The Case for (and against) Airbnb, part 2

The weekend did not have an auspicious start. For starters, none of my friends could make it except Andy, and the other three people coming were all Andy’s friends. Also, none of us knew each other except Andy, as we were all friends from different parts of his life. None of that mattered, though, except for some last minute drama that arose from where we decided to stay. I had canceled the Airbnb a couple weeks ago when it looked like we would only have 3-4 people for the trip, but on the day before we left, I saw that the Airbnb was still available, for a lower rate (it was still more expensive than the hotel but only marginally so). Excited, I consulted with Andy before canceling our hotel booking and confirming the Airbnb reservation.

My excitement turned out to be short-lived, as Andy started to get some complaints feedback about the bed sharing situation: there were 3 beds at the Airbnb (2 queen, 1 king), and I had let the group know that 4 of us would need to share beds. I didn’t think it would be a big deal, but apparently, it’s a thing: guys don’t like sharing beds with other guys.

Ironically, this had just come up earlier this month on another trip, when a friend commented, “Aren’t we past sharing beds now?” Which, okay, I get that it’s not the ideal situation — of course I prefer my own bed versus having to share with somebody else — but I assumed people would be okay with sharing beds if it’s a nicer, bigger place that’s closer to the venue. I was also annoyed because I was the only person who had spent time researching and analyzing lodging options, and my efforts did not feel appreciated.

To be fair to the other guys, maybe it changes the equation that none of us knew each other. Yes, I would have preferred sharing a bed with Andy versus a stranger, but in the end it’s just a place to sleep for a quick weekend getaway. Luckily we settled on a compromise on the drive down: Andy and I would split a king, 2 of the guys would get their own room and queen sized bed, and the last guy would sleep on the sofa and pay $50 less. (I guess it was serendipitous that none of my other friends could make it, because I’m not sure how the bed sharing situation would have worked out otherwise.)

Despite the rocky beginning, the trip turned out to be awesome. As I had predicted, having a larger place closer to the venue made everything more convenient, and was great for hanging out. The Airbnb turned out to be even better than the photos (which never happens), and the host went out of his way to make us feel welcome. In fact, a part of me suspects that Airbnb read my previous blog post and then sent Andrew (our Airbnb host) to go above and beyond on our stay:

First, when we got to the place, we were greeted with a full-on cake and card, brand new board games, a bottle of wine, and a new volleyball. (I had told Andrew we were there to watch AVP Manhattan Beach.) Then, the day before we left, Andrew messaged me to say he dropped off something for us at the front door, and it was an edible fruit arrangement. Lastly, he proactively let me know that I could check out late if we needed more time (we would have taken advantage of his offer if it weren’t for the hurricane). Oh, and there were no clean-up chores — he said to just leave the place as-is. I could not have had a better Airbnb experience, and I can’t wait to plan another trip to Manhattan Beach so I could stay there again.

Looking back, the initial bed-sharing worries seem so trivial in comparison to the memories made and stories shared in yet another fun LA volleyball trip. It’s also a reminder of how volleyball brings people together, and why I love going on these trips with friends (and even strangers).

It still feels like there’s so much to write about, but I’ll have to save the rest for a future blog post.

Question: are you okay sharing beds for a weekend trip with friends? (Please indicate your gender.)