We had such a wonderful, 5-day visit with Kevin, Patrick and Taavi (their "Beloved" (pooch), we didn't want to leave! This was our first Airbnb experience and first time co-habitating with strangers. We were iffy at first. What if it was awkward, or what if we didn't hit it off? It couldn't have been a more fun and enriching experience.

We arrived to a warm reception, given a tour of their gorgeous home, and tucked into our lovely, cozy, art-ardorned room where they had thoughtfully laid-out not only maps and information on things to-do, but a fabulously curated list of restaurants. Being foodies, we were tickled to have more options to explore, and their suggestions were spot on. Two of them, Edible Canada on Granville Island and Hapa Izikaya (go for lunch and get the bento box tasting; delish!) are some of our recent faves. Everything was immaculate, and the attention to detail, exceptional. It's like having a boutique hotel experience, in a perfect location to explore the city, without the boutique price-tag -- but with the priceless benefit of being with charming hosts to give you the insider-scoop.

We spent the first couple of days exploring the city on our own, but the best part of the trip was hanging out with them, and becoming fast-friends. Kevin gave us a behind-the-scenes private tour of the Vancouver Aquarium illuminating us with his marine biology background, followed by a scenic stroll of Coal Harbor to his parent's spectacular home, located right on the water. Mr. + Mrs. Kaufman weren't expecting us, and were entertaining guests, but made us feel so welcome, we felt like part of their kinfolk. The last day, we joined Kevin and Patrick to take Taavi to run along the beach. On the way, Patrick shared his award-winning insights about architecture, also a passion of ours. So they went out of their way to drive us around Kits, just so we could admire the neighborhood's style and design. After working up an appetite trying to keep up with Taavi galloping around the beach and paddling way off-shore to retrieve his toy, we topped off the day with our 'last supper' together, at Hawksworth (another must-do). We were having such a good time chatting it up, that we were the last to leave.

Long story longer, Kevin, Patrick + Taavi are fabulous hosts, interesting, hilarious, and kind, special souls. If you're just looking for a place to stay, they'll leave you to your devices. But you'd be missing what makes traveling special: The human connections. So I highly suggest hanging out with them, if you get the chance. It was serendipitous to have discovered them, and we're looking forward to picking up where we left off!