As our first experience with Airbnb, I hope to give a fair and honest review.
The pro's:
First, the booking experience was easy and communication with our host Bonnie was exceptional. She was very quick to respond and answered any and all questions I threw at her. The house was was architecturally STUNNING and the master suite we stayed in was wonderful, with gorgeous nighttime views and a comfortable bed. The bedroom and sitting area where the TV sat was very tidy and comfortable. Bonnie showed us the areas and where all of the light switches were, she had written down the wifi password and stated to let her know if we needed anything.
The con's:
Upon our arrival, the walkway was full of ice. We arrived about 10 minutes late from our agreed-upon arrival time of 2:30-3 pm due to road conditions, only to be told by Bonnie that she had gotten held up on a phone call and needed another 20 minutes before we could come in. Not a big problem, we headed to a nearby restaurant and had a drink and appetizer, and returned. After getting a quick tour of the area we stayed in, my husband went to use the bathroom and discovered fecal matter and dried urine on the toilet rim when he lifted the seat. We later found faucets that had needed a wipe-down, a bath rug that needed washing, and cobwebs in the corners above the double sink. After using the soaking tub, I tried to turn on the gas fireplace to discover it did not work. Note: it may have been the batteries, but it was late and apparent the host had gone to bed so we did not ask her for new batteries. After returning from our dinner reservations, we noticed a very pungent smell, maybe some type of onion dish (my husband's guess was liver and onions) that permeated the area we stayed in. It remained slightly even as we left the next morning.
Certainly not a bad first stay for us, but some attention to detail would have improved the stay ten-fold.