Airbnb, a company that facilitates travel accommodation agreements between private property owners and visitors, introduced a new rule that restrains hosts from making their guests perform too many household chores before they leave.
However, Airbnb guests have for years complained that, on top of being forced to carry out onerous household chores while on vacation, many Airbnb property hosts charge extravagant cleaning fees.
Meanwhile, many Airbnb hosts lashed out against the updated rule, pointing out that Airbnb guests could stay at hotels or agree to higher fees if they did not want to do a few light cleaning tasks after their stay. The update has sparked a social media frenzy. Many guests reacted with relief, recounting anecdotes of being forced to do laundry and wash dishes while on holiday—on top of paying a cleaning fee. For their part, a number of guests argued that Airbnb prices were almost on par with hotel booking fees—and also required the guest to work while on holiday. Other users pointed out that requiring guests to tidy up as a checkout requirement should not replace professional cleaning or home maintenance services between guests.
