Hello fellow travelers and locals,
Just trying to plan a trip kind of spontaneously for the end of November. 2024. It seems Airbnb is more economical and cozier than some of the hotels? Has anyone had experience?
I did look at the hotels as well. I guess I would also need to know is there an area NOT to look for two females from the US? Even though I was happy to read Iceland is safe overall.
Thank you in advance!
A lot of folks on here are very anti-AirBnB. It's all about personal preference, of course. I much prefer AirBnB because you can save additional money by preparing your own meals. In Reykjavik, we stayed here, very near the church, easy street parking and a public pool around the corner. It's very small. I slept on the couch, and it was fine.
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/22846180?source_impression_id=p3_1725304313_P3ckaFLWNw18FbpM
We enjoyed lunch at the Hlemmer Mathöll, a food hall where we could each have our pick and still sit together. Also, I had a nice beer there.
Iceland is extremely safe. I am headed back again for my 7th trip in a couple of weeks. I am going with a girlfriend this time, and have done a mom/daughter trip as well, so I would not worry at all about 2 females traveling together.
Where are you looking to go? Airbnb is popular in Iceland, but you can also get cottages etc through booking.com , which is the platform that I almost always use for Iceland.
If you are looking to stay in Reykjavik, you might look at Hotel Fron as their penthouse apartments are spacious and they have decent kitchens. That gives you more room to spread out than in the regular hotel rooms.
I have mixed feelings about Airbnb because of how they affect neighborhoods where people are trying to live normal everyday lives. But, I've also used Airbnb's both domestically/US and internationally though not in Iceland; and have had really good experiences. So my only warning is I know people who have experienced sudden (well in advance and last minute) cancellations of their reservation. Likely because the house might not meet local certification requirements; or the home doesn't meet airbnb standards. There's a host of reasons why it could happen. It's never happened to us, but I always consider a plan B as back up just in case.
Thank you to the responses so far! For the post that mentioned up to airbnb standards, can they still rent out on Airbnb if this is the case? I have not thankfully had any issues in the US, however do not want any either:)
Someone had also mentioned on a different post about since Nov is winter and it is not as touristy to wait until I get there to book the rest of the days...maybe book a night or two in the city and then determine?? I was thinking maybe due to the weather? Any thoughts on that? I am at the beginning stages of planning but need to put the petal to the metal since Nov will be here shortly. I have alerts for flights and whether or not to use a car.
It looks like a great place to visit, I look forward to it! Thank you again!
flhockey22 - I'll give you an example, so maybe it helps clarify what I meant....a friend rented an Airbnb in Colorado for this past May for the family to stay during her daughter's college graduation. So, yes, it was on Airbnb available to rent sometime Jan/Feb when she booked. But a couple of weeks before the weekend of the graduation, Airbnb cancelled the reservation. There's really no explanation given. So if it does get cancelled, you won't necessarily know the reason behind the cancellation. (Obviously something transpired between the time of booking and the time they cancelled.)
Anyway, I'm trying to scare you off Airbnb at all. Just saying sometimes it happens. Hopefully, Airbnb offers other suggestions when it does. I've used it multiple times in multiple locations and never had issues.
A few years ago I was in Reykjavik in November. I thought, great, not too crowded.
My hotel was full. In fact I have been to Iceland a few times in different months. It was always busy.
I would not count on November having a lot of availability. We too have had a trip then and things were packed.
Make sure you understand all the extra fees. I quit using them when some places started charging what I considered start exorbitant cleaning fees and leaving me a list of the 25 items I was supposed to do before I left. I’m supposed to wash the sheets, wipe down all the cabinets, etc. etc. etc. and. you’re charging me $300 to clean the place?
What was the cleaning fee for. Oh it was just extra profit for the owner so he didn’t have to raise his rates per night.
The other thing you need to be aware of is the Airbnb tells you they will work with you to help you if your unit gets canceled at the last minute. What that consists of is they will look around, tell you they couldn’t find anything and give you money back. Of course it’s now two days before your vacation and you don’t have a place to sleep. I’m done
I use reputable local apartment companies, apartment hotels or regular hotels.
I am done with the Airbnb roulette
flhofkey22, it sounds like you are not aware that AirBnb is not in the Room Rental business. They place all duties of compliance and legal behavior on the landlord. Like Uber and Lyft, they are in the business of "matching buyers and sellers." You cannot rely on existence of a Listing to mean anything about its legality.
Welcome to the Silicon Valley Bro world, where we Move Fast And Break Things. Or "... apolgize later."
I hear you, Carol! I am an AirBnB host and I charge a cleaning fee that I would find high if I was asked to clean. The overall cost is less than a hotel. I don’t ask guests to do anything but lock the door when they leave. Some are very surprised by this. Like you, I am always surprised when I am asked to do anything more than load and run the dishwasher (which I can understand because the dishwasher generally takes longer than it takes to clean the rest of the place).
May I suggest when booking a nightly rental...confirm it meets local laws? In our small community, an estimated 400 nightly rentals operate illegally and have a highly significant negative impact on housing working class families.
Another plus in the hotel column: baggage storage. I’ve never had a hotel decline to store our bags when arriving early or departing late, even by several hours. And often, when we arrive early planning to drop our bags, our room is actually ready.
Also, (good) hotel staff are a great resource for neighborhood recommendations: restaurants, markets, laundromats. They will explain how to do things like where to tap your credit card to pay on the city bus or what metro line to avoid at night.
Not all of these may be relevant for an Iceland trip, but these are the reasons (in addition to impact on local housing stock) that we prefer to stay in hotels.
Flhockey22, without going into the long and stressful story behind our one attempt at an Airbnb in NYC, I will say it was enough for me to swear them off entirely. The owner canceled the booking on the way to the place while we were in the taxi. It was a nightmare. I will only stay with properties through rental agencies or b and bs in addition to hotels for the foreseeable future. I also have a problem with the small towns and localities that have had their economy (and personal lives) adversely affected by its impact.
Susie--I love using Airbnb's, but yes, a hotel definitely has its' perks too. I almost always book a hotel for the day of arrival so that we can leave our bags and I do use them for restaurant recommendations etc. One time though in Paris, we rented an Airbnb and the host met me and let me keep my bag at her apartment while the apartment I had rented was being cleaned. She then took me all over the neighborhood showing me which bakeries etc were good and which ones were not. Of course Iceland is completely different than most places as anything outside of Reykjavik is pretty rural so a lot of that does not apply and it is safe to leave your stuff in your vehicle.
I prefer airbnb than hotels
Thanks again for all the replies! I think I am going to book a hotel for one or two nights to be able to maybe talk to some of the hotel staff/locals and go from there. I do like the luggage storage and hopefully maybe an airport shuttle offered by the hotel. That would be great! There seems to be a lot of really nice hotels downtown to start at. I prefer Airbnb usually and have landed some great places when traveling in Europe (London, Ireland and Cornwall). BUT I do understand supporting the local economy too of course. Looking forward to the trip overall! Thanks for all and any additional tips!
Hi, I was recently in Iceland and booked a mix of hotels and Airbnbs as a solo female traveler. I did a complete circuit around the ring road. I felt very safe everywhere I stayed, except for some strong wind one night that I thought might blow down my cabin.
Also, unlike many Airbnbs in the states, there weren’t any hidden fees and a few of the hosts left nice little gifts for me for staying at their place. :)
flhockey--airport shuttles are not a thing in Iceland. The airport is 45 minutes from KEF, so the options are either rent a car, take a taxi, take the local bus, or take Flybus. Flybus is around $35 pp each way. That will take you to the central bus terminal and then you will switch to a small bus to get closer to your hotel in Reykjavik. A taxi is around $150 and doesn't make any stops of course. The local bus is the cheapest, but I have never taken that to comment. We almost always rent a car, but when we don't, we opt for a taxi instead of Flybus anymore. It is just easier, especially after a long flight.
it sounds like you are not aware that AirBnb is not in the Room Rental
business. They place all duties of compliance and legal behavior on
the landlord. Like Uber and Lyft, they are in the business of
"matching buyers and sellers." You cannot rely on existence of a
Listing to mean anything about its legality.
I agree that this is the way it should be. AirBnb is nothing more than a 21st century version of the NY Times Classified adds and the NY Times was never held liable. BUT, jurisdictions have made successful legal claims against AirBnb to hold them accountable and AirBnb has paid millions in settlements. So, AirBnb can be held liable.
The simplest way to know if the market is regulated is to look for a registration number in the listings. If 10 have a number and 2 don’t, I would be suspicious of the two that don’t. If no one has a number, then I would “suspect” that the particular market is not regulated.
I have mixed feelings about Airbnb because of how they affect
neighborhoods where people are trying to live normal everyday lives.
That’s true in 100% of the markets? No, it’s not. It’s true in Iceland? No idea. I know of some markets where the good from the short-term rentals has exceeded any bad, at least in the eyes of the locals. I am absolutely certain that the opposite is true in other markets. The way to determine which is which is to just follow the law knowing that the people of democracies do what is best for their situation.
