Room Rentals on Travelocity, Expedia, etc

[Suzanne302]

So, I'm starting to see homeshare room rentals on sites like Travelocity.

As a matter of fact, when you sign up, it says you are automatically listed on all partner sites including Expedia, Hotels.com, and Trivago.

Has anyone looked into this further? I'm just wondering what the experience was like...

[Linda108]

I am surprised as I always thought Air BNB was the only site for home sharing.  I will be interested in the responses you get, @Suzanne302 

[Suzanne302]

@Linda108 

Yeah, I was surprised when I saw the rooms pop up! I hope someone out there can chime in with some personal experience.

Maybe competition is what Airbnb needs...

[Kimberly54]

Hi @Suzanne302, where did you sign up that told you that you were automatically listed on partner sites?

I have had a very recent experience involving a large real estate company... 

Best,

[Suzanne302]

@Kimberly54 

I did not sign up. Not going to do that until I hear from someone who has!

Here is the link, if they don't hide it: https://join.expediapartnercentral.com/en/?utm_source=wwwtravelocitycom-en_US&utm_medium=referral&ut...

If you just go to the Travelocity page, there is a link at the top that says "Add Your Property."

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Suzanne302 

I'd be interested to know about how things turn out too. Till now I thought most of the other alternatives were only for private house listings and not for private room shared home listings like mine. 

[Alon1]

@Jessica-and-Henry0 

I also asked Gerry & Rashid about alternatives. 

They replied they've been listing their in-house room on Booking.Com

[Suzanne302]

@Jessica-and-Henry0  @Alon1 

Yeah! I just checked Booking.com and they do have a filter for "hostels and shared" so it appears just as Airbnb is moving toward the commercial/hotel/whole unit model, other booking sites are opening up their platform to shared spaces.

Interesting....

[Kimberly54]

@Suzanne302, @Linda108, @Jessica-and-Henry0, I don't know about you, but the ONLY reason I signed up for AirBnB was for the screening and pre-introduction process.  During the very short time I've actually been involved with this company I've had my listing either sold or gleeped to a large real estate company (Both companies deny any involvement--and now it's out on the INTERNET, thank you very much!); they AUTOMATICALLY replaced my booking email contact information with my private university email (NO-NO-NO!); my property booked while on SNOOZE, to a single male???  And my property has been misplaced--at least once--to a lovely tourist location at least 20 minutes drive!  Yes, Balboa Park!  And no, you can not see giraffes from my house.  Easier to see Saturn.  Not so many trees in the way.

I'm praying that someone has the time to look into this... I love the concept, the spirit that started it, and yet the number of changes that happen suddenly/invisibly/withought consent and staffed by trembling people who have neither the knowledge or authority to correct errors...  

Best,

[Ben551]

@Kimberly54 sorry if I’m being a bit thick, but are you saying you listed on Airbnb (only on Airbnb) and your listing was duplicated elsewhere on the internet? How would a duplicate listing use your university email address? Are you saying Airbnb sold or leaked this information to other providers? Or are you saying you listed on Expedia or Homeaway and this happened?

[Kimberly54]

Hi @Ben551 , you're not being thick, this IS THICK.

Yes, I ONLY listed on Airbnb.  My charming little listing was either sold or stolen and ended up on Zillow (with my address!).  Both companies denied.  Omigoodness?  So how did that happen? 

The university email address was ONLY supplied to Airbnb BEFORE my property/site was created (only with them).  From then, I used one specifically for this business. (a gmail account.)

I was recently informed that my university account would be AUTOMATICALLY be used from now on.  That's where the second/third/fourth S*&t hit the fan.

So how did my intimate home-tour come up on Zillow?  (Some text, I didn't write, but the good stuff was definitly mine.)  

OK, Zillow lists real estate properties, and they have my address.  They have old real-estate values of my address before I bought it.  I understand that.  They list the market value.  Whatever.  This is how I found the leak.  Looking up my property on Zillow, and seeing my almost entire Airbnb profile.  Yep, walk up to my house, here's the dining room, look this way and here's....it's like a strip-tease!  Oh, yes, and here's the... FOR GOODNESS SAKE???  

It's on the internet.  Zillow declined responsibility but supposedly took it down (with apologies... whatever).  Airbnb told me that it was MY responsibility to track down the evil real estate company and have it taken down.

Nice.

I have no idea where this has migrated to. 

[Ben551]

@Kimberly54  mind boggling... yet another example to support my theory that the internet is a cesspit of plagiarism, run by swamp creatures...

[Kimberly54]

@Ben551, you are right about the general theory (love the swamp-creatures), but Airbnb isn't supposed to be like FB, right?  Of course, anyone savvy enough can probably even gleep family pictures of me when I was 2 years old, yes, but COME ON!!!!???  Oh, and my Amazon Prime password, my Social Security number???  Possible?  Yes.  Am I high-profile?  NO.

(Airbnb did not leak all of this out, to my knowledge.  Only my street adress and the details of my home.)

I really don't "do" internet.  Love Wikipedia and Mozilla/Firefox.  Don't listen to radio and don't have a TV.  Grow my own produce or trade it, have 5 adorable chickens and a Swan... and a parrot.

Is it just the swamp creatures?  Tough one to crack, eh?

Best,

[Ben551]

@Kimberly54 I can totally understand you being furious. This is a complete invasion of your privacy and it’s not on.

I happen to know there is a video tour of my own house on the internet, not filmed or posted by me but by the previous owners. My poor wife had to declare it for her national clearance as a security risk. We tried to get it taken down, but since we didn’t own the house at the time, and it was legally consented by the “then owners” we can’t get it removed... it’s frustrating.

The internet is forever. Frankly, someone needs to remind the tweeners on FB that... sometimes I’m quite glad I’m not a parent. I don’t know how today’s parents sleep at night with all the disgrace teenagers get tangled up in... I genuinely fret for my nieces and nephews. They probably think I’m Uncle “no fun”... but ... it’s all permanent!

PS: swamp creatures are powerful beings. They steal lives, countries, and socks.

[Ann72]

@Suzanne302 @Kimberly54 @Jessica-and-Henry0 @Linda108 I put one listing on Homeaway, which automatically lists it on its partner sites like Vrbo and others.

After reading your message I decided to search my town in Travelocity under "Vacation Rentals."  And there was my Homeaway listing.  With a description that, although correct, I didn't write.

It's my understanding that Travelocity, like Kayak, draws all the possibilities together.  But it doesn't appear to draw from Airbnb.

@Suzanne302, you say "when you sign up, it says you are automatically listed on all partner sites including Expedia, Hotels.com, and Trivago."  When you sign up where?  

@Kimberly54, what was the real estate company that listed your place?

At everyone, do we constantly have to troll the internet to discover what random sites our places are showing up?!?