Stayed at an Airbnb last year where I left a ~4 star review taking off one star because of excessive noise from the bus stop outside (otherwise positive). Couple months later I get an email saying my review was removed for violating Airbnb policy. Had to contact support where they told me the host had submitted (fake) WhatsApp screenshots of me asking them for money to post a positive review and so they removed my review. No matter what I said customer support refused to reinstate my review. The most alarming thing is that they removed my review without any input from me. Interestingly, the property had added additional co-hosts where that property was their only property after my stay. Presumably these are fake profiles they used to file the dispute so it wouldn’t impact their main account.

In any case, I am never staying at an AirBnb again. Be aware that any rating on AirBnb can be easily manipulated by the host.

Also if you have status at a hotel, perks like room upgrades and late checkout are invaluable.

Also at a hotel: “It smells like smoke.” “Let me take you conveniently to another identical room for free.”