A Climbing Mom's Musings: Hotel or Airbnb?

Should you get an Airbnb or a Hotel? This is a debate I keep going back and forth on. As we settled into our current trip to Atlanta, I decided to get an entire house from Airbnb for my family for two weeks. There are some definite advantages to an Airbnb but some drawbacks.

The pros of having an Airbnb is that you get ultimate privacy. Often, when you stay in someone's house, you are in a residential area usually closer to conveniences like grocery stores and other amenities. I dislike staying in a Hotel on a Hotel strip with other Hotels. It just seems so industrial. Staying in a home, even sharing one, you get to have a more homelike experience and sometimes, you are much closer to places you need to go to.

The cons of Airbnb are real and always have to be weighed with the pros. I read somewhere that there is a limit to how many times Airbnb lets you cancel. I couldn't find anything on that, but that is something to keep in mind. I have stayed in the basement apartment of a house, stayed in an apartment, and had an entire house to ourselves. I did have a bug problem in one location (fruit flies) but that seems rare. The big difference is that I feel the need to bring supplemental items to make the Airbnb function smoothly. Items such as placemats (incredibly useful), potholders (crucial if you plan on cooking and a literal pain if they are not provided!), garbage bags, paper towels, tissues, aluminum foil, and of course, zip lock bags. You end up buying these supplies but never use them all on your trip. So I throw them into another suitcase and save them for the next trip.

The major thing I try to accomplish with every trip is to tie in some educational feature that we cannot find in our home city. Dinosaur exhibits have been a big one for our family but anything with nature is wonderful (The Georgia Aquarium is a must-see!). This way, I can justify all these trips in my mind...they are not just for climbing, but for enriching our son's life experiences. Being comfortable enough to enjoy all aspects of the trip is key and our accommodations play a major part here. I have settled on Airbnbs for longer trips and hotels for shorter stays. But ultimately, I'm leaning more towards hotels because the guest has more control over the experience than in an Airbnb. But ultimately, it is a personal choice but a crucial one.