I’ve used Airbnb several times before, booking 6 properties in the past few years, and never had an issue. However, last week, my reservation was suddenly canceled by the host. This was a huge letdown as it was already difficult to find a property for my family, and by this point, I had already bought my flight from the U.S. to Argentina, along with 6 passenger tickets and 2 car tickets for the boat from Argentina to Uruguay.
This trip was especially meaningful for us. We were excited to spend the holidays in Punta del Este, a place we used to vacation as kids with my father, who was tragically killed in a terrorist attack. This holiday reunion in such a sentimental destination was something we had been looking forward to for months.
Upon receiving the cancellation notice, I immediately reached out to Airbnb customer service. I spoke with an agent named Karlo, who understood my frustration and generously offered an additional 50% of the original booking amount to help us rebook another apartment. I was very satisfied with this solution and began searching for a new property. Unfortunately, this is where things took a turn for the worse.
It took several days and multiple attempts to even get in touch with another agent to proceed with the rebooking. After finally connecting, I provided a link to the only available property that met our requirements and was within our timeframe. Despite their promises, I was constantly left in limbo, waiting for approval on the additional 50% credit Karlo had offered me. This dragged on throughout the weekend, during which I was observing Yom Kippur, a Jewish holiday, all while fasting and still trying to resolve this issue.
By Sunday night, I finally got in touch with another agent, who promised an answer within 24 hours. On Monday, after multiple calls and long delays, I received a message offering only $200 toward rebooking—nowhere near the 50% credit that was initially promised. Every time I asked for a callback, I only received delayed, impersonal text responses. I even spoke with a supervisor, who said she would escalate the issue, but I was once again left waiting with no real resolution. Despite requesting a callback before 6 PM, I only received a message denying the original offer and still offering just $200. This was a complete contradiction to what I had been promised.
What’s worse, communication with the agents was extremely frustrating. Many were difficult to understand, and it was challenging to have a clear conversation. I felt let down and disregarded at every step.
We had been looking forward to this trip for so long, and now, with such short notice and the budget ruined, we are left without a place to stay for the holidays. I have been a loyal Airbnb customer, booking 6 properties over the past few years, but this experience has completely shattered my trust in the platform.
