The Oppo Review of a thing completely unrelated to driving

"Cé hé sin" (michael-m-mouse) 12/15/2016 at 15:40 • Filed to: Airbnb, Paris

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Property and its rental, to be specific.

I spent a few days in Paris and December being a bit chilly to camp out on a park bench I needed somewhere to stay. Having been in hotels in the past I tried this Airbnb lark for a change.

You get a choice. Shared room (no, thanks), a room in a shared property (no, thanks) or an entire property for much the same price as a room (yes please). So I asked host no. 1 for his flat. He said yes and then a week before arrival decided he was going to be sick for at least a week and said No. Host no 2 thought about it for a day and then said no for elaborate reasons to do with his previous punter. Host no 3 accepts bookings there and then so I was all set for my weekend in Yvette’s (not her real name) flat. Being an American based outfit you find that four nights at €50 a night does not equal €200 but more like €240 for the same kind of reason that if you buy something in America stickered at $9.99 it’ll cost you $10.89 or something. Anyways I had a credit of €13 to cover the inconvenience of the cancellation so I was all set again. Duly contacted Yvette and asked when I could arrive. Any time you like! Duly arrived at flat, found door on street open, went up to first floor as per instructions to find several unnumbered doors, none of which answered their buzzers. decided to turn on expensive data roaming to contact mine host, found message to take two metro trains to her place of work. More excitement because you have to ring a buzzer and wait for a disembodied voice talking French to you while you strain your ears to hear over the noise of a noisy street.

After all that I was in. Looked as pictured - tiny hall, tiny shower/toilet, living room, bedroom.

Here’s the kitchen and dining area.

Yes, that’s the table. You can almost reach the hotplates, sink and fridge without budging from the chair.

The fridge had various contents. Yvette’s and therefore off limits, or abandoned by the last punter? Lots of stuff past its best before date so I helped myself to a few slices of cheese and an apple. Turned out not to be quite the right thing.

Anyway once you get used to not being able to make an unplanned move for fear of breaking something and discover that the microwave isn’t but is a little conventional oven, it was OK for a few days. The thought of actually living there would make me scream. How much would this place cost? Something like €200,000 or the best part of €1,000 a month. Expensive place, Paris, if you want to live inside the ring road. Want a flat with a bedroom and a proper kitchen? €300 or 400,000. Want a grander flat with four or five bedrooms ? Multiply that by ten. Want a space in an underground car park? €30,000 or so.

After my stay I needed to get Yvette’s keys back to her but no replies to messages and texts so back to her office and more battles with disembodied voices.

Do it again? Probably not. You can get more room and self catering if you wish for about the same price in a hotel.

CalzoneGolem > Cé hé sin 12/15/2016 at 15:55

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This picture typifys to me what city living is all about.

Party-vi > Cé hé sin 12/15/2016 at 15:57

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THE EXTRA YOU PAY DEALING WITH AN AMERICAN IS THE COST OF FREEDOM YOU LAZY COMMIE!

U! S! A! U! S! A! U! S! A!

duurtlang > Cé hé sin 12/15/2016 at 16:05

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I must say my experience with Airbnb this summer in New England, US, was quite pleasant. We had our own room in a shared place every time, stayed at about 10 airbnbs and usually only stayed 1-2 nights. Other than the first place, a 3 bedroom apartment inhabited by 2 students in pricey Boston, it was nice all the time. And much cheaper than a hotel. My experience is that an older host (40+, preferably 50+) results in a more pleasant stay.

The view (plus private beach) from the deck next to our room in Burlington, VT. Our host was the widower of a former judge and senator.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Party-vi 12/15/2016 at 16:05

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He should really be thanking us for providing the service in the first place, ungrateful foreigner.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > duurtlang 12/15/2016 at 16:07

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Proof that Americans are just better at providing services. This is why we’re #1.

duurtlang > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 12/15/2016 at 16:09

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Ha! Let’s leave it at saying I enjoyed my stay in the US as a tourist .

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > duurtlang 12/15/2016 at 16:11

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Good, because we’re going to build a wall to keep you from coming back!

duurtlang > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 12/15/2016 at 16:14

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I doubt the Boeing Airbus I was a passenger on would be held back by a wall.

Tekamul > Cé hé sin 12/15/2016 at 16:16

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Yeah, Paris. I expect the same maneuver in Manhattan would yield the same results. Dense urban hellscapes and all that.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > duurtlang 12/15/2016 at 16:20

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It’s going to be a huge wall. The best wall. When your commie airbus crashes into it, you’ll be saying “gee, I didn’t know they could build a wall that huge!”

Xyl0c41n3 > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 12/15/2016 at 16:21

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No we’re not. The Donald only cares about keeping out brown people who can’t afford things like AirB&B. You know, folks like us Mexicans. Or Syrian war refugees.

Xyl0c41n3 > duurtlang 12/15/2016 at 16:23

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Our walls are very bigly. 39,000 feet cruising altitude? Pffft. I’ll just run down to Home Depot to pick up some supplies and get that up this weekend.

For Sweden > Cé hé sin 12/15/2016 at 16:38

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I spent a few days in Paris and December

Here’s your problem.

Paris is like a Lexus dealership: everything looks alike.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Cé hé sin 12/15/2016 at 16:39

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Being an American based outfit you find that four nights at €50 a night does not equal €200 but more like €240 for the same kind of reason that if you buy something in America stickered at $9.99 it’ll cost you $10.89 or something.

Do you not have sales tax where you live?

Chinny Raccoon > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 12/15/2016 at 16:42

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It’s almost always included in the price listed- with exceptions for B2B focused places where the buyers reclaim the tax.

Cé hé sin > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 12/15/2016 at 17:16

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Certainly. We have VAT, but why would it not be included in the price? If something costs €9.95 it’s the price including VAT and you get change from a tenner. Most places do this. Nobody here would put up with seeing a price sticker showing the price and then being asked for more money, even if it were legal. You’re also not expected to pay the wages in a restaurant as a kind of add on.

Airbnb include tax where applicable but they have a “service charge” and a “cleaning charge”.

Cé hé sin > Tekamul 12/15/2016 at 17:19

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Very likely. Supply, demand and all that. If you don’t have money and are in Paris you live in a tower block in a distant suburb.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Cé hé sin 12/15/2016 at 17:31

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It isn’t included in the listed price here due to the fact that the states determine how much sales tax there is. For example if I were to buy something with a price of $9.99 here in Vermont I would pay $10.58 after the 6% sales tax but if I go to Massachusetts I would pay $10.61 after the 6.25% tax (or I could go to New Hampshire and pay $9.99 because NH doesn’t have sales tax). It is difficult to advertise a price that changes depending on what state you are in so products are advertised with their price before taxes are applied.

Tips are intended to be a way of saying thank you however the way the law is written that kinda gets thrown out the window. For example in Massachusetts the minimum wage is $9 per hour. However when you are allowed to accept tips your minimum wage becomes $3 per hour. That discrepancy changes the cultural norms.

bhtooefr > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 12/19/2016 at 18:52

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Although, hypothetically, the employer is supposed to make up the difference between minimum wage and tips.

In practice, many illegally don’t.

Also, the sales tax doesn’t just vary by state, it varies by county - after all, the European model shows a way to handle variance by state, just advertise different prices in different states.