Why I Still Prefer Hotels Over AirBnb

I travel a great deal for my job and this means staying in many, may hotels across the world. In recent years my company have been looking at sending me into vacation rentals as opposed to hotels and after staying many private rentals, I still can’t look any further than a hotel for my trip. Just last week I was in the incredible Bicycle Casino Hotel in California, a truly beautiful hotel with one of the biggest casino floors on the West Coast. I was in this hotel when I began thinking about this article and I just knew that there was no AirBnb in the world that could compare with this California hotel. And so, here is why I think that hotels are better than AirBnb.

Service

I am a real stickler for service and arriving to a hotel with a big smile and a warm greeting is difficult to replace. I like having someone on hand at all times to ask about things or to change something for me, this is something which you don’t get with an AirBnb. many of the hotels that I have stayed in over the years offer airport transfers, local guides and welcome gifts and I have never seen anything like this from a vacation rental.

Price

Whilst prices in the main may be cheaper at an AirBnb if you are traveling in a group or for a long length of time, for short stays, hotels offer far better value. The discounts on AirBnb exist for people who are looking to stay for a week or a month but if you are staying just for 2 or 3 nights, you will be looking at paying a much higher price.

Kitchen

Many will cite having a kitchen as one of the biggest advantages of having an AirBnb but I honestly don’t like to cook and I much prefer to be able to go downstairs to a restaurant or call in room service when I am in a hotel. Again, this sort of goes back to service and what I love about going to hotels is that there is usually someone on hand to look after all of my needs.

Location

Whilst I know that you can find AirBnbs in a huge range of locations, my experience of some of the most far flung places in the world that I have traveled to is that hotels have the most central locations that you can find. I like to stay in the heart of a city when I go to a new place and hotels usually offer me the very best option in this regard.

All in all then, I will not be giving up my hotel room for a vacation rental any time soon. I am not saying that I don’t like vacation rentals of course, I know that they serve their purpose, but for me, as someone who travels alone and likes the finer things in life, a hotel will always be my preferred option.