Sonder is a new, billion dollar brand that’s trying to cut into Air BNB’s market share. They sell themselves as a midpoint between a bed and breakfast and a hotel. Two aspects of their business didn’t sit well with me.
1) They kinda wiggled their way in front of me, sliding the “Sonder” name dubiously into my air Bnb feed. I thought “Sonder” was the name of the Air BNB host, but only after my payment was processed did I get bounced over to the website of a billion+ dollar public company called “Sonder.” Suddenly I had to create a new login, register my phone number, and upload a photo of my govt ID. It took several days for Sonder to process my info. 10 minutes before check-in, while I was in the car ride on the way to downtown Austin, I still had not received full check-in details from them. I will say their customer service reps were very good.
2) At least in this particular Austin location on east E 5th street, their product was not for me. I was placed in a tiny, decently kept, and generally below average studio apartment. There wasn’t a trace of human contact with Sonder. Their product was a mixture of the worst of the air Bnb experience with the worst of the hotel experience. They strip away the homey, local feel that has made air Bnb famous. Which means, they are essentially a hotel (with hotel prices), but without the concierge, restaurant, and hospitality services synonymous with the American hotel experience. At $300/night I would have been better off booking a room downtown at the Hilton or Marriott.
This is my first experience with Sonder. Now, is it possible they can improve their product/service, win their market share, and become the industry standard within 5 years? Sure. But judging from my first contact with them, I’ll be looking to dodge Sonder during my upcoming travels.