5 Stays, 5 Wonderful Experiences! Find out how you too could create great memories with Airbnb Accommodation, Restaurants and Experiences!
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The first time we decided to use Airbnb was for our Top 5 Things To Do on a Romantic Weekend in Cairns trip that we were trying to do on a bit of a budget. We didn’t want to stay in a backpackers, but couldn’t afford to stay in a flash hotel. Oh yeah and we may have left the booking a bit late to make… oops!
We had checked out Airbnb a few times while dreaming of places to travel, so now we had the opportunity to give it a go.
Here are the best places we have stayed using Airbnb and why they were so great.
M.V. Betty Pearl – Cairns, Qld, Australia
We were so lucky to come across the M.V. Betty Pearl. In our initial search on Airbnb it didn’t come up, then our flights changed dates, initially we were disappointed, until we realised it meant we could stay on a boat!
The M.V. Betty Pearl is a work boat built in WWII and as such is a little rustic, but that just adds to the uniqueness of the accommodation. You don’t leave the marina, which is fine by me as I get seasick, so you get the whole boat to yourself. There are no cooking facilities other than kettle and small fridge etc, and the toilet is a marine toilet. You have to shower in at the yacht club too. So it is definitely not for those who want something flashy, but it is definitely for those who want something different.
Because you are in the marina you are walking distance to all the reef tours, and also to the esplanade with its lagoon and many restaurants.
We enjoyed sitting on the roof one night, eating takeaway while listening to the band at the local pub.
Owl Wooden House – Langkawi Island, Malaysia
We planned a trip Langkawi for my 40th birthday and wanted to stay somewhere a little bit special. We live in a nice resort style condominium, with a pool and ocean views, so unless the hotel was really posh, it wouldn’t have been much different from being at home. We looked for ages on the various hotel booking sites.
Airbnb to the rescue.
We found the most amazing little wooden cottage in the middle of a rice paddy field! The reviews from previous visitors were exceptional, and wouldn’t you know it the only available dates for the next 6 weeks were for my birthday!
We booked immediately.
Azmi and his wife Jazmin picked us up from the ferry terminal, and took us to the little house that Azmi built himself. Azmi even brought us a traditional Malaysian breakfast of nasi lemak for breakfast.
The house was simple, and on a little country road, but it was exactly what we were hoping for, and made all the better by Azmi and Jazmin. Chris and Azmi even conspired to get me surprise cake, champagne and roses for my birthday!
And the best bit, because of the sign up bonus we got our trip for half price! You can get 15 % off your stay too if you sign up using this link.
Island Plaza – Penang Island, Malaysia
After spending time in Kuala Lumpur we headed to Penang to see whether it would be our base for a while. We had no idea about where anything was, and only had Google maps to guide us. But we scored exceptionally well with this Airbnb, we were their first visitors so got a new listing discount. Sonia was exceptionally helpful and even waited over an hour for us to arrive because of really bad traffic.
The apartment was modern, clean and had fast WiFi. It was in a fantastic location close to street food, hawker centres, cafes, restaurants and it even had a supermarket in the bottom of the building. There was a bus stop out the front too, which meant we were able to ride in to George Town easily in one direction, and Batu Ferringhi in the other.
Did I mention the pool? No? The pool was a great relief after exploring in the Malaysian heat. It was round, as was the jacuzzi! And it had an incredible view over the Mallacca Straights towards Butterworth.
The Clivedon – Sydney, Australia
We got $18 return flights per person to Sydney so decided to take my two boys to check it out as they hadn’t been before but with four of us, accommodation seemed like it would break the budget. Not many hotels cater for a family of four unless you can pay $400+ per night, or you stay in the suburbs. We didn’t want to be spending our days getting in to where the action is, so we really wanted to be right in the heart of the city.
Again Airbnb to the rescue (they seem to do that a lot!)
We found an amazing renovated two bedroom apartment with a small kitchen in a beautiful old building within walking distance to all of Sydney’s best attractions. There was also a supermarket near-by, plenty of restaurants, cafes and pubs. Our stay was about a quarter of the price of an equivalent hotel for a week. And we saved a huge amount of money by being able to have breakfast before we went out, and get take away meals to eat after a long day exploring.
Ticino – Uralla, NSW, Australia
We went on 11 day road trip in the early new year 2018 through southern Queensland down to Narooma and back again. Our first night was a stay in a red cedar cottage called Ticino in Uralla. As soon as I walked in I started scheming about how I could come back… and maybe live forever.
Sometimes you just walk into a house and it feels like home, we all felt like that in Ticino. It is located in a tiny town just out of Armidale called Uralla, which is known for being the resting place of a bushranger (outlaw) called Captain Thunderbolt.
Ticino has a beautiful garden where you can sit and enjoy a morning coffee or an afternoon beer surrounded by greenery and wildlife. As rustic as the cottage is, the amenities and the sheets, towels and toiletries were luxurious and made us feel like we were in a five star hotel.
So, besides these 5 wonderful stays why else do we love Airbnb?
Well, how does some of these unique Airbnb places sound?
- Live it up like Aladdin in a majestic Arabian-style tent in Germany!
- Sleep in a secluded giant bubble surrounded by nature in France!
- Snooze, I mean… guide the ships in a lighthouse in Australia!
- Entomb yourself in a pyramid house in Iceland!
- plus there’s treehouses, railway carriages, bungalow villas & a whole lot more!!
We’re certainly looking forward to some unique experiences in the future!
Also, you can refer others to Airbnb (as we are doing now) and when they click on your referral link, they can earn themselves 15% off their first stay. Plus, the referrer gets a bit of a bonus for providing the recommendation too.
Refer a few people and you could earn yourself a free night or 2 in any of the 1000’s of places around the world. Oh yes, you can also find Restaurants and Experiences on Airbnb as well!
If you enjoyed this blog and are interested in finding accommodation for travel or work, we really won’t mind if you click on the link below and join up… we promise! 🙂
Didn’t realise airbnb was so widespread! Great informative post.
Thanks! It sure is! We didn’t realise they were doing experiences either till recently
I’m still learning from you, as I’m trying to achieve my goals. I absolutely love reading all that is posted on your site.Keep the aarticles coming. I liked it!
Hi Migdalia, glad you like them!