Just checked into my first Airbnb stay!

[wise_rita]

Has anybody else stayed with Airbnb?

I have friends who make a killing off it, and finally am using it for myself (tried previously but either no good places, I was not accepted by hosts, etc.)

It's really handy because the city I'm in seems to have crazy expensive, nice hotels or super dodgy backpackers and nothing in between. So it's a perfect compromise!

[osumelissa]

Hope you have a great experience!

I used it for the first time in December when I went to London - it was great. The flat was exactly as described and shown on the site and the key was waiting in a lockbox for me. I booked flats in both Edinburgh and London for my UK trip in June...I'm hoping to have two more positive experiences!

[mbcdefg]

We just tried to get one for San Francisco, but the hostess didn't respond in time. Hotels there are really expensive

[iammalcolmx]

We did it in Istanbul. Worked out nicely.

[lolo]

We just did earlier this month--got a nice two BR, 1 BA flat with kitchen and toys for LO in Portland. Sweet.

My mom has done it when she came while LO was a newborn (before I realized that having my mom stay with me means she does ALL THE THINGS making her a GBCN anomaly).

[jordylee]

We've used them several times, and only had a bad experience once. And by bad I don't mean terrible, just not great. The others were all fantastic, and I think its a great way to stay more like a local. My favorite was when we stayed with an Italian chef and he cooked an amazing dinner for us. THE BEST!

[winnied]

We used them in Dijon and Avignon, France. I highly recommend it for people who are not super picky about their lodgings. One was a little more adventurous but when H and I consider how much we saved it was totally worth it.

[wise_rita]

We had a really good experience. Our destination (Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia) has very little in the way of mid-range accommodation, so it was a good way to find a place that wasn't super high end or disgusting.

I've heard stories that if something does go wrong with your host Airbnb puts you up in a hotel with a quickness. There's very little risk, so I recommend it!

I'm excited to try it again elsewhere.