We believe that travel is transformative, and key to buildin...
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We believe that travel is transformative, and key to building bridges in increasingly strained societies.We may organize an e...
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Hi, my name is Bianca, I'm Brazilian, I'm 42 years old, and I've been working in hospitality for almost 25 years. For you to understand what hospitality means to me, let me tell you a little bit about my life. When you were a child, someone probably asked you what you wanted to be when you grew up.
I always knew I wanted to work in hotels! I thought it was the best, and every time we went on vacation, I would watch the whole routine, the sounds, the comings and goings of happy people, all the employees in uniform. It was like a dance. But who wanted to be work in hotels more than 25 years ago? In Brazil, there wasn't even a hotel management school, and most hotel professions were not even recognized. So, when my father asked me what I wanted to do after I graduated from high school, I knew that I wanted to travel to another country to study HOSPITALITY.
In 1998, I traveled to England, at a time when there wasn't any Internet, and was brave enough to go a totally different country to follow my passion. From that moment on, my world had no more borders. I returned to Brazil, finished my studies, this time in a hotel management school, and was soon embarking on cruise ships, traveling the world and living my passion. I worked in restaurants and built my career in one company, where I stayed for 13 years. On cruise ships, I learned what hospitality really was. The commitment we made as crew members was to exceed expectations, to anticipate needs, to receive and serve without bias, free of prejudice or discrimination. My personal mission was to be part of special moments in the lives of my guests.
I also learned to get along with everyone in an equal and respectful way, regardless of culture, religion, race, or social class. Working on cruise ships taught me the importance of people's vacation moments. Many people around the world have only a few days of vacation and they want to make the most of them, so we had to have everything covered in that short period of time. I also learned the importance of sharing, as I lived with strangers in a 4 square-meter cabin for months at a time.
Sharing life, space, the ups and down, being far from home with a cabin mate was everything and the closest thing I had to what could be considered family. I believe it was from this experience that I gained a sense of how to welcome guests to my Airbnb. My concern is to make myself available, whether in small gestures or just in sympathy, so that they have a point of support far from their homes and someone they can genuinely count on.
After all the years on cruise ships and a career full of achievements, I reached a point where I felt something was missing, I wanted more, I wanted to manage hotels. I said goodbye to my seafaring life and came back to Brazil to work in hotel management on oil platforms. It was two years of suffering, I was the right person in the wrong place. I was no longer part of the happy moments, but of the suffering of everyone who works long shifts for many days away from everything they love. I needed to experience happiness again and nourish my soul.
It was then that I was able to get back on cruises, it was already 2017 and until then I didn't know Airbnb! It wasn't that widespread in Brazil and my routine, where I didn't have internet most of the time, meant that I didn't get a lot of information and news. It wasn't until mid-2017 that a friend of mine asked me if I knew about this app where you can rent an entire apartment, fully furnished, with no minimum number of nights to stay. I didn't! But that was just what I wanted! On my vacation back in Brazil, I rented an Airbnb and stayed there. That was when I knew it was what I wanted. And the Universe worked together for me to make my dream come true.
I went back to the cruises for one more contract. The intention was to wait a year, build up the funds, request my apartment back from my tenant and set up my little hotel. In less than 3 months, my tenant, without me even asking, handed me back my apartment. I went back to Brazil with the money I had from the contract and set up my apartment according to everything I had learned from the hosts I had studied around the world. While my apartment was being renovated, I watched videos of hosts around the world day and night. Once I opened my Airbnb, I knew exactly what to do.
I became a Superhost in one month. I wanted it so much! I wanted to be like the greats, my goal was to provide in my space what people don't have in a hotel. The coziness, the certainty that my guest find themselves in a place that would be their home away from home. And so, guest by guest, I built my dream of being a hostess.
Today, more than ever, I host friends. From the very beginning of communication with my guest, I try to make myself available, while respecting the guest's limits and without being intrusive. Understanding needs is part of hospitality. It's about being there, without being there. It's the little things, a message, a suggestion of a restaurant that matches the guest's taste.
I've hosted a lot of beautiful stories. I've already organized a wedding proposal. And I welcomed the same couple a year later for the wedding celebration. I hosted a young couple, who later returned with their baby, and I even bought a crib for them. My best friend today was one of my guests and probably one of the most beautiful stories.
Karina moved to Campinas with her husband and, at the time, her 8-year-old son. She needed a place to stay until she found a house and could relocate. For me, it was friendship at first sight. It was one of my first hostings, and Karina's first stay. She invited me to dinner in my own apartment, we drank wine and began a friendship that has now lasted 4 years. Airbnb gave me a guest, who became a sister, and today, I have three great nephews and nieces. After she moved away, she had two more babies and today I spend time with her family as if they were my own. What other business offers this privilege, the spirit, and the friendship that comes with sharing a service?
From time to time, I check in with my place as a guest and do a self-assessment. I always ask myself what's missing and how could do things differently.
Hospitality is welcoming. My place needs to radiate welcoming. Hospitality is sharing and receiving with affection. For me, being a host was never just about hosting and making money. It's about knowing that the moments my guests spent at my place were memorable for them, and that I was part of those small moments of happiness. To me, that's the spirit of Airbnb. I feel fulfilled and even more so today. Joining the team of Superhost Ambassadors mean being part of a big family of hospitality lovers.
@Sybe Great topic, Actually as a child I always wanted to be a maid in a hotel, I thought that sounded so glamorous, but I may not have fully understood what that meant.After getting my degree, I worked briefly in a luxury hotel. With this job came the benefits at staying in very nice places for very low prices. I moved on and owned my own business which provided the opportunity to do many nice trips with my family and kids, this almost always required renting an apartment or staying in Citadines (not sure if they are still around). When I sold my business, my first road trip introduced my to Airbnb (previously I had always used local agencies). I was blown away, the two that we stayed in were fabulous. After that trip, I came home and asked my parents if I could rent out there unused apartment in their residence. This became my first airbnb. While I didn't do it for long, I still have friendships with the renters:). I then went on to purchase my second Airbnb property in the mountains during Covid. It was so successful, I couldn't keep up. I convinced my husband to sell the mountain property and buy a property that we would actually use. We are on our third and final Airbnb property, but we use this one frequently and when we are not, I get to share with others. I absolutely love hospitality. My only disappointment with this property is that I don't get to meet any guests other than thru email, some like to communicate and some don't, so its much more distant:(
