s rental service, backpacking and road trips have never been easier, and certainly if you are planning any kind of travel in the future, you should give this website a try!

How It Works

Hosts from virtually anywhere in the world list entire apartments or private rooms available for rent through Airbnb’s website. The types of accommodation can range from something as standard as an extra room in a house or rooms available in a bed and breakfast to an entire private tree house or yurt. Most accommodations are incredibly unique, well-maintained, and are definitely fun alternatives to the average hotel room. Once you’ve found a place, you can book it, sometimes instantly, for any date available. You are then sent further instructions for checking in and out by the host. With the Airbnb system, you can feel right at home and experience a totally new location in something as cool as an igloo or a waterfront hut. All you need is the right host with the right rental.

How to Find the Perfect Rental

The first thing Airbnb asks is where you want to go, the dates you want to go, and how many guests. Once you submit this information you can further narrow your results by selecting the type of room you want and the price range per night of stay. My simple search for a May vacation in Croatia gave me 300 plus options!

If you select “more filters”, you can narrow the search even further. The extra filters include: specific neighborhoods, types of amenities, types of property, cancellation policies, size of the rental, and host language options. If you use some of the extra filters you are certain to find a place that exactly fits your needs, keeping in mind that this could conversely limit your options.  However, chances are you will find at least one or two rentals that fit almost all of your criteria.

Other Areas of Importance

Reviews: Many Airbnb rentals will have reviews from past renters. These reviews are EXTREMELY important. You might find a place that fits all your criteria but has no reviews. Without reviews from previous guests, the rental could potentially be misrepresented or even unsafe. Look for rentals that have many reviews, and hopefully good reviews, so you can have a better idea of the quality of a rental and figure out if it is really the right fit for you. The best rentals normally come with a badge called “superhost”, meaning the host of that rental has a high response rate, numerous five star reviews, and a lot of experience in confirming trips for their accommodation. Seriously consider reading as many reviews for rentals as you can; they can make or break your experience with Airbnb.

Safety and Verification:  All hosts who list rentals must have numerous identity verifications listed on their profiles along with at least one government issued identification. The information for each type of verification is private, but you will be able to see how many each host has. Also, if you intend to be a regular user of the site, you will be required to have an account that is also verified through a license or other government ID. No one will see the information; your profile will only display that your identity was verified.

Identity verification is meant to uphold the safety of the hosts and guests.  As a host, you let someone you do not know into your home or property and as a renter you live in a house or property not your own. There are risks involved for each party involved which is why identity verification is mandatory for both sides.

Tips

Instant Booking: Some rentals will have a lightning bolt symbol attached to their picture, meaning they can be booked instantly. Normally, in order to book a place you would have to request to book a rental and the host of the rental would have to respond to your request within one day. However, with “instant book” you can book a rental without sending a request and waiting for a reply. Definitely look out for this symbol if you need to book a place in a hurry!

Writing reviews: If you were very happy with the rental and the host, definitely consider writing a review. Hosts can write reviews for anyone that has stayed at their rentals and in order to see what they wrote, you will have to write them a review first. Having good reviews from hosts on your profile can increase your chances of getting booked with other hosts, so most of time, reviews are a win-win.

Specifying Room Types: If you do not feel comfortable living in a house with the host or people you do not know, just select “entire home/apartment” when you’re sorting through options. Often times, a “private room” means a separate room and bathroom that is still attached to the host’s home or apartment. This option can be slightly misleading and I definitely learned that the hard way, so save yourself the trouble and only mark “entire home/apartment” if you want to have the place to yourself.

I hope you give Airbnb a try after reading these helpful tips. It really is a lifesaver and my personal “go-to” booking site when I get the urge to wander. Happy travels!

Check out the Airbnb site here:

[accordion_tab title=”Collegiate Correspondent: Jennifer Nieves” default]

Jennifer is a collegiate correspondent with Voy. [/accordion_tab]