True, we swore off airbnb last December after our horrific experience in Norway. But then, airbnb reached out to us personally and made good on the situation by offering us nearly a full refund back to our original form of payment. It still took us 8 months to forgive them, and we learned to be much more scrupulous in...
Airbnb
Destination: Norway | Creating Family Memories Celebrating Christmas in the Land of the Midnight Sun – Family Adventure #65
Catherine - After chasing down the Northern Lights unsuccessfully in Iceland four years ago, this unfulfilled dream of ours has never left the forefront of our thoughts. When we read that Tromsø was the one place on Earth where the Northern Lights appeared more than anywhere else in the world, Norway soared to the top of our adventure list. We immediately...
Airbnb
The Happy Ending: Our Family Christmas in Norway Saga Part 3 | Stranded with 3 Children Praying for an Airbnb to Save Christmas
Catherine - Across town, in the opposite direction of the graffiti and promiscuous pictures was where we found our home for Christmas. This darling airbnb, with red cupboards in the kitchen and four single beds laying side by side each other in the bedroom, was perfect for our celebrations. Though we longed to be in Tromsø, we were finally in a...
Airbnb
Airbnb Gone Bad: Our Family Christmas in Norway Saga Part 2 | Stranded in A Stinky Airbnb with 3 Children Praying for Fresh Air
Catherine - We knew it would be an adventure to travel for Christmas, especially through two different climates and with a suitcase full of Christmas presents, but we didn’t quite anticipate everything that could go wrong, would go wrong. On our first leg of the trip from Salt Lake City, Utah to Galveston, Texas one of our bags of luggage was...
Airbnb
Destination: Arches National Park | Creating Family Memories at the Site of 2,000 Arches – Family Adventure #59
Catherine - Arches National Park is an incredible natural wonderland full of more than 2,000 natural made arches. The arches are formed from differing types of sandstone rock, created as a result of cracks weakened by weather and erosion slowly crumbling away until only the strongest rock layers remain. This place looks like God reached his hand down to Earth and...
When we found a small little cabin from airbnb in Costa Rica in a gorgeous setting bordered by lush forests and a property filled with banana, papaya and mango trees, we were intrigued. We read about the host and his life and family, saw that he offered fresh goat milk and chicken eggs, nightly campfires, and was located in...
The Japanese have a wildly different interpretation of how many people can comfortably stay in any place of residence, and what size towel is appropriate for drying off after showering. If you want a genuine cultural experience, sleeping in 4 bunk beds in an apartment the size of a walk-in closet, this is the Tokyo airbnb for you. Honestly,...
We didn't know how good we had it. This was our first airbnb experience in Japan, and we didn't fully appreciate the fusion of amenities we were offered. We didn't yet appreciate that traditional Japanese housing offers mats on the floor instead of mattresses, paper for walls, a soaking tub with a bucket instead of a shower, and hand...
Renting your Home on Airbnb: Part 1
Renting your Home on Airbnb: Part 2
Renting your Home on Airbnb: Part 3
What I Learned From My Airbnb Guests Guest 1:
Our first group of guests was comprised of several members of a family coming to stay for a wedding. At first, communication was poor with these guests. As soon as we received confirmation of...
Airbnb
Kyoto Airbnb, Huge Family Apartment but Lacking in the Cleanliness Department, Kyoto, Japan
Catherine - Having never been to Japan, choosing a place to stay was a daunting task. Typically I spend weeks, or months, depending on how spur of the minute trip it is, researching the place we are going. I attack it from a historical perspective, and a cultural one, including figuring out all the top attractions and things to do. But,...