This was published 1 year ago
Warning over Airbnb after traveller books 'abandoned' lodge in Bali
By Siobhan Downes
It was clear no one had been at the property for a long time.
A Kiwi traveller is warning others to do their research after she inadvertently booked an "abandoned" Airbnb in Bali.
Bree Robertson, originally from Nelson in New Zealand, has been living on the Indonesian island since mid-June, documenting her travels on her website, Atypical Adventure.
To celebrate one month of living in Bali, earlier this month she had booked an Airbnb for herself and her partner for what was supposed to be a "romantic getaway" to Sidemen, a village in East Bali.
How the property was presented on Airbnb.
Robertson paid $80 for a one-night stay in the accommodation, described in the Airbnb listing as a private room in a nature lodge.
She booked "very last-minute", just a day or two in advance of the trip, so wasn't too concerned when the host didn't respond to her booking, although the Airbnb listing said the host usually responded within an hour.
The property had positive reviews, both on Airbnb and other booking websites. While the reviews were from 2019, Robertson put this down to the pandemic, as quarantine-free travel to Bali only resumed in March.
Bree Robertson had booked accommodation via Airbnb, only to find it 'abandoned' when she arrived.
However, when the couple arrived at the accommodation – after a two-hour scooter ride in the rain – they found the lodge had long been deserted, in a state of disrepair.
"We rocked up and it was very much abandoned."
The couple took videos of the property, which Robertson would later share on TikTok, before taking shelter in a restaurant up the road. They ended up booking another room for the night in Ubud, about an hour's drive away.
Robertson reported the property to Airbnb's support team, which responded confirming she would get a refund. But she was disappointed the listing had been live in the first place, complete with the inaccurate information about the host response time.
"It was super misleading – that was one of the things I was banking on that gave me a lot of reassurance, I was like, 'they've been replying to other people, maybe they're just busy'."
The listing was still live when Stuff Travel spoke to Robertston on Tuesday but has since been removed.
An Airbnb spokesperson said they were disappointed to learn about her experience and confirmed they had provided a full refund.
"We hold Hosts up to high standards and the listing is no longer on the platform," the spokesperson said.
"In the rare event something isn't as expected on arrival for a stay, our Community Support team is on hand 24/7 to help."
Under Airbnb's AirCover policy, if a guest checks into a property that does not meet the platform's accuracy or quality standards, they will rebook the guest into a new listing of equal or greater value, or offer 100% of their money back.
Robertson's TikTok has had 3.4 million views, with many commenters sharing their own negative experiences with Airbnb accommodation.
"So many people came forward saying 'this happened to me'," Robertson said. "It's kind of opened my eyes."
While she hadn't been put off using the platform, Robertson said her main advice based on her experience was to check you're able to communicate with the host, as well as ensuring there are recent reviews.
"I always think, 'it will be fine, she'll be right'. But next time I'd probably take a little more care."
See also: Forgotten Subway sandwich costs Aussie traveller $2664
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