Airbnb for Business — Advantages and Disadvantages for the business traveler
Over the course of the last few weeks, I’ve had to do a lot of traveling for work. Chronologically, I’ve had the pleasure of spending a few nights in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington DC. And as part of this little bender of work travel, I decided to do a little bit of fact finding. An experiment if you would.
Rather than simply find a hotel in the general vicinity of where I needed to be, I decided to use Airbnb to find apartments to rent at each spot. This comes as Airbnb continues its push to make its offer more attractive to business travelers. (You can read more about what they’re doing here.)
The ultimate question I wanted to ask was simply:
“What are the advantages and disadvantages of staying in an Airbnb for work vs. staying at a hotel?”
And after eight nights and making out alive (a bit dramatic) to tell the tale, here’s what I got.
Advantages
Cost Savings
Easily the number one advantage of Airbnb vs. hotels is the cost savings. To give you an idea of what I’m talking about, my four-night stay in Washington DC was $376 on Airbnb (including the fees). The discounted hotel room rate provided by the conference I was attending was around $376 a night! By that basic math, I was able to get a 75% discount on the lodging for the conference.
Now I will say that that same math didn’t end up penciling out in SF and LA. Both because the fees weren’t amortized over a longer stay as well as needing to book in a much shorter time window meant that the savings were probably more like 35–45% vs. a hotel. Still not too bad! (Now if you’re one of those people who believes that your company’s expense account isn’t worth saving money from, touche. We can debate these issues in a separate forum. For now, at least concede that saving that type of money is simply amazing.)
Filtering Tools
For those of you who haven’t booked an apartment on Airbnb before, I implore you to check out what types of options you have when selecting your short-term rental. You can of course filter based on location and price, but it doesn’t stop there! What about Wifi? Washer/dryer? A parking spot? As the increased amount of filtering goes up, so does the ability for business travelers to be matched with the right spot.
Many hotels you end up booking have a lot of amenities you don’t need and don’t have others you want. But because hotels are relatively homogenous, you’re stuck with whatever that property is like. Airbnbs rarely have any more or fewer amenities than you need. Why? Because you simply find the intersection of what you need with what the market has to offer. And bang a) that’s where some of the savings come from and b) you’re never disappointed that some amenity isn’t there.
Disadvantages
Inconsistency
The number one disadvantage of Airbnb vs staying in a hotel is the inconsistency from one property to another. Hotels have spent millions and millions of dollars making sure that your stay meets your standard. And their respective brands have come to represent the fact that you’re in good hands.
On the contrary, each and every individual Airbnb comes along with its own set of features and I’ll say…quirks. They’re not always bad, but you’re certainly not used to the uncertainty that comes along with getting to know your new home. This phenomenon doesn’t last the entirety of your stay. The hedonic treadmill has a way of getting you to adjust to your new surroundings, but it is a bit of a lottery-like feeling as you approach your apartment for the first time.
My hunch is that traveling for work is enough of a disruption in people’s life that not knowing the details of where you’re about to stay may be a bit much to ask.
Interaction with Property Owners
Now this one may seem a little odd, but I feel that traveling for work is at its core a bit of a “me time” experience for most. Heading out on a work trip means that you’re going to do everything you can to focus on “you” while you’re traveling. Renting an Airbnb requires interaction with a property owner in some way, shape or form. At the low end, you’re going to have to at least coordinate with them via app/email on how to check in/out, but in some cases you’re going to have quite a bit of face-to-face with them.
I’m just going to say it…it’s kinda weird. These people are letting you use their home. I get it. But there’s this getting to know you thing that just doesn’t jive with the main vibes of business travel. I guess that hotels really know what they’re doing with the very transactional front desk experience. Less is more unless the business traveler wants to chat.
Security
Now before anyone freaks out here, I want to be very clear. I have never felt unsafe at an Airbnb for one second. In fact, I find it oddly reassuring to sleep in someone else’s home. BUT! There is something very very strange about someone who is not you or a hotel employee having access to where you’re staying. In some cases, this means the property owner. In some cases, it’s their cleaning staff. In other cases, it’s anyone else with the same code given to you to enter the premises.
The fact of the matter is that other people can enter your apartment while you’re there. Now I will once again say that no one ever has entered my apartment during my stay. But that’s not the point. Security is very much about peace of mind, not actual risk of something bad happening. For a lot of people, the fact that others can enter the premises will be too much to ask.
I’m really excited about the future of Airbnb for Business. My experience was incredibly positive and I’ve already booked my next work trip on the site. So if you’re going to be in Virginia Beach after Labor Day, feel free to stop by my apartment!