Eight hours from home, in an Airbnb where guests can’t open windows but can enjoy a light case of hand, foot and mouth disease, TikToker @Houseofherrspeaks is thinking of setting up an “Airbnb survivor fund.” Because her experience is a saga.
In one of the many comments strongly urging her to leave the rented room and grab a hotel room, the TikToker replied, “I don’t think they’ll hurt me, they’re just strange.”
What happened at this Airbnb?
In her pinned post, she said, “…when I booked the Airbnb, nobody told me the hosts would still be here and I would just be in one bedroom for my stay,” she said.
That might not be a problem in a quiet home with a charismatic host. However, this guest is traveling with her child. The house has multiple chaotic residents and a host who seemingly spends his days perusing YouTube videos.
According to the poster, there are the host (an older man), his daughter, her fiancé, and their child. Additionally, there are no other rooms available in the area. She’s got a car that’s not working, her reservation is under the wrong name. Plus, she has about 87 more days to endure.
Insult to injury? After her first night as a guest, one of the residents barged into the room she’d rented (and was sleeping in with her child), making accusations.
“This morning, his daughter walks into my bedroom and I had only been here one night, and asks if me and my son had trashed the living room, which I told her we were in bed by 7:30 pm, last night,” she said. “So it couldn’t have been us.”
Is this horror stay real?
In a subsequent post and in several comments across several TikToks, it becomes clear that communication is a part of the problem.
The TikToker had never used the site before, and her friend Tim was allegedly being a good guy and getting her set up. Tim mistakenly put his name on the reservation. This caused problems of the most distressing sort: the kind where the solution is simple but systems make it complicated.
However, the plot thickens: when reached for comment, Airbnb’s representative pointed out things that are inconsistent with their policies. Not least, the TikToker’s own admission (deep in the comments) that this series of posts is for “entertainment purposes only.” With well over 225,000 views, it seems folks are indeed entertained.
What did Airbnb say?
Further, the Airbnb representative said that “We were unable to find a reservation associated with her or anyone mentioned in the videos. The manner the user speaks about how the platform functions is inconsistent with how the Airbnb platform actually works.
For example: the user says there is no check out date for the reservation which is not possible for an Airbnb reservation, all bookings must have a checkout date. In another video she says her friend booked the reservation with his first name only which is also not how Airbnb works.”
In an earlier video, Houseofherrspeaks speaks to her own method of surviving the world, a central tenet of which is the idea of “transmutation.” Her understanding of the concept “is when you take something negative and flip it and make it into a positive.” Perhaps she’s stuck staying with annoying relatives and is choosing a mild combination of dissociation and observation to help get her through a bumpy time (David Attenborough by way of “Anna Karenina”).
Incidentally, according to KidsHealth–a Nemours Children’s Health site, hand, foot and mouth disease (coxsackievirus) causes mild flu-like symptoms which go away without treatment. In some cases, these symptoms can lead to more serious infections. The viruses can spread from person to person, usually on unwashed hands and surfaces contaminated by feces, where the virus can live for several days.
As of the most recent post, Houseofherrspeaks said she is recovering from the virus and awaiting a call from Airbnb that’s been brokered by the ever-helpful Tim.
How popular is Airbnb?
According to an August 2024 Hotel Report, Airbnb captures 10-12% of travel demand in New York, Paris, and London.
In 2017, Forbes reported that 90% of Americans have never tried a home-stay, and among those concerns are safety and professionalism.
“While the overwhelming response after trying Airbnb appears to be positive, everyone has a story about a friend who had a bad experience with a home that didn’t match its listing or a problematic host.”
The Mary Sue reached out to Houseofherrspeaks for comment.
@houseofherrspeaks It’s day 3 and I’m still here ! Will be posting updates ! Hopefully I’ll be out soon
♬ original sound – houseofherrspeaks
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