Airbnb is great – aside from the weird weirdos (thanks to the Swedish girls who left a whole pizza in my closet) it’s a really good experience.
Some of us just aren’t into hotel stuffiness and love the freedom of staying in a home away from home.
Whether you’re staying in someone’s spare room and getting all the local info, or renting their whole house and enjoying 100% freedom, it’s a great way to immerse yourself in a new city.
The only problem is that a lot of rentals operate with a ‘strict’ cancellation policy, which means that once you’ve booked, you’re totally bound.
If you cancel for any reason, the maximum you get back is 50% of the cost of your reservation, even if you change your mind immediately.
Which can be a problem when you have fragile friends/poor organizational skills/one of life’s little unpredictable circumstances.
Not for very long though – Airbnb is introducing a 48-hour grace period for all “strict” bookings starting April 5, 2018.
They tested a feature that allows customers to cancel without penalty within 48 hours of booking a listing with a “strict” policy.
They found that rentals were booked more often because customers felt confident knowing they could plan the idea and change their plans.
I know I have been hesitant to confirm reservations as I usually book for a group of people and we all know that booking for groups is a nightmare.
After taking about 54 days to make a decision, there’s still someone who replies to your confirmation message in the holiday WhatsApp group with, “Wait, I thought it was April, not May? I can’t do May!!’ and then you’re stuck with a reservation you don’t need.
Not anymore – cancel within 48 hours and you get all your money back, as long as the booking is over 14 days away.
If it’s canceled within 14 days but before seven days, you get 50% back, and if it’s in less than seven days?
You’re screwed, man.
Learn about Airbnb’s new “strict” cancellation policy hereand if you want to stay in the Krakow apartment in the top photo, you can book it here.
No other cancellation policy is affected. As you were.
PLUS: Airbnb Plus is the boujee upgrade that lets you stay in the fanciest homes
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