A bachelorette trip to Las Vegas took a terrifying turn when a group of women believed someone was trying to break into their Airbnb, raising concerns about safety and surveillance on the rental platform.
Alissa Cawthon (@alissacawthon1) last week posted a two-part video series describing a bachelorette trip to Las Vegas where she felt her safety was threatened at the Airbnb she stayed at for the weekend. The first TikTok has amassed over 372,000 views as of Sunday.
Not where she expected to be
“So I booked an Airbnb in Las Vegas for my bachelorette trip,” said Cawthon in her viral video. “It was a really nice Airbnb, kind of expensive. The host had wonderful reviews. He had 4.9 stars. He was a super host every year. Every review was like ‘great house, wonderful neighborhood, quiet neighborhood.’ It just seemed like it all checked out.”
“And when my Uber driver dropped me off, he said to me, don’t walk around this neighborhood at nighttime.”
Cawthon describes that the Uber driver told her that this was not a good neighborhood, in contrast to the reviews Cawthon had read.
Cawthon says the Airbnb host messages her to offer to set them up with a free, VIP club experience. However, Cawthon says that she and her friends decided to go to a club suggested by a promoter who approached her near Caesars Palace instead.
Cawthon mentions being at the club for less than an hour and Ubering back to the Airbnb. Once they arrive, they discuss ordering food, but decide to get ready for bed instead. While getting ready, they hear a knock on the door, despite nobody ordering anything.
Cawthon describes that she was about to head downstairs when she heard somebody banging on the window. “And that’s kind of when we all realized that […] someone’s trying to get in.”
“At about that time, we heard someone trying to open the door in the backyard. […] So we call the cops, they tell us they’re gonna send someone out. We are absolutely losing our minds.”
Cawthon says that when the group turns the porch light on, the string lights in the backyard go off. Nervous, she calls the Airbnb host to inform him that somebody was trying to break into the Airbnb. She says he repeatedly insists that he sees nothing on the cameras, and when Cawthon asks follow-up questions, he refuses to answer her questions.
“I asked him, ‘Do you see are the lights on in the backyard?’ And he wouldn’t answer me.”
Police arrive at the Vegas Airbnb
Once the cops arrive, they begin searching the premises. The group of women hears a noise in the backyard, but the cops are unable to find anyone.
When the Airbnb host arrives, Cawthon asks to watch the footage. Nothing comes up.
“So then you start second-guessing yourself,” says Cawthon. “Like, am I crazy? There are eight of us. We all heard it. We were there.”
Cawthon describes the Airbnb host asking if the knocking could have been from Uber or DoorDash. She describes the host asking, “Didn’t y’all order food?”
Cawthon says her friends wondered how the host was aware that they had discussed food, before discovering that was not all he knew.
“Come and find out, they knew what club we were at. They knew who waited on us. They knew who our promoter was that got us into the club. They knew what time we left. They knew we all got in one Uber. They knew so many details.”
Cawthon says the group decided to leave for a hotel shortly after. She discusses that Airbnb provides a refund for the hotel costs, but did not provide a full refund since the group left around 3:00-4:00 am, which Airbnb considered to be a full night.
In a follow-up video, Cawthon says Airbnb eventually reached out to provide a full refund and removed the listing from Airbnb.
‘So sketchy’
Cawthon’s story prompted concern over safety for Airbnb users in the comments.
“Airbnb has become so sketchy over the years,” said one comment.
“Dispute the charge,” said another user. “Airbnb sucks and that’s what I did and got ALL my money back.”
“The host had to have cameras inside and it was probably him trying to get in,” speculated one comment.
The use of hidden cameras in Airbnb’s has long been a notable concern with the rental platform. A 2024 CNN investigation found that hidden cameras have been a steady problem, as regulations are sparse and punishments are minimal. The investigation describes the lenient punishment to stem from video voyeurism being normally charged as a misdemeanor.
The Mary Sue reached out to Cawthon and Airbnb for comment.
@alissacawthon1 Best and worst trip of my life! So thankful we are all ok and made it back home safely. To anyone traveling alone or even with a group, always be aware. I truly don’t think we could have done anything different beside not staying at an air bnb. We were aware of our surroundings the entire time. I hope our story can spread awareness and at the very least be a lesson to anyone traveling not just women. ##bachelorettetrip##lasvegas##airbnb##humantrafficking##spreadawareness ♬ original sound – Alissa Cawthon
Update June 23, 2025:
In an email to the Mary Sue, a spokesperson for Airbnb shared the following statement:
“We take safety concerns seriously, and provided swift support when this was first reported to us by the host. Our teams covered the cost of the guest’s hotel stay, issued a partial refund as requested, and have since refunded her the remaining amount. In the rare event of a concern, our 24/7 customer support teams are on hand to support our community.”
According to Airbnb, the guest contacted its Safety team for the partial refund, which they granted. The company also stated that local authorities “found nothing of concern,” and the host had no involvement.
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