2021 AIRBNB Recap

I visited 9 Airbnb’s in 2021 and given that I had loosely mentioned visiting nice spaces every month to get inspired, recoup & be alone to a few people at the beginning of the year, I’m not mad at that number. I thought I’d offer an Airbnb recap from my experience so far as well as a quick little rate and review of some of the BNB’s I visited, my main criteria when searching for an Airbnb is location, price, amenities & aesthetics, everything else is judged on the need & purpose of the space.

I visited Alexa’s listing from 2 April – 5 April 2021 to shoot content for YouTube at the time, so good lighting and lots of space was the main criteria for when I was looking for an Airbnb around this time and this apartment was exactly that!

Airbnb link: https://abnb.me/Wxwe3hRXxmb

Pros:

• Lot’s of beautiful natural light coming in

• Spacious

• Has WIFI

• Centrally located but still tranquil & relaxing

Cons:

• Because the apartment is in a residential area, some of the appliances & furniture are outdated and limited so don’t expect SMEG appliances and leather couches but everything is clean and neat

• The apartment tends to get quite cold in the evenings even though it gets great sun during the day.

Overall booking and chatting to the host was easy, there is a housekeeper that actually stays in the apartment building that assists you with checking in and is very responsive with any issues you may have while you’re there as well.

The apartment building has an elevator, snack vending machine in the reception area, and offers a lot of parking space.

Setback:

R1179.93

Overall Rating: 7/10

I had visited MINT Hotel 84 on Katherine earlier in the year for a night via booking.com & loved it, so when I (thought) I saw it on Airbnb I thought it was the same one, I later realized there are 2 MINT Hotels a street away from each other, anywayyyy…

I visited MINT Express from 8 Sept – 10 Sept 2021 for no particular reason really, I just wanted a nice, affordable space, still centrally placed so it’s easy to get around if I need to & enjoy for a few days.

Airbnb link: https://abnb.me/ZaxtscTXxmb

Pros:

• The place is super professional

• The apartments are clean and fully equipped

• Pablo People is a short walk away from the apartments (& they also offer room service delivery to your room)

• Easy communication and assistance throughout my stay

Cons:

• Kuyaphithizela, I did not realize this was also a residential area so people stay there long term, so there was quite a lot of activity outside the apartments.

• There’s lots of stairs, not sure if there was a lift ☹

Setback:

R900

Overall rating: 8/10

I visited this space because I wanted a lovely little tranquil getaway leading up to my birthday. I stayed from the 15 Oct – 18 Oct 2021, visiting the local restaurants and enjoying the peace and quiet the area had to offer.

Airbnb link: https://abnb.me/7dmAJeVXxmb

Pros:

• Peaceful, clean, safe and secure

• Spacious, pretty décor

• Lots of light and fresh air coming in

• Centrally located

Cons:

• The space seemed smaller in person than it appeared in the pictures

• I didn’t really get to enjoy the backyard because the owners had their dog roaming around there and because it’s an open space the dog is able to come into your “garden” area which may not be ideal for everyone.

Setback:

R1 394.82

Overall rating: 8/10

I needed to attend a wedding on the weekend of 5 Nov – 8 Nov 2021 and required to book a space close enough to the wedding venue so I don’t struggle with transportation to and from, as well as something that’s still centrally located in case I wanted to go to the beach or the mall while I'm there, luckily I was able to find this really pretty space in Morningside.

Airbnb link: https://abnb.me/mGyYAKWXxmb

Pros:

• The host was great, quick response, very helpful

• The space was stunningly decorated and looked exactly like it did in the pictures

• The area has 24hour security and was centrally located.

• Great value for money

Cons:

• It’s a residential area so there was a bit of noise from kids playing and running outside from quite early in the morning

• It’s a loft so you require walking up a flight of stairs to get to your bedroom

• There’s no TV, stove or shower available in the apartment

• The apartment has no air-conditioning or fans installed & tends to get pretty stuffy ☹

Overall it was easy to get around from there, the Uber’s & Mr. Delivery were able to find the area easily.

Setback:

R2 034.12

Overall rating: 7.5/10

This might be my first 10/10, I saw this space from someone's Instagram story and saved it into my favorites folder on Airbnb because I was keen on visiting it myself very soon.

Firstly the images don’t do it justice, the apartment is STUNNING. I think what really makes it is the décor choices because it is a studio so it’s not the hugest space in the world but you can freely move around and enjoy the lighting that comes through & makes the space feel bigger.

Airbnb link: https://abnb.me/3G98g2XXxmb

Pros:

• Stunning modern décor, fully equipped

• High sealings, lots of lighting

• Tranquil backyard and private patio area

• Stunning bathroom, insanely comfortable couch and bed!

• Extremely clean and tidy

• Easy booking and check in process

• Centrally located but you can’t tell

Cons:

• I don’t have any!

I was only here for a single night from 9 Dec – 10 Dec 2021, and I loved every minute of it!

Setback:

R684.00

Overall rating: 10/10

I am not big on the streets in general but especially on NYE, lets plan something indoors and stay there! After all the other plans had failed, I settled with booking myself into an Airbnb from 31 Dec 2021 – 2 Jan 2022 over New Years weekend and just having a quiet few days to myself instead.

Of course the space still needed to be aesthetically pleasing, duh!

Airbnb link: https://abnb.me/o2pWQdZXxmb

Pros:

• Luigi’s place looked stunning on pictures, but I was sold by that balcony garden and bathtub (the pictures don’t do it justice)

• Host is friendly, readily available and helpful

• Property is tranquil but still centrally based enough to get around

• Great value, beautifully decorated, clean and tidy

Cons:

• You don’t get much in the room but a tea and coffee station, so if you need to store something in the fridge or warm something up, you’ll need to ask the host to assist you.

• The host stays in the main house and the Airbnb is essentially a private room with a full en-suit bathroom, you walk through the main house to get to your private room upstairs, there’s not private entrance unfortunately.

The best part is that you can’t even tell you’re in Randburg, let alone Johannesburg while you’re here, so you can fool everybody into thinking you’re in another city & they’ll believe you, that's how stunning it is!

Setback:

R1 216.42

Overall rating: 9/10

Pro tip, spend a lot of time on Airbnb to source out the most cost effective one that covers all you needs, some Airbnb's are very overpriced for the space you're getting + location etc, don't just pay for looks! Search filters: Superhost + entire apartment, ALWAYS!