Airbnb reviews often paint a misleadingly rosy picture because guests face this real fear. Why Airbnb’s system pressures travelers into silence or subtly hinting at problems rather than speaking the full truth.
Airbnb reviews often paint a misleadingly rosy picture because guests face this real fear. Why Airbnb’s system pressures travelers into silence or subtly hinting at problems rather than speaking the full truth.
Other than Airbnb, what are the popular rental platforms used in Hawaii? E.g., Vrbo?
VRBO & Trip Advisor. There are a number of realtor-run STVR sites for Maui as well.
Let’s hear perspectives from some Airbnb owners, I’m curious. With hotels and restaurants people are more likely to leave a review if their experience is negative. Positive, less of an urge.
I’ve never had a really bad Airbnb experience. A few minor glitches, sure. If there is a problem, I write privately to the host rather than adding a permanent review about an issue easily remedied. If a real disappointment, I would say so in a review, but minor issues get a pass.
Renters: scrutinize photos carefully. No photo of the bathroom? Ask to see one. It could be a tipoff that the bath is, shall we say, minimal. If the beds look rumpled, that suggests possible inadequate cleaning standards. If the photos are dark or out of focus, no go. Windows? Views? Be sure you know which photos are of the property, and which are nearby attractions. True, out of date photos can be a problem. Read all details and all reviews, not just first page. Check street views on Google to scope out the area.
On the flip side of this discussion is the property owners view.
If we get even a 4-4.5 star review because people think the highway is too winding or they couldn’t find a parking space when they went into town or their favorite restaurant was closed that day or the weather was too cool for a picnic which all have nothing to do with the host site. This less than 5star rating will affect our visibility and overall rating. Online public reviews tend to give folks a platform that they can feel important. As hosts we absolutely want our customers feedback but I much much prefer the old fashioned way of writing us a note or calling us during their stay so we
Can immediately address an issue. We can then send a gracious thank you and we address the problem IF it is something within our control.
Online platforms tend to be the doom of human civility.
It’s a quandary for sure. If the Airbnb platform creates a doom spiral for anything other than a 5-star…it is essentially useless. There could be a review process and if guests complain about things that are not relevant to the accommodation itself then that rating could be removed.
There’s no perfect rating system so I like the comments around doing the diligence to ask questions and really examine info on the site before booking.
You clearly don’t know how Airbnb reviews work. Neither party can see the review until both reviews are completed. After that, neither party can change the review. So, if you leave a negative review, the host can’t retaliate and change it. Also, hosts cannot see your review of other hosts only other host’s review of you. Last, a host can set up auto booking for everyone except people that have bad reviews and/or people who haven’t verified their identity, which is good so people that have trashed other host’s homes are prevented from booking automatically. Your article makes no sense.
I became aware of this problem a few years ago. At that point I could wait to do my review until after the host did theirs. That doesn’t seem to work now. I never give less than a three, but I try to imply problems, not giving “gory” details. One thing I see and say a lot is “this place needs TLC. “ Another example, one unit I pointed out that one should be prepared for more stairs than they might have thought. We’ve used VRBO for many years. In the beginning people gave accurate reviews that really helped in closing a place. Sadly, it’s changed!
Going to check out booking.com based on the recommendation. Always disliked AirBnB reviews, as many obviously disregard or conceal problems at rentals for precisely the reasons identified above.
I have left only one bad review for a Lahaina Airbnb. The host advertised pet-friendly accommodations. When we arrived, it was not. We were threatened by management and when I informed the host he said to just message them that they were service animals and everything would be good. He also asked for an additional cleaning fee outside the Airbnb platform which is prohibited by Airbnb. He told me parking is free and to tell the front desk. Not so. I had to pay parking in addition to everything else. Because of Airbnb’s guarantee, I asked for a refund. They did not refund me nor did they find me a comparable place. I finally had to take them to small claims to get my money back. Airbnb’s are not cheap in Hawaii. I paid $4500+ for two weeks. Because the host was less than honest and Airbnb did not honor their guarantee, I will not use Airbnb ever again.
It is no secret that many travel sites suppress negative reviews!
Also fake reviews on websites are endemic.
You can actually get paid to post fake reviews.
That’s why when we go to Kauai, we always use a local rental agency.
They are much easier to reach, much more responsive and able to fix problems.
You should write an article from an owner or property manager perspective where you could write about the massive amount of fraud, damage and blackmailing the guests do. It is 1000 times worse than you opinion of what the owners/managers do especially professional companies that truly work on quality experiences for the guests.
I have not used Airbnb much, but I have not had the issues this article mentioned. I prefer to use redweek.com when possible. You can see exactly what you are getting as it will be in a resort, not a private apartment. The reviews are unbiased and open for all to see.
Most airbnb hosts use instant book because they are penalized with a lower search ranking if they choose not to use instant book. And as I mentioned earlier, hosts cannot read a guest’s review until they write and submit a review for the guest. These two factors eliminate retaliatory reviews. If a host chooses to research a guest prior to allowing a booking, they can’t read reviews left by the guest, so they can’t deny a booking if a guest has left previous negative reviews. Hosts are also strongly discouraged from denying bookings, and are required to justify their reason for denying a booking before the system will allow it. Finally, and most importantly, if a guest feels strongly enough to leave a bad review, do they really want to return to a place? Anytime we have left a negative review, we had no intention of returning because we were disappointed with our experience.
Great article and excellent points presented. We have been lucky with our Airbnb rentals thus far and I have always wondered about the review system.
I really do like Airbnb and I’ve also heard about some horror stories related to reservations being canceled by the hosts with very short notice prior to a stay commencing. Have you all heard or experienced that?
Good points. It is what it is and will probably not get better. I’d also look carefully at the dates of the last few reviews. If they are more than a few months old… beware. Another approach is once you’ve booked and can call the owner or manager, take the time to do that. You can always cancel if you don’t feel comfortable. Ask when the picture of the xyz was taken. Etc. It looks like you found a very bad unit.
Dear BOH and readers,
Just for some balance on this AirBNB reviews issue, I am a Kaua’i resident who is a host for my family summer cottage on the mainland booking through AirBNB. As a host, I’ve had the reverse issue. A guest caused $1,000 in damage, and when I reported it to AIrbnb for their insurance, the guest wrote a bogus 1-star review and counter-claimed $1,500 claiming my rental was unclean. Total BS, and after I provided video evidence from my ring doorbell camera where the guests bragged they were scamming me, Airbnb took down the 1-star retaliatory review and the guest was forced to pay the damage.
This guest booked by instant-book, and I could have been in the lurch had I not had video evidence. Unscrupulous guests can game the hosts by retaliatory reviews and blackmail hosts to give them a full refund so as to take down their bogus reviews. Bad actors (and good actors) are on both sides of this issue. Thanks for reading.
Airbnb actually has a built in system to protect both guests and hosts from backlash if either choose to leave a negative review. Neither review can be viewed or published until both sides have submitted reviews. In other words, hosts cannot punish guests for leaving bad reviews because hosts must first write and submit a review before they are able to read the guest’s review, and vice-versa.
This has to be the most disgusting guest-slanted article I have ever read. Your article is so very misleading to anyone reading it. The reason why is because you lied to the reader about how the review process works. The host cannot “retaliate” against your review.
Upon checkout both the host and the guest are given 14 days to leave a review. Neither person can retaliate against each other because neither person knows what the other person wrote. I’ve had guests who have left me a 5-star review only to discover they received a 1-star review from me. Just leave your honest review. There is no retaliation.
With that said, as a 20 year veteran in this industry, guests expectations have evolved into the most unrealistic ever. The review culture have given guests this sensation that they are somehow the expert on a mission of critiquing their accommodations rather than just enjoying their vacation. You’re clearly the nit-picker that us hosts seek to expose and avoid.
The author is mistaken. AirBnB (and Vrbo) do not allow the host/owner to see the review left by a guest before they review the guest. So they can’t leave a retaliatory review if a guest gives them a poor review.
Hosts/owners also cannot see the reviews left by a potential guest for prior stays.
There are guests that will threaten to leave a bad review if not given big discounts for things they perceive as shortcomings. I have had them demand a $1,000 discount because they saw a few bugs and there was a gecko on the ceiling at night. In Hawaii no less!! Never mind that they had the patio door open (with the A/C on of course) when I went to check on the complaint.
There are a significant number of guests who cannot be made happy no matter what and looking at past reviews makes it possible to identify these “victim mentalities”. Then there are the extortionists like the one detailed above.
Longtime Airbnb/Vrbo host here. Both platforms use a double blind review system, meaning the host cannot see the review a guest left them until they have reviewed the guest (and vice versa.) Hosts also cannot change their reviews after submission. Your argument that guests are leaving untrue favorable reviews out of fear of host retaliation makes no sense. It just doesn’t work that way.
Would you say AirBNB is the same as VRBO? I’ve used VRBO and yes I do rely on the reviews and pictures, and I haven’t had any problems and most “owners” fix any problems. I primarily use VRBO for travel to Hawaii and only condos in Waikiki.
Also I use Booking.com often to travel locally within California. I like Booking.com for the convenience of reserving and free cancelations (within a time frame).