Airbnb in Harlem

While making plans for a weekend in New York, my friends and I decided to save some cash and book an Airbnb instead of a hotel. This was my first Airbnb stay, so I was excited for my first foray into the home sharing economy. My friend booked the place, picking out what looked like a roomy one bedroom in Harlem. Picking up the keys was a breeze, but unfortunately our continued experience was not as stellar as other peoples’.

One thing to keep in mind when looking at apartments online is the pictures might not reflect what the room is really like. While the Airbnb ad showed a spacious, naturally lit interior, the reality was a cramped dorm room facing an alley. It turns out the place was graduate housing for Columbia University, though the ad did not mention this and renting it is most likely prohibited by the lease. With no TV or amenities, this was meant to be a bare-bones rental for sleeping. While the square footage was a disappointment for our group, the place was clean and we were thankful for the blankets and towels provided by the host.

We spent most of our time around town and really only stayed at the apartment at night, so overall the rental did its job. Our experience returning the keys was not pleasant though. The hosts were out of town and had apparently rented out the place to a few parties over a couple weeks, so we had to give the keys to one of their friends. Unfortunately, the friend refused to come to us so we had to travel several blocks to finish our check-out.

While our stay in Harlem was cheap and got the job done, I still found myself preferring the convenience of a hotel. Even though there was a cleaning fee, the keys were about to be given to another renter after us, so we ended up cleaning the apartment ourselves in case the host didn’t have anyone coming. These kinds of things made us question how thoroughly the apartment was cleaned for us, so I’d recommend doing more research for a reputable host the next time you’re booking on Airbnb.