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As
the title suggests in the romantic suspense novel, Dangerous Getaway, a stay in a vacation rental property, no matter
how great the anticipation, doesn’t always turn out as expected. Such was the case
for Rhone Alexander and Grace Upton with Birch Shadow:
“You
think there was another woman down here, trapped?”
“Yes,
I do.”
“Now
look at whose imagination is being over-active,” she whispered in undertones,
her flesh beginning to crawl. “What makes you say something like that?”
“Because
while you were sleeping I found a woman’s shoe down back.”
While
dramatically disappointing vacation rental experiences are definitely possible,
most fails seem to fall into the categories of annoying to downright
uncomfortable. Here are three such experiences as set out in
Buzzfeednews.com:
"When
I was about 10, my family rented a small house in Cape Cod for a week. It was
really nice until I woke up in the middle of the first night and screamed when
I saw little black dots all over the ceiling — it was like the ceiling was
painted a different color. The house was infested with gnats (they're like tiny
mosquitoes). They were insanely hard to kill and bit us everywhere. They were
on the walls, the furniture, etc. Hundreds of them just everywhere. We spent an
absurd amount of money on products said to kill them, but nothing worked. We
basically stayed out of the house as much as possible and one night I slept in
the yard because honestly there were more bugs inside than outside. It was
miserable, like an actual horror movie. We all had hundreds of bites that ended
up getting infected. I remember my mom trying to get our money back. All the
owner said was, 'It's gnat season, sorry,' and didn't reimburse us. Worst
family vacation ever."
And the
second vacation rental experience: "The house was filled with clowns.
Clowns everywhere. Little figurines and blankets and paintings. It was a
nightmare and half."
And
thirdly: "My now-fiancé and I went on a trip together to Philly a few
months into our relationship. When we arrived, our host came down in her
pajamas and slippers holding a small poodle... It became clear she wasn’t going
anywhere and that the 'entire place' listing was incorrect. When we reached the
room we’d be staying in, the host pointed out the erotic photos decorating the
walls, saying this would 'set the mood' for our trip. She also let us know she
would be in the room 'right next door,' working on a pending lawsuit she was
filing. Throughout the trip, she would knock on our bedroom wall and speak to
us through it. It also became clear through our stay that her dog, who she told
us was a service dog, was never let out to use the bathroom but rather stayed
in the house. We found dog poop and pee in various locations in the home,
including in our room!"
In Dangerous Getaway, Birch Shadow is
nestled deep in the hills of Elgin, New Brunswick, in beautiful Eastern Canada.
Sandwiched between two heavily-treed slopes that stretch lazily toward a
cloudless sky, this idyllic 19th century inspired cottage features
sumptuous grounds surrounded by spectacular scenery. It seemed to be the
perfect choice … at first glance.
In real
life, some vacation renters aren’t quite so fortunate in finding a rental property
that’s inviting even at first glance, again according to Buzzfeednews.com:
"We
had just travelled seven hours from England to Scotland expecting to rest after
a long journey in the house we had rented on the internet, only to find that
the house didn't exist. So we were stranded in a strange country at 12 a.m. in
the pouring rain."
In
another situation travellers encountered less than stellar living conditions,
including a unique shower situation where a “garden hose ran from outside
through a window and taped to the ceiling” although there was apparently an
ample supply of hot water.
And then
there was the downright creepy (Buzzfeednews.com):
“Pictures
online had been taken about 10 years prior. The whole house had fallen into
disrepair, with windows that had been boarded up, overgrown shrubbery, and the
front door hanging off its hinge. The owner was an elderly man with one eye
that swiveled independently like a chameleon's. There were dozens of feral
kittens, which he warned us not to let inside the house. On the desk in the
foyer alongside the guest book was a dish of dead butterflies and a list of
people who were born and died in the house. I spent the whole night wondering
if I was in a Stephen King novel."
Among
the mix are the vacation rentals that turn out to be truly horrible by anyone’s
estimation. The following Buzzfeednews.com experience would definitely come under
the heading of nightmare, at least as far as I’m concerned. I would be in the
door, and right back out again in no time flat:
"My
family and I went to Hawaii and rented a house around Hilo for a couple weeks.
In the kitchen pantry and all the bedroom closets there were these giant,
flying cockroaches that would launch at you every time you opened the door.
After day two we didn’t open the doors, but we could still hear them rattling
around the rest of the trip."
Some
people actually seek out highly unusual experiences, and delight in finding
them. There are vacation rentals available to satisfy just about any taste - something
a little bit different according to thrilllist.com. How about spending your
vacation in the middle of a cemetery?
“Hudson, New York
“This
1900 building is a schoolhouse turned tool factory turned artist’s studio
turned Airbnb, located inside of the Cedar Park Cemetery, which is home to
thousands of burial plots and has all sorts of notable people resting in peace.
This building has several lofts—this one is Chinese-inspired, meaning you’ll
sleep in an authentic 18th-century opium wedding bed. Not creepy enough for
you? Think about it this way: If no one is renting out the other spaces, you’ll
be the only living soul for miles.”
Of
course there’s also the other side of the story, injustices suffered by
vacation rental hosts at the hands of undesirable guests as described in
Beyndpricing.com/blog:
“On a
more disgusting note, a host shared their experience of finding used Q-tips
squashed into the carpet and chewed gum or candy stuck in the furniture after
the guests checked out. This lack of respect for the host's property is
unfortunately not uncommon.”
However,
overall the vacation rental business seems to be an acceptable balance of good
and not so good, as explained by an industry insider, again in
Beyndpricing.com/blog:
“A host
shared their experience with guests sneaking in extra people without permission, property being stolen, and
a pet bird dying after windows were negligently left open.
“While
these stories are certainly shocking, it's important to remember that they
represent a tiny fraction of the overall Airbnb experiences. Most stays are
enjoyable and trouble-free. However, these tales serve as a reminder for hosts
and guests alike to exercise caution, respect, and common sense when using the
platform. Happy hosting!”
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