This apartment has a beautiful kitchen which is prominently featured in the photos. The kitchen is listed as an amenity. However, buried in the House Rules section is this surprise: there is an additional $150 cleaning fee for guests who use the kitchen for cooking .
This seems to me to be an extremely misleading way to advertise and charge for an apartment. While Airbnb insists that it is within their rules, it causes the following problems:
1. It makes the apartment appear cheaper than other similar apartments because the cost of using the kitchen is hidden.
2. It makes it unclear what constitutes "use of the kitchen for cooking". The host kindly assured me that I could use the microwave...was I also allowed to use dishes and utensils? Was I allowed to boil water for coffee?
This pricing reminds me of the extremely unpopular trend in air travel where costs are hidden. Would Airbnb allow a host to charge extra for use of a toilet or shower? Anyway, it rubs me the wrong way.