My positive experiences
As an antidote to my rather negative stories about accommodation recently, I thought I would just highlight some of the special Airbnb hosts I have met over my seven years of full-time travel. Many hosts choose not to meet with their guests. I try to stay with real people rather than companies and the following are all hosts that I’ve met in person. Sometimes it’s not the actual buildings that matter but the people who rent them out.
Having said that, some ‘remote’ hosts have been really lovely too and a special shout out to my host in Tbilisi, Georgia who kept in touch with me whilst I was in hospital and allowed me to check out later than planned because I was too unwell to travel.
One of my earliest hosts, back in March 2019, came to my rescue before I had even started my stay. I didn’t know what a lockbox was, never mind how to open it, so had to call out the hosts to help me get into my cottage in Dooey, County Donegal, Ireland. I got on with Sandra and Peter immediately and to date they are the only hosts that I have been out for a drink with, to the famous Packies Bar in the village (see my post here). I am still in touch on Instagram. Pic of the cottage at Dooey is the main photo above.
The food providers
Some of the hosts I want to mention are the ones who kept bringing me food. This included the best focaccia I have ever had (and probably ever will have,) in Bari, Italy. Maria Elena and her husband were so lovely, keeping in touch every day and bringing other treats to my door. Focaccia is a speciality of that part of Italy and wasn’t something I had much of before. The ones they made (they brought me two) were full of vegetables and much better than ones I had in restaurants later on my journey.
The all-time star, was my host in Granada, Victoria. On the first morning I was there I was a little disappointed to find that the coffee machine was not working and that there was no means of making toast. She responded by saying that the toaster had broken and not been replaced and that she would take the coffee machine back to the shop as it was still under guarantee. Later that day, not only did she bring me a brand new coffee maker and toaster, but an unbelievable amount of food and other useful stuff … see the picture below for the haul. For more on my stay in Granada click here.
Hosts bringing food has happened on a couple of other occasions too, in Plovdiv, Bulgaria Stanislav would bring me leftovers from the various parties he would have with his family and friends. More recently, in Phan Thiet, Vietnam my host Quyen would bring me fruit twice a week and leave it at my door. I received bananas, passion fruit, dragon fruit and watermelon. Also the sweetest and tastiest mangoes of all the ones I have had around the world, so sweet and simply delicious.
Other memorable hosts
Some hosts as well as being really considerate have also been memorable for other reasons. When I was feeling too hot in Sofia, Bulgaria – the host Aidan said he would bring a fan round for me. That evening there was a knock on the door and I opened it to a torso. This guy was so tall that I couldn’t see his head through the door-frame, he must have been well over 7ft, (213 cm) and possibly the tallest person I have ever met. He did say that he used to live in the apartment but it had become too small for him and his family. I thought he meant in terms of space, now I wondered if it was in terms of height!
At the other end of the scale, I met Jesús. He was the host of an apartment I stayed at in Cadiz, Spain in 2025 and although I am only 5ft 5” (165 cm) I towered over him, which makes a change. He was lovely and took it upon himself to tell me all the places I could visit in the local area. Sadly this was rather lost on me as the only place I wanted to visit, having had a difficult five hour journey there, was the bathroom! More on my stay in Cadiz here.
Then there are the hosts that have taken time to give me lifts from where I was landing in a city to their accommodation. In Osijek, Croatia – Radmilla and her daughter picked me up at the railway station and brought me back there at the end of the stay. Throughout my time there, they kept in touch, advised me on where to go (I made a big mistake on this particular stay which you can read about here) and came round to clean once a week. Osijek was not a very memorable stay, but what I do remember was their kindness (and the quiet of the apartment I was in.)
In Bacau, Romania – the host Luca not only picked me up from the airport, but on the way to the apartment he stopped off at a local late night shop to allow me to get things for the morning’s breakfast, and this was only for a four night stay, which I posted about here. My host in Skopje, North Macedonia met me at the bus station and walked me to my accommodation, carrying my luggage for me, which was again for a very short stay of just two nights.
My current host Myung-Sook in Seoul, South Korea, saw that I had injured my leg in a recent fall and brought me plasters, ointment and enough swabs to last me to the end of my stay (and beyond.) She is another who picked me up from the bus stop so allowing me to avoid the steep hill between there and the accommodation with my luggage.
Final thoughts
There are many other instances of such thoughtfulness which is one of the reasons why I try to find hosts who only have one or two properties and avoid the big hosting companies when I can. I always check the reviews carefully and I always message beforehand with a question, partly to see how quickly they respond (some have never responded at all) and how positive and friendly the response is. Occasionally, even after that first response (Quyen in Phan Thiet comes to mind) I know that their place is where I want to be.
If you would like any details of the accommodations I have mentioned in this piece (or any others I have stayed at) please feel free to message me or email me at steev@newlifesteev.com. Sadly, not all of them are still available, for instance the apartment in Granada has suspended bookings at the time of writing this post.
I hope your travels are memorable and that your next stay is a wonderful one with hosts that truly enjoy having guests to look after.
