It's interesting hotels that feel like an AirBnB don't really exist. Even though the professional AirBnB hosts are doing all the functions that hotels do. Why not the reverse.
They recognize it exists. I'm even hearing podcast ads from Marriot or similar touting how much more reliable they are.
AirBnBs I've stayed in the past few years have all been janky, weird, and not really any cheaper than hotels. I don't have to do chores at hotels, and I can always get (and return) the key promptly. I've also been told on several occasions not to let anyone else in the building know I was an AirBnB guest. AirBnB used to be better, but the advent of "professional hosts" with many properties really degraded things. They often have the typical landlord mentality of expecting a lot of reward with little work or risk.
How else would you make or reaffirm a first-hand impression?
Also, while I'm not OP, I gave up on Airbnbs a long time ago for the same reasons, and that impression is occasionally refreshed when I stay in an Airbnb that _someone else_ arranged. I will go out of my way to avoid them if it's all up to me.
If you have a family of 5 or more, hotel rooms suck - either someone sleeps on the floor or you have to find a "suite" that accommodates that. Or multiple rooms.
The major travel sites all push you to multiple rooms - but lots of hotels now don't have "adjoining room" access (compared to say 30 years ago), and in one case, our 2 rooms were on different floors because of check-in time.
The travel sites are picking up on this and competing with airbnb as well. Typically my experience with those rented homes is a) cheaper than airbnb and b) better service. However, I'm sure they are the same type of superhost company that would be banned in Barcelona.
Not anymore. They were cheaper, and then the prices crept up, and the quality got worse. Classic enshittification. I loved AirBnB 10 years ago, but I'm back to hotels now.
They do exist and are increasingly common for new hotel builds, at least where I live. Here is an example of one in Montréal that I stayed in last autumn:
These still look [1] like artificial sanitized places. People like AirBnB because most of them have a home like feeling. Random decorations, casual atmosphere, etc.
I've stayed in many Airbnbs all over the world, and the majority of the city ones for the last few years are clearly just fulltime Airbnb, with basically zero personality. As soulless as a hotel room, sometimes more if they're trying to seem personal but clearly aren't.
Weird that. Almost as if it should be a home for someone. Not for you to play at being a Barcelona/Montréal/where ever resident for 2 weeks for Insta likes.
Hotels with similar amenities are usually priced at absurdly high rates for corporate clients.
The place you linked to has the equivalent of a studio apartment with no laundry machine going for over 9000 CAD for a month. AirBnB has plenty of one bedrooms going for a third of that.
What do you mean by a hotel that feels like an Airbnb?
If you want to stay at a place that has a kitchen, and multiple bedrooms, there are suite hotels (eg. Homewood suites) and extended stay hotels. If you want someone to host you, then a bed and breakfast is another type of accommodation.
- Wanting something that looks and feels like a home rather than a hotel room. This isn't available everywhere.
- Wanting something that isn't shared with a bunch of other hotel guests. (Aside: I have no problems with apartment buildings banning AirBnB/VRBO, because that's much more "cheap hotel substitute that might bother neighbors" than "unique offering that isn't likely to bother anyone".)
- In general, wanting something unique that doesn't tend to exist as a hotel.
It's difficult to quantify. Perhaps it's something as intangible as a space optimized for _living_ (like an apartment) as opposed to a space optimized for _profit_ (like a hotel).
Whatever the case, despite the existence of the options you list, Airbnb's are still popular. There's clearly some significant differentiator between them and an Airbnb.
It's definitely the vibe. A lot of it is how the space is decorated. The random assortment of furniture and other stuff in an AirBnB contributes quite a lot to the atmosphere people are looking for.
But there is a psychology to it that is, as you say, hard to pin dow. A hotel that has a random assortment of plates and cutlery in the kitchen (like my last AirBnB did) would feel cheap and tacky. The AirBnB didn't.
Or, holiday homes. These are furnished short term rental apartments with kitchens, often washing machines and dishwashers, etc. Common in parts of Europe. But at least in Germany they are well regulated and you actually sign a rental contract for your stay. I suspect that makes them a lot less accessible for tourists from abroad.
As far as I can tell, these do not exist in any meaningful number in Barcelona. They also rarely exist in city centers, at least everywhere I've seen in Europe. That's why entire buildings were turned into AirBNB.
I don't know if you meant specifically in Barcelona, but I'm in just such a unit in Montreal as I type this. Physically it's a 2BR apartment, with its own washer/dryer and full (though small) kitchen, but it's booked and run as a hotel. There's hotel-like housekeeping, not a note hidden somewhere that says I have to clean up myself before leaving or incur a hefty extra cleaning fee (on top of the one that's already buried elsewhere in the fine print). There's not much of a lobby, no concierge, no room-service menu, so it's not a four star hotel, but I'd still say it's a hotel that feels like an AirBnB and I think places like this are rapidly taking over that part of the market.
The move that Barcelona just made might actually be kind of like closing the barn door after the horses have escaped. Good political theater, I guess, but not really moving things in a direction they weren't already going.
It's a little unclear to me why this category wouldn't escape regulation, since it's clearly just an entire apartment building where they converted each apartment to an Airbnb for economies of scale around cleaning, maintenance, etc. They're displacing just as many residents as the same number of equivalent Airbnbs spread around a neighborhood. Whereas most traditional hotels feel purpose built for that and couldn't easily be apartments.
When talking about a matter of law or regulation, phrases like "feel purpose built" don't carry a lot of weight. Looking at legal definitions of "hotel" across many jurisdictions, it looks like a lot of of them center on the concept of temporary or transient usage. Intent to operate on that basis also shows up fairly often too. Here's a handy compilation (NB not the only source I consulted).
Note that style of construction does not seem to be a factor. Many hotels offer freestanding villas or cabins, practically small (sometimes even not so small) houses, and have for a long time. Chains like Residence Inn, Homewood Suites, or Extended Stay America have likewise offered hotel accommodation in the physical form of an apartment for almost as long. Personally, I think the inclusion of housekeeping services during a stay is a big differentiator, perhaps because it demonstrates intent to serve a transient clientele. By contrast, a "dual use" house or apartment that is owner occupied part of the time and rented out part of the time does not show such intent. Neither do the illegal sublets that are behind many Airbnb rentals.
In other words, the physical similarity between a suite hotel (like the one I'm in) and apartments doesn't seem determinative. Rather, what seems to matter is the financial difference between a nightly (or perhaps weekly) guest vs. a longer term lessee. I'm not saying whether it's right or wrong, but it does explain why different types of levels of regulation are applicable to each.
P.S. The ones "escaping regulation" are the Airbnbs, not the hotels. Hotels are subject to much more stringent standards wrt safety, sanitation, privacy, billing, etc.
>Personally, I think the inclusion of housekeeping services during a stay is a big differentiator, perhaps because it demonstrates intent to serve a transient clientele.
Yes, although a lot of hotels moved away from daily service during the pandemic and stayed there. Which is just fine by me.
If I were to stay longer than a week I'd probably cast my lodging net a bit wider. But hotels (or regular B&Bs, especially outside of cities) meet my needs pretty well for the most part. I have used AirBnB but I'm guessing the standard deviation is higher though I haven't had a bad (small sample) experience.
Even laundry which a number of people mention isn't really a big deal for the most part. I tend to optimize things that can be given a quick wash in the sink. I have stayed in ApartHotels with a laundry room and at B&Bs that will run a cheap load for you for longer trips involving more mud etc. And I've used a wash and fold place on a few occasions. Even as a very light packer, I've never felt the need to do laundry every few days.
There are aparthotels that offer larger living area and amenities such as a kitchen, a normal fridge, and laundry facilities, similar to an Airbnb. Additionally, they provide 24/7 reception, a breakfast room, optional maid service, much like a hotel. This has become a popular option in Europe recently.
