You really cannot talk about outside the country travels and not mention Airbnb at least if you have no family or friends in the immediate area you intend to visit.
Airbnb’s are known to be cheaper than your average 4-star hotels and they also give you the comfort of a home away from home experience for days and even weeks if needed. Imagine waking up in a room that is as comfortable and quiet as your own home. Nobody is making a racket, no unnecessary disturbances and of course, no plain, boring old hotel room.
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If you are a frequent traveller, you have probably heard of it and also experienced it. If you are a JJC and have no idea what I am talking about, that’s okay because I’m going to tell you all you need to know.
- SET UP AN ACCOUNT: If you haven’t used Airbnb yet you’ll need to set up an account with them. Don’t worry, it’s really easy and free. When you sign up you have the option of signing up through your Facebook profile, Google account, or email. You will also need to accept the Airbnb Terms of Service, add a photo, confirm your phone number, and confirm your email.
- EXPLORING THE HOMES: Once that is all done you can start exploring. You’ll notice on the home page you can explore by Homes, Experiences, or Restaurants. For the sake of being a beginner, let us focus on Homes, you can explore the experiences and restaurants when you get a chance.
- SELECT YOUR DATES, HOME TYPE, AND PRICE: Next, you’ll put in your dates, how many guests, home type. If you want an entire place, private room, or shared Room and also your price range.
- YOU SHOULD USE THE MAP FEATURE: The next thing you will want to do is search by the map keeping at the back of your mind that location is key, depending on how close you want to be to the attractions of the city or if you don’t mind been far out and figure the cost of going back and forth.
- PUT TOGETHER A LIST OF HOMES: Once you figure out the area you want to stay in, you should start looking at each home listed in that area. Scroll through the images provided and read the description of the home. If it is one that you like click the heart and save it to your list.
- READ THE REVIEWS: Go back through the list of homes that you have saved and read the reviews other customers have left. If you come across any with a negative review you’ll need to decide whether to keep it on your list or not.
- GETTING THE APPROVAL: This is an important step during the booking process because this is where you will have the option of leaving a note about yourself and your trip.
- APPROVAL & FOLLOW UP: When your stay gets approved by the host they will send you a message. You need to reply with at least a thank you. A week or two before your trip send the host a message letting them know what time they can expect you and then ask for directions if needed. You might be wondering why you need to tell your host thank you, the simple answer is you want to get a good review after your stay from the host.
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