When planning a Hawaii vacation, one of the first things travelers do is check reviews. For many, Airbnb is still popular for booking Hawaii accommodations, promising unique stays and experiences. We also use it often when traveling in Hawaii, on the mainland, and internationally.
However, there’s a growing concern that Airbnb reviews may not be as reliable as they seem. This article explores some of the reasons why Airbnb reviews are often overwhelmingly positive and why this might not always reflect the reality of the property or the experience. At the same time, some hosts have said in comments below, and directly to us, that they have had guests make inappropriate demands in exchange for those coveted five star reviews.
The hidden truth behind Airbnb reviews.
Many travelers feel pressured to leave positive reviews because they perceive they might be excluded from booking options at another property in the future. Sometimes, it may also be due to positive interactions with the host during the stay and not wanting to disappoint or reduce the host’s income by a negative review.
Visitor Annette just commented on this, adding: “I have experienced the same issue with AirBnB. I had issues some of which were resolved but it just got to be “why don’t things work”?… Before I posted my review, I sent the owner an email about my disappointments. He did not respond but posted a bad review of me. He kept saying everything needs to be 5 star. His bad review of me could not be edited nor removed. I have not tried to rent another AirBnB unit and I am not sure I will.”
Another reason is that despite shortcomings, a guest might want to return. For example, we found a good location in Europe we liked and might consider returning because of the value. So, our review did not reveal any negative experiences.
While many Airbnb reservations have instant booking, many do not and are subject to approval by a host who can look at what prior hosts have said about you and decide whether to approve or reject a booking request.
In reality, guests and hosts don’t see each other’s reviews until they are published, and neither party can edit a review after publication. A host can’t change their review of you, but they can leave a comment on something you wrote about their property.
Comments from visitors included this from Alfred, an Airbnb host and guest who has been leaving comments on BOH for about five years:
“As both an airbnb host and an airbnb renter, this is an interesting perspective… With airbnb a 4* review is in the eyes of airbnb is an abject failure on the part of a host. That is why hosts goose the system I believe. Their scoring system needs to be reworked in this regard… Hosts leave information in their properties explaining that anything less than a 5* rating means the host failed.”
Another Airbnb host and very regular BOH commenter Kim added this:
“I had negative reviews that were unwarranted. Reviews are important for status and placement on these marketing platforms. Hosts jump through hoops for reviews and many times will receive undeserved ones. Reviews should require photos. Airbnb also typically sides with guests no matter the case. Ask for recent photos of rental.”
Personal case study: an Airbnb stay in French Polynesia.
To illustrate the problem, we’ll look at our recent Airbnb stay in French Polynesia. The house seemed promising on the platform, with 258 reviews, an average score of 4.91 out of 5.0, and appealing photos. However, upon arrival, several issues became apparent, as posted below.
We decided that most of these things could not be fixed during our stay. In the past, we talked to the host when the Wi-Fi was not working or when something could be repaired that would not be inconvenient while we were guests.
- Unsafe Entryway: The entry to the house had a broken step, making it hazardous every time we entered or exited. Because the step was not big enough to accommodate your entire foot, you could fall if you stepped on the broken surface.
- Poor Lighting: The lighting inside the house was so dim that reading at night was nearly impossible, leading to a constant feeling of eye strain.
- Misleading Amenities: The “plunge pool” was, in reality, a broken-down hot tub with cold water, far from the relaxing amenity it was advertised as. There was also no water filtration. You had to go to the circuit breaker to activate or turn the jets on. We decided to pass.
- Inadequate kitchen stove top and oven: During a two-week stay, the kitchen’s single working burner proved highly frustrating and limited the ability to prepare meals. The oven was not hot enough, and there was no way to determine the temperature.
- Misleading photos: This Airbnb has been around for seven years, and the photos were probably taken that long ago. It does not have the same fit and finish now. For example, everything, including the large deck that looked in great condition from the pictures, needed painting. The place looked worn out compared to the photos.
“Despite these significant shortcomings, I’m deciding how honest to be. The rationale? We might want to stay again because it was an incredible value. The platform’s review system essentially forces guests into a corner: leave a good review or risk being excluded from future bookings.”
BOH editor Rob
Comparison with other platforms: Booking.com is a case in point.
Unlike Airbnb, platforms like Booking.com offer a different approach to guest reviews. Guests on Booking.com can leave reviews after a stay, and these reviews do not affect their ability to make future bookings. Moreover, Booking.com does not offer a platform where hosts can screen who can stay based on past reviews. This ensures a more balanced and honest representation of the properties listed on the platform.
For example, a host can see what other hosts have written about you and then go to the host’s property to read the review you left. The only time that would not work out easily is if the host had multiple rentals, making it difficult to track where you stayed.
Broader Implications for Hawaii travelers and others.
The implications of this dynamic are significant for travelers who rely on reviews to make informed decisions. If Airbnb reviews are primarily positive due to guests’ real fears about writing something negative (real or imagined), they may not accurately reflect the reality of the property. This lack of authenticity can lead to unpleasant surprises, safety concerns, or even entirely misleading travel experiences.
For instance, in our experience, the reviews did not mention any of the major issues we encountered, such as broken steps, inadequate lighting, misleading amenities, or malfunctioning kitchen equipment. Had we known these details beforehand, we might well have chosen a different property instead.
What can be done? Potential solutions for Airbnb hosts and guests.
To address these concerns, Airbnb could consider implementing several changes to its review system:
- Anonymous reviews: Allow verified guests to leave reviews anonymously to prevent guests’ concerns.
- Strict guidelines against retaliation: Implement more stringent rules against hosts who retaliate based on guest reviews. For example, if a guest raised valid issues during their stay to a host, that might lead the host to say something negative about the guest in their review.
- Enhanced review verification: Strengthen the review verification process to ensure that reviews accurately reflect the guests’ experiences without being influenced by the potential impact on future bookings. Airbnb does allow you to leave independent feedback that the host will not see.
- Move to all instant-book properties. We really like this type of booking because there is no waiting or screening. Otherwise, a host has up to 24 hours to tell us if our request is accepted. If a host declines a booking, we understand they need to provide a reason for doing so.
- Consider changing the star review system. That inasmuch as currently the goal is all 5 star reviews.
Conclusion about Airbnb reviews.
While Airbnb offers unique and diverse accommodations, the platform’s current review system may not provide a fully accurate picture of what travelers can expect. As users of these platforms, it is essential to be aware of these dynamics and to read between the lines regarding overwhelmingly positive reviews. Understanding the limitations of Airbnb’s review system allows travelers to make more informed decisions and better prepare for their next adventure.
Final thoughts from BOH editors.
Rob remains committed to using Airbnb, albeit with a cautious eye. He feels that the savings on Airbnb rentals like this recent one, compared to a resort, more than makeup for the unexpected problems encountered. Meanwhile, Jeff much prefers platforms that allow for more honest feedback without fearing repercussions and chooses not to use Airbnb. Whichever side of the debate you find yourself on, it’s important that you remain aware of the inherent biases that may exist in online reviews no matter where they are found and plan your travels accordingly.
We welcome your input. Have you ever left a negative review on Airbnb?
The mutual review and pre approval systems are extremely important. I lost my primary residence and screen guests carefully. The risk to the guest of a stay is small compared to the risk of damage to my home.
Guests also have the mistake impression this is an extremely profitable undertaking. It isn’t. The nightly equivalent of my mortgage exceeds what guests pay. I do it because it allows me to travel more often and I’ve had some amazing guests who were a pleasure to meet.
I find this article to be ridiculously dismissive of the host perspective.
I agree that the Airbnb review system is flawed, but the mutual review of hosts and guests is a great feature. The biggest improvement would be to allow more granularity in ratings. Why a 4 or a 5? Why not allow in-between ratings such as 4.7? Since guests are requested to rate their stay on specific factors (e.g., “value” “corresponded with the description” etc.) why are they also required to give an overall rating? As a host, I routinely message my guests the day after they check in, making sure that everything is OK and to let me know if anything needs fixing. I don’t want to learn about a problem for the first time in a public review. “Stuff happens,” but it’s the host’s response to a situation that’s important – not the “stuff” itself.
Especially if your property is well booked. I need to do that more with mine. Thanks for the reminder.
It’s interesting the conclusion is that they would stay at this place again because it was a great value, after nitpicking everything. Low lighting in the living room?
Airbnbs are not hotels. You want a hotel experience for less than hotel price? Do you think owners are just awash in money? The small owners among us do this to help us pay our bills. We do what we can to keep our properties in good shape. Maybe the owner likes low lighting? Maybe that front step is a quirk they don’t think much about. It is mentally and physically exhausting to run a STR. At the end of the day, people expect a 5 star Ritz experience for less than a mid-range hotel. Things get broken All the time – glasses, mirrors, chairs. Sheets & towels get stained or disappear. I love making fun experiences for my guests. I screen because I want to know people will enjoy it, not rip it apart.
The general fact that more people post complaints than those who were satisfied post, transcends all types of reviews, on all platforms, thus a platform where the highest percentage of reviews are positive is suspicious. It’s just not human nature to go out of our way to say we were satisfied, but stellar service or subpar we’re probably telling anyone who will listen.
Reviews of vacations are not the same as reviews of phones or even restaurants. An Hawaiian airbnb review gives a person a chance to relive the vacation of a lifetime and I think the five star reviews are an honest expression of gratitude and satisfaction. People who did not like their lodgings probably choose to leave none at all.
I agree. Many 5 star reviews discuss all the wonderful things
they did during their vacation and barely mention their lodging.
I try to split the difference on reviews, where I leave a 5 star rating but also a lot of details on my experience in the public review text, always using a positive or objective spin such as “the beautiful living room would have been even better if the lighting weren’t so dim” and “ the stairs to the loft were so steep and narrow I couldn’t allow my kids to use them, and would be unusable by someone with mobility issues, but was fine for the agile adults in our group.” I assume hosts don’t retaliate against negative text comments, but who knows?
>>Move to all instant-book properties. <<
From the host's point of view, this policy can be problematical, because the host may need to filter out some types of travelers who would not be happy with their particular rental. For instance, business travelers or pre-wedding bacchanals.
In addition, pre-booking correspondence tends to reinforce the idea that it's not a hotel someone is booking but a privately owned residence, condo or whatever, which makes for much better stays from the host's point of view.
Good day~ I would like to comment on ‘ratings’ and the warping of reliable information to make informed decisions. This is caused by the E-suite obession with ‘only’ 5 star ratings and creating a culture of ‘please the boss’, iso of accurate ratings to identify the issues so solutions can be found. I hear this all the time from a wide range of buisnesses, please rate us 5 or 10 or whatever the top mark is or we will be penalized. This sets up a falsity loop that never addresses the core issues. As a service quality professional, I always advised my clients that your numbers are your numbers. If you disguise them iso of being honest, in the long run you will continue to fail! Letting ratings fall where they may is equivalent to transperancy, as you cannot fix a problem without knowledge and data. Just be real and willing to improve. Cheers
As a host, my biggest beef is that you are rated on like 6 different metrics 1-5 stars, But then the guest can leave whatever overall star review they want. So, for instance one guest rated 5 of the 6 metrics as 5 stars. One metric “value” was 4 stars. So what was my overall rating? 4 stars. Maybe some guests do not know how averaging numbers work. Metrics like “value” should be ommited because no kidding they want a room cheaper “value” than what it is listed at!
“Mostly” fake? Is that a statistical calculation based on actual data … or an opinion? There is no such thing as a perfect review system and certain individuals will inevitably try to abuse any system to their advantage, but it’s wildly misleading to claim that your limited personal experiences represent a definitive summary of the overall reality of a global platform. If you had a bad experience at your recent stay in not-Hawaii, and you feel compelled to write a negative story on your platform … do that. But it’s neither accurate nor relevant to extrapolate your experience there to the overall state of travel accommodations in Hawaii. A headline that says “we had a bad experience” would be totally appropriate … but can you provide actual proof of your statement that “most” reviews on AirBnB are fake?