Airbnb was founded in 2008 as an alternative to hotels and short-term apartment stays, both to allow easier travel and to let homeowners monetize extra space that they’re not using. With over three million listings in over 65,000 cities, Airbnb is a great service that allows you to travel the way you want.
However, staying in someone else’s home has potential security risks. Though Airbnb reliably verifies identification and allows you to chat with homeowners, it’s still understandable if you’re worried about going to someone’s house for a couple nights if you’ve never met them in person. It’s more of a risk than at a traditional hotel, where the hotel staff are hired specifically for the job and there are specific safety procedures. Here are a couple things you can do to check how safe your Airbnb experience will be.
Talk to Your Host
Airbnb recognizes that it can be unsettling to stay with someone you’ve never met before, and that it can make you feel less safe. Because of that, they allow you to talk to the person who created the listing on Airbnb, so you can get to know them a little bit before you actually go to stay at their home. You can also look through the profile they’ve created.
When you communicate with your host, don’t be afraid to ask the questions that will make you feel most comfortable. Ask about the neighborhood, about how long they’ve lived there, how long they’ve been listing their home on Airbnb, anything that will make you feel more comfortable during your stay. Hosts on Airbnb will be more than happy to answer your questions; they’re trying to make your stay as pleasant as possible.
Trust the System
Airbnb has been around for quite some time. It was founded in 2008 as “AirBed and Breakfast,” and since then, it’s just been growing and changing. That growth has made it more secure than ever, and people have stopped worrying so much about theft and other crimes because of how long the company has existed and how few incidents there have been. In fact, it’s likely that most of your worries come more from a perceived increase in danger, rather than any actual worries, in the same way that people are scared to fly, despite the fact that it’s substantially more dangerous to drive than fly.
Airbnb has a long list of safety features used to make sure your stay is as secure as possible. On top of allowing you to talk to your future host, Airbnb also provides a 24-hour customer hotline, a suspicious activity task force, and ID verification that involves scanning a government-issued ID to verify the identity of both hosts and guests. In addition, there is a review system that allows hosts and guests to review each other; those reviews are then publicly posted, so you can read through previous reviews to make sure there’s no suspicious activity.
Look Up People and Places
If you’re still uncertain about the safety of your place, or you just want to be extra certain, you can always research the place you’re staying. Using search engines can turn up basic information on crime rates in the neighborhood, or any potential issues that have been happening recently around the home, but if you want more in-depth knowledge, you’re going to need to do a little more digging.
That’s where PeopleFinders comes in. With just the address of the place you’ll be staying, you can find property information, including information on the person who owns it. Use that information to do a background check on the owner, so you won’t have any surprises when you arrive. Sleep securely knowing that you’ve done your research, and you won’t have any potential issues with your host.
Airbnb is a great alternative to places like hotels, which can be extremely expensive, especially if you’re staying for longer than a few days. Even better, they allow you to make connections with local individuals before you even arrive! Room sharing services are great all-around, and they’re a good way to go travelling on a budget.
Still, though, you should always keep an eye on your safety, no matter where you are, and room sharing services are no exception. Use PeopleFinders to get a full report on the place you’re going to be staying and the people who own that place, and you’ll be able to travel in style and in safety.
