Airbnb are people’s homes and unlike hotels there’s no consistent standard. Everyone have their own preferences and ways of describing things. I find people are usually too polite to leave detailed honest feedback publicly. I personally have had wanted to say things that I think would benefit other travelers but didn't want to offend the host.
Just remember good hosts genuinely care and want to provide the best for their guests, so ask as many questions beforehand as possible.
To help other airbnb users who are particular like myself, I came up with a comprehensive list of things you might want to find out about before you go:
The Bedroom:
We all know a good night's sleep is the start of a great day!
- Extra duvet/doona/blanket – I easily feel cold, so if you are like me or if you are travelling during cooler months, you can ask whether extra duvet/doona/blanket is available in case you get cold at night.
- Bed size, mattress type and pillow firmness – everyone have their preferences, some like it firm, I like it soft, and once I went to this 5 star rated airbnb and the bed was super firm – I could barely sleep on it.
- Locks for rooms – some apartments, especially newer apartments, have locks for individual rooms. I like the added security and privacy especially when I stay in airbnbs with multiple rooms rented out.
- Curtains/blinds – not all bedrooms have curtains/block-out blinds. I once stayed at this beautiful new apartment with just sheer roller blinds, it didn’t even block out city light at night, let along the morning sun, and the building in front could easily see into this room at night when I had the light on. I just wish I knew before I went and had brought a sleeping mask.
- Actual size of the room – I live out of my luggage when I travel, so I always need floor space to lay my luggage down. When I travel with my partner, we need at least 2 large luggage spaces. Some rooms are small or busily furnished with very little floor space other than a walking path, which makes it really hard to lay down any luggage.
- Air-Con/heating – can it be adjusted for your room only? Some accommodation have one central control for the whole place, and I’m someone who’s always feeling cold when others don’t..
- Outside noise – this is a tough one, lots of cities have noises, which is normal for them but may or may not be for you. If you want you can ask about whether there’s construction nearby, traffic and public transport noise levels.
Amenities:
- Towels/Sheets – how many towels and what size, are there additional towels available if you needed it? If your stay is long, usually the cleaner won’t go in during your stay, so you’ll have to wash/dry your own towels and sheets.
- Washing machine/dryer/washing detergent/fabric softener – sometimes washing machine and dryer are provided but not the washing detergent/fabric softener or there could be very little left. The location of the washing machine/dryer also matters, it’s super convenient if it’s inside the accommodation. If it’s part of the building, sometimes you might have to wait to use it, or plan ahead to use it so you don’t worry about your clothes being left unattended.
- Kettle/Coffee/Tea – I am a tea drinker and once I was surprised when my host didn’t have a hot water kettle. I ended up boiling water in cooking pan over the kitchen stove (like when you cook spaghetti).
- Hair-dryer – definitely worth checking for us girls, not every host use hair dryer (not everyone have hair). I always dry my hair with a hair-dryer after I wash it, otherwise I’d feel uncomfortable.
- Drinking water – when I was in Fairbanks, Alaska, the tap water was drinkable but tasted very metallic. Lucky our host was kind enough to provide us big bottles of drinking water, saved us a bit of money.
Bathroom/Toilet:
- Bathroom/Toilet/Wash room – if it’s listed private, inquire if you need to go through public space to get to it. We once stayed at a place with our own bathroom but it was down the hallway, which the common space had full view of and was used by other bedrooms. I had to undress and dress up in the smallish bathroom. & a trip to the loo at night meant I had to put clothes back on (I sleep in my underwear), kind of defeated the purpose of having a private bathroom.
Others:
Check-in/check-out time and process – some places are harder to find than others and are not as clearly marked, so always worthwhile making sure, especially if you are planning to arrive in the middle of the night.
Best way to get to the property – whether it’s public transport, or uber/lyft/taxi, get an estimate cost can be helpful too.
Rubbish disposal – for extended stays, and if you’ll have the place to yourself, where do you drop off rubbish? I’ve pushed out bins for rubbish collection at airbnb accommodation before, it’s all part of being a good guest.
Supermarkets/pharmacies – are there any nearby if you want to buy groceries or other necessities?
Wi-Fi – I’ve stayed at homes where the signal strength significantly vary throughout the house, and I’ve had to run up and down stairs trying to find a strong signal to download my Emails. Not all wi-fi are created the same.
Words with different meaning – this is an interesting one, we are Australians, and when we were travelling in the US, they called our common bath Jacuzzi (I know this is just the brand name, but for us it is synonyms to a big spa able to fit 2+ people comfortably and with water pumps), and a large sized build-in-robe was listed as walk-in-robe, if it matters to you, it’s always worthwhile to check.
Left to be shared – I once went to an airbnb where the fridge had 5 barely used butters. Everyone tried to be polite and bought their own butter, and left it for others to use after they left. If you want something to be shared, clearly mark it as that. Other guests are probably too polite to use what’s not theirs.
Hope this helps, and happy travels!