Like many Canadians, I had set out with my girlfriend to go on a winter vacation. Normally, we canucks travel down south to a hot, warm climate in order to rid ourselves of the bone aching cold we can get here. Unlike most however, we never really go anywhere warm. This winter, we headed towards Boston & New York, which lucky for us, was surprisingly mild.

However, this isn’t about our antics and explorations in these cities. Instead, I want to make note of a great service I got to use for the first time on this trip, it’s called Airbnb and it’s sole purpose is to aid you in finding a short term place with a personal touch for your travels.

Airbnb tags itself with the phrase, “Travel like a human.” which is exactly how I felt when I finished my stay at our two homes. The idea is akin to sites like Couchsurfing.org but couch surfing is a bit tougher if you are travelling as a couple.

The first question most people ask is security. Is my money safe? Am I safe? Airbnb comes with a great review and recommendations system that puts some comfort in who you are hosting and who you are being hosted by. Most places come with great descriptions and plenty of pictures. You can contact hosts directly before booking to make sure you’re both in the same ballpark. I felt very confident that my money, and livelyhood were very safe after talking to both my hosts.

After a longer than expected drive to Boston, we got to our temporary home away from home. Our hosts were kind enough to mail us the keys before hand as they were out the day we came, and left us some snacks, tea and a very clean room upon our entrance. Our room was on the top floor, and although it did get pretty cold some nights due to the style of heating in the home, our bedroom stayed warm. When we needed something (some bowls for cereal), they were quick to help us out. The hosts themselves were great to talk to and extremely pleasant. We did not see them much as we were gone most of the days until late, but it was good times otherwise.

We left Boston after a few days and headed towards New York City (for new years and more!). I was excited for our second place to stay at. This one, totally different. A luxury loft, in the heart of Brooklyn. For the price we paid ($80/night), I wasn’t expecting much of a place; I was blown away.

Our morning clock in NYC, Hulio.	Our awesome loft in NYC.

We were greeted by our hosts cat, Hulio, who decided to run out into the hallway as we opened the door. We met our host, Mike later that night, who was extremely kind and a great guy to talk to. He basically made us feel at home. We did our part to keep the place clean, and he did his part in making us feel good about our stay. We were only a 20 minute subway ride from the heart of Manhattan in a nice, family-orientended piece of Brooklyn.

Overall, the major takeaway from my Airbnb experience was:

• I didn’t feel like just another guest. The communication between our hosts, the generosity, and the flexibility made it great. I didn’t have to pay some extra bill to get a few utensils or worry about any cleaning crews. I cleaned up after myself just like I would at home on my own time.

• The cost savings is great. To stay in these larger cities, at a greatly reduced price, and with the convenience of having access to anything your average home would have is great. The less we spent on our housing, the more we were able to spend on fun dinners, museums, and other great things in these cities.

• The people you will get to meet! Our two hosts were so kind and interesting to talk to. Don’t know where to go? I’m sure your hosts, who are local to the city know a few neat local hot spots to check out.

In summary, I highly recommend you try Airbnb for your next trip. I look forward to one day being able to rent out my own room to host travellers from across the country. In the mean time, I’ll keep travelling like a human.

For reference, the two rooms we stayed at are here. If my post didn’t make it clear, I highly recommend them:

• Cozy room in luxury loft
• Davis Square room

Next up, Chicago!