Hi Everyone, I recently did a search for a stay in the San Francisco area and spent quite a bit of time trying to find the right place with the amenities that I wanted. So the Airbnb PLUS homes kept popping up and I have to say that NONE of them were even close to being interesting or meeting my needs but my biggest issue was lack of information or pictures. Most of the places were very stylized and the photos were nice but they were mostly studios and didn’t represent any place comfortable to sit and read. Most of the sites did not have a washer and dryer which since we will be away for 2 weeks is important. One place was quite lovely but the only bed was a double bed-really!! After my experience searching Airbnb PLUS I would never consider listing my property in such a way and losing control over the description of my home or the photos. Just thought I would share my experience.
So you were able to find an Airbnb listing that met your needs?
As far as it being a bust it would be interesting if Airbnb spent money developing the program and filling it and then it was a bust from their point of view. I suppose if they quit expanding to new cities we will have a clue. I don’t use the Plus designation when I search and haven’t felt I needed to so this is interesting.
@KKC Thanks for your response and I was able to find exactly what I needed. By the way I didn’t search for Airbnb Plus, it popped up in my searches. I do think it would be interesting to understand the effectiveness of the program. There have been a number of postings on this forum of hosts being dissatisfied with the photos and booking response in the Plus program. It is not offered in my area but I would not use it. I tried Evolve of about 10 minutes - they priced my homes way too high for my market, charged me close to 15% with the credit card charges and I didn’t get any bookings. I love your handle and agree about “dog.”
Yes, they do put them in the regular search as well as at the top of results. It’s not available in my market so it’s nice to not worry about competing with them.
You can use the search filters to screen for for a washer/dryer as an amenity, as well as a 1-bedroom. However, I recently discovered studios AirBnB PLUS lists studios as 1-bedrooms under the search filter and has no intention of changing this inaccurate listing. You just have to manually sort the studios from the 1-bedrooms.
When I first started hosting in late 2015, I recall there was a search filter category for bed size, but it has been removed. This is another feature where you’ll have to just read each listing one at a time, unfortunately.
As for my own use as a guest: I usually stay in hotels when I travel, but I did stay in an AirBnB during a visit to LA this past fall. I searched for Plus listings, and they seemed to have the same features as Superhost listings but cost much more per night. So, I followed @KKC’s advice and used the Superhost filter instead and chose a place with over 100 reviews. I had a great stay at a great price.
Using the “for work” filter is good too. I don’t have to have self check in but the kinds of places and hosts who allow it are a good fit for me. I first search with a lot of filters on and then if I don’t find anything I take them off.
@Xena
Thanks so much for your response and help. For the conference part of my trip we are staying at a hotel but our vacation time afterward we wanted a place where we could cook a little and relax outside, just like our home. So when I used the filters I listed one bedroom and one bath, kitchen, washer, dryer, etc. and I assumed the listings that fit those parameters would come up but not so. Since I have been hosting for 6 years, I am VERY careful about reviewing listings.
So here’s a chuckle, I inquired about a listing in Carmel-by-the-Sea since it was confusing concerning a number of items. When I wrote to the host and asked if there were comfortable chairs to use for reading, he wrote back that he didn’t understand the word comfortable. He really meant that he didn’t understand since his English was limited. I had reviewed the pictures carefully and there was nothing close to a reading chair and I do not like to read in bed. I know I sound very picky but at this stage in my life I really like my creature comforts.
I definitely understand your concern and there are a few posts on this forum that go into the challenges of PLUS. I’ve noticed (as a PLUS Host) I need to answer a lot more questions because the ABNB+ format isn’t as informative as my prePLUS description. I’m hoping that there will be some increased flexibility for hosts as the program works out the bugs.
BUT on the positive side, it has allowed me to increase my rates and I’ve seen a significant increase my occupancy rates, so I’m staying for now.
@HH_AZ I am glad you are doing well with the Plus Program and hopefully it may be improved so you do not have to answer so many questions. I do not think Airbnb will be offering the Plus program in my area, which is rural and there is no reason to distinguish properties. I think what I was most frustrated with was that the Plus properties did not fit my search filters. The properties looked nice but I didn’t want a room in a house or a studio, so why am I seeing this? I think as you mentioned there is some work to be done on the program.