full-time Airbnb:
Updated August 18, 2024
**Backpacks and Bumpers was never comped any Airbnb stay nor has it received any monetary compensation for using Airbnb.**
When we share with people who ask that we're traveling the country full time, the first question tossed back is if we're traveling by RV. There's always a look of shock and awe when we relay we're full-time Airbnb.
After owning two homes (consecutively), maintaining them, repairing them, and prepping each of them for sale; we were both ready for a break from homeownership. The last thing we wanted was an RV to take care of. We wanted to travel with as little responsibility as possible, leave ownership tedium to someone else, and just look for a place we'd like to live.
Traveling full-time Airbnb has its perks. There’s no home maintenance, no lawn maintenance, no RV maintenance, and - because we’re relatively neat and tidy people - close to zero housework.
It also has a few frustrations; like not being able to find what tote you stuffed your beanie in last travel day.
how we travel traveled
We travel in our private vehicle (4 over the journey so far), with a cargo box, a bike rack, and as many storage bins as we can cram in it.
We travel in legs - hopping from one Airbnb to the next.
Our shortest leg has been 2 weeks: our longest, 7 weeks.
Since our stays are longer than the typical Airbnber, our expectations are different.
Most people can sit on a crappy couch for a short time when they're just vacationing for a weekend. In fact, they may not even sit on it at all, because they're busy having fun. But 7 weeks of laidback evenings on a crappy couch is… well, crappy.
all rentals aren’t created equal
Every home is unique. After you've done this repeatedly, you can better differentiate a home that is someone's vacation home from a cheap flip specifically meant to generate income.
Vacation homes have better furniture, sturdier cookware, fresher towels, cleaner washing machines, and - most importantly - better mattresses.
Even so, every home rarely has everything you need.
Every Airbnb we've booked to date has been sure to have a wine opener, and some will even treat you with a bottle of wine with which to use it. But, sometimes key items are missed.
One home we rented didn't have sheet pans. Another was missing kitchen towels and hot mitts. And half our rentals have had shoddy cookware.
Consequently, we travel with a dedicated kitchen box containing our personal kitchen essentials; like a pizza wheel!
the vetting process
As Backpacks and Bumpers, we've been in 29 Airbnbs to date (apr 2023). We've stayed in more rentals than most people ever will, and none of our stays were booked on a whim. Each rental went through a process that we've nailed down and works for us.
Lee selects a pool of possibilities.
I quickly view their photos and toss out properties I know immediately aren't going to work.
Red flags:
Folding/cheap chairs at a dining table.
Cheap/uncomfortable looking living room furniture.
Lack of lamps
Beds without headboards
Mattresses that dip or sag
Worn bedding
Sparse furnishings
Once we’ve narrowed the pool, we pick a few we think will work best and read the reviews. We stick with 4.8 stars or higher and gauge negative reviews by their tone - because sometimes people are just looking to get something for nothing.
Tips:
Use your investigative skills and Google Maps to check out corresponding neighborhoods and surrounding areas.
&
Be realistic in your expectations and know Airbnb's can change over time.
renting rules we live by
vet the property
read the reviews
never be the first to rent
properties are changing
Over the course of Backpacks and Bumpers Full-time Airbnb travel, we've experienced a shift in properties. Rental prices have shot up and quality has gone down. Companies and private owners (some, not all) pounced on the Covid boom, bought up properties, and threw in the cheapest furnishings they could find to turn a buck.
It's becoming more difficult to find a well priced quality rental.
going RV
Since the beginning of our journey, our travel goals have shifted. We love traveling, and we're already in a pattern of actually doing so. Thus, the idea of owning another home has shifted further down our list of priorities.
But we’re both eager to have our own space again. Eager to have our own drawers, our own couch, and our own bed.
It’s our hope RV life will allow us to continue traveling and gain greater flexibility as we do.
Besides, have you seen the housing market? We can totally wait that crazy out.
