17 year olds renting an apartment?

[Katie53]

Hello,

Sorry if I'm posting this in the wrong place, I'm new to this ☺️ I'm looking to go away with my boyfriend in late August to celebrate the end of our exams. I'll be 17 and he'll be two weeks off 18. My parents will be booking the apartment and of course are totally supporting the trip. Will we be allowed to rent an airbnb apartment? Should we tell the host beforehand or is it better just not to mention it and create an issue, as we're both of course very responsible and only looking for a quiet long weekend together?

Thank you 🙂

[Sandra126]

Hi Katie, a couple of issues here. You have to book your own place, it can't be booked by your parents. And all users have to be over 18, as far as I am aware. If you didn't tell the host and just showed up, you would very likely be turned away as you were not the guests actually booked to stay, and you would lose your money. Maybe just wait until you are old enough to have your own account?

[Andrée2]

@Katie53,

Your 18 year old boyfriend is old enough to have an account and book where he should definitely state his age and that he is bringing his 17 y.o. girlfriend in his message as this is an issue of major liability for your potential Airbnb hosts. Make sure the profile has a clear picture of his face (not some random pic), his real name, maybe add a picture of the both of you too. One piece of very helpful assurance would be to have your parents (and his if they are willing) write a reference onto his profile once he has set one up. They should use that to talk about all of the reasons that they believe that you both will know to be very responsible guests and how you are intending to be responsible on your stay. Do expect to send inquiries to several hosts before you get one that is completely comfortable with this situation but do be upfront and honest because if you don't, you may have your booking cancelled, have a horrible stay with an overly vigilant host and he could be left with a horrible review, discouraging you both from ever traveling on this site again.

It would be easiest and very smart if at least one of your parents were travelling with you. The last thing that your vacation needs is for your boyfriend to end up in jail and tried as an adult for rape. This is why I heavily encourage the older parent accompaniment whether or not you too are engaged in an intimate relationship.

Finally, when/if you do book your stay on Airbnb, ask your host questions as to how they want things handled as far as where to put things when you check out, confirm your checkout time/date, where they want the trash, etc. Then make sure to follow through with those things. That goes a LONG WAY towards comforting your host, showing that you really are both mature enough to do this and ensuring that everyone involved has a good experience. It also sets you up to have a great review to start with on Airbnb for your future travels.

Btw, good for you for being proactive and posting here so far in advance of your trip! I hope you all have a good time.