AIBU to raise concerns about an Airbnb after kind hosts helped us?

[Bunnyfuller1]

So..we booked an AirBnB near Nimes. Our wonderful Ryanair flight was delayed 2 hours, which was then a domino effect to getting out of the airport to where we were collecting our car. The hire place closed 5 minutes before we got there, despite me pleading with them and updating them all the time.

i had been in contact with the AirBnB owner since before the holiday and he had asked me to keep him updates to our arrival time. When I had updated him with our situation he immediately offered to collect us from the railway station, and offered us dinner. An absolute gem, we are so grateful. We sorted our car out the next day, so all good there.

The problem is the AirBnB itself - it’s a small gite attached to the owner’s house. The grounds are very neglected with stuff everywhere. The advertised aircon is actually one portable air conditioner with a pipe taped to the door to vent. The owner has given us a couple of fans which make it possible to sleep Everything is very tired r unfinished or needs repairing. Bedside tables are plastic chairs.

Theres a pool which is very cloudy, and again everything around it is unkempt. The cherries on the cake are their 2 labradors which they mostly keep control of, but they take into the pool twice a day.

We are really torn - owners are so welcoming and nice (a bit too chatty sometimes) but we’ve never stayed in an Airbnb like this before and as much as I like dogs, I’m not overly keen on swimming in water that two huge labs go in.

What to do - if the hosts were any different we would immediately speak to them and Airbnb and hopefully get moved to something better, but (I know, grow a pair) I’m really feeling bad and ungrateful over speaking to them. DH is fully for raising our issues, it’s me feeling awful.

what to do, dear MN, and if we were to raise it, how….

I use Airbnb frequently, very frequently, already used it a dozen times this year, so no, my view is not " outdated" at all.

The OP's experience was in a property adjacent to/with the hosts. The OPs complaints about the accommodation not being five star are real and valid, but the OP did not book 5 star at 5 star prices and the OP did in fact benefit from the help of the hosts who went out of their way to help them. If OP had wanted to stay in completely independent premises with " a very high level of comfort" then they should have booked something else and paid more.

And my point stands with the review.
OP has a right to be as honest as they wish, but keep in mind that negatively reviewing private hosts, people who kindly picked you up from the airport and offer you dinner when they didn't have to, is going have a completely different impact to a scathing review of a larger business model.

I agree, just give them a nice detailed review that outlines everything you have found but sounds positive, so the discerning guest will get what you mean! If you want the best gite style Airbnb in France for next year, DM me - literally blew my socks off when we went last year and returning again this year.

Perfect.

Exactly. My experience too.

If you want to leave a review then review the kindness of the hosts who were very good to you and say nothing about the property. Or if you want then do as PP suggested and say "thankful for the portable aircon unit and host was also kind to lend us some extra fans". This is both factual but lets people know a bit about the setup

That sounds quite typical for France, that said no French person would stay somewhere like that very much for the tourists. Leave an honest review - people ripping you off usually have a smile on their face.

Your true error here though was flying with Ryan Air. They did similar to me once with all the knock on effects and I don’t fly with them anymore as a result. Saving a few £ on the flight is simply not worth the stress and huge costs of managing unprofessionalism.

An honest review is one thing but the OP was proposing she ask Airbnb to move her… which I’m struggling to see any justification for.

Absolutely would not swim in that pool.
In fact shouldn’t the pool be your sole use ?

Her plane was late ?

Just to be clear, I haven’t mentioned 5 star comfort anywhere. However, I don’t think it’s much to ask for the property to match the description. I would NEVER knowingly book anywhere without proper air conditioning, it was literally part of my search. Similarly I don’t think allowing your pets twice daily romps in a pool you are asking strangers to pay for is ok - in any world. I’ve also stayed in many, many AirBnBs, in and outside the uk and never encountered something that has been quite so artfully advertised. Yes, the hosts are lovely, which is a massive plus, but we don’t book the properties to make new friends, we book what we think the listing is, and in fucking record breaking heat in France, air conditioning is a must for us.

regardless if it is part of someone’s home or not, and notwithstanding the geniality of the hosts, surely your listing should be honest?

Please leave a review. Otherwise Airbnb automatically leaves one for you after 14 days. I am an Airbnb host and unfortunately there needs to be standards for properties. I ensure mine is spotless. I recently stayed in one where the cleaners they sent back to clean because it was so filthy, said they couldn't clean it as it was too bad and needed a deep clean and they couldn't do that till after we had left. I got compensation on my stay and I wish people would be honest both guests and hosts alike. Otherwise these things just keep happening unless people tell it like it is.

No it doesn't! If you don't leave a review within 14 days you can't leave one.

From 4-7pm. The other dog was laying behind me.

Oh no. That’s horrific. I would be furious and either leave or ask that they remove the dog and clean the pool.

This is a great idea. There are lots of things that I know I'd hate (e.g. dogs on site and in the pool) but that I'm aware others would love. So I make sure to read reviews and avoid ones that mention such things , even if it's a glowing 5 star. Your suggestion does right by the lovely hosts, but also serves the purpose of a review by fully informing potential guests.

Op, I just don't trust pics anymore. We've had some appalling accommodations in England and abroad. Everywhere is using idealized and falsified pics.

Anyway, I think starting with how lovely the owners are is great, and then upload your pics if you can.

I wouldn’t say anything OP. I understand your points but what would’ve happen if they didn’t kindly pick you up? I do totally get your points re the dogs but they seem so nice, you’d be potentially putting them out of business if you do this.

Maybe they should be better at running their business then? I’m a little bit taken aback at the suggestion that when booking an AirBnB you’re just supposed to be grateful for whatever quality of accommodation the hosts are prepared to offer, no matter how poor? Admittedly, I don’t use them myself so don’t know much about it but I didn’t realise that basically as long as you’re not sleeping under a hedge on the roadside, you’re meant to be writing 5 star reviews no matter what 🤔

What??
People need to maintain minimum standards if they are charging people money. If they don't know this, they need to learn!

I do Airbnb’s all the time. Never in France because it’s just become a gite rental engine. The standard of gites is absolutely awful most of the time IME, and owners have mostly poor standards of what is and isn’t acceptable if you’re renting part of your property out.

I use Airbnb a lot and I completely agree with this.

Omg. (And I am a dog lover.)

I wonder how long the pool would be out of action if they agreed to clean it?

I think I would tell them I am allergic...

And this is why I won’t ever use AirBnB!

This is so funny 👏👏👏😂😂😂

It's France. I have found that most gites and houses in France are rustic, shall we say. Make friends with your hosts and enjoy the authentic French experience.