Airbnb review
I booked the loft that Scott has listed on Airbnb and arrived to find that he wanted me to stay in an unfinished studio/room that differed greatly from the listing shown. To begin, there was no separate bathroom rather a tiny room that housed the toilet (pretty sure one would not be able to close the door once inside, therefore no privacy while in dispose). The shower was exposed to the room with no vent. Additionally there were no real curtains (sheer curtains on some) and the room was fully exposed to the neighboring house filled with tenants. The “kitchen” was more like a kitchenette. So in noting the obvious, i.e. this is not the listed space I reserved, Scott first contested this information with me but eventually admitted that there had been a mistake on his part and the room listed was where he was now staying.
Noting how the room wasn’t comparable to the listing but trying to be adaptable I asked for a discount. We went back and forth on this and things started getting really awkward. He began to throw all these numbers at me telling me how I was getting this amazing deal, how he could easily re-list the room and have it rented in no time. I told him I had no intentions of staying in this room, reminded him it was not what I had booked and asked him to cancel the reservation on his end (since it was his mistake). I said I would need a few minutes in my car to try to book another place and call Airbnb. It was at this point he got erratic, uncooperative, and a bit aggressive. He demanded I vacate the property asap, how I deviated from the check-in policy (which we had agreed on), and began to dispute how we weren’t in agreement on a refund. Luckily for me, his friend intervened and was able to calm Scott down; He also offered to rent out a space he had that was not listed on Airbnb - which was kind but perhaps inappropriate given the circumstances. After that tense and awkward exchange, Scott agreed to give me a larger discount. I politely declined the offer and reminded him how it was no longer about the money, I simply did not feel comfortable staying there with him.
Although I was able to get a full refund from Airbnb I was put in a terrible situation in having to have this tense exchange with Scott and then having to book a new place rather last minute.
I reported his place as an inaccurate listing and he appears to have updated the listing.