Are You Sleeping With Airbnb Tonight?

The Ebay of space, Airbnb offers travel accommodations to suit every taste and budget. And you’ll make friends too.

STAY HERE | Whether it’s on a futon in a friend’s living room or on a king-size bed in a luxury villa, what you need when you travel is a place to lay your head at the end of the day. Finding one to suit myriad travel tastes and budgets has become easier with the online service Airbnb.com.

The website was started in 2008 as Airbed and Breakfast by three San Francisco guys who rented out inflatable beds during a hotel room shortage. Now Airbnb connects travellers with people who have space to rent in over 4,300 cities worldwide. You can search by city or country, plus by price, room type and date, and read reviews by previous guests. You then contact a host through the website and book online using a credit card or PayPal account.

Though Airbnb has been called the Ebay of space for the way it connects consumers and providers, the transaction seems more secure. Unlike Ebay, Airbnb.com collects your money and does not hand it over to the host until you arrive and assure yourself and Airbnb.com that everything is satisfactory. If not, Airbnb finds you another place to stay. For this service, Airbnb takes a 10 percent commission.

But 10 percent of what, you ask. How about $79 for a room with french doors to a balcony in a Paris apartment just a 10-minute walk from Montmartre? That’s for two people. Pets also welcome. Or a room for two with exposed brick walls in Manhattan for $75 a night? Mind you, there are also places like a complete five-bedroom waterfront villa in Miami Beach for $3,000 a night (for 10 people), not to mention boats, planes (like the 1950s Bristol freighter in New Zealand shown here), castles, a California treehouse, a gypsy caravan, a P.E.I. lighthouse and a house shaped like a shoe (in Nelson, B.C.).

Still it’s not just about what you spend but what you get for it. Airbnb’s tagline is “Travel like a human,” and as with traditional B&Bs, part of the attraction is the personal connection: insider tips from local residents and an insight into what it would be like to live in the place you’re visiting. You can even search host groups that share your interests: designers, photographers, wine lovers, sailors and more, including alumni of various universities. —Felicity Stone

Check them out for yourself at www.airbnb.com

Photo: Courtesy of Airbnb