Airbnb Tokyo, Japan #1: stylin' in our Japanese studio

Ugh...hotels were expensive, hostels were even more expensive it seemed but yet again, Airbnb to the rescue!! Luckily we had our friends Ross and Cheryl with us so finding our own private apartment near Shingawa, only a few metro stops from the famous Shibuya crosswalk, was easy.

For only $120 (including fees) a night, we found Keita's apartment. His cozy place is conveniently located near Gotanda station and a plethora of eateries, stores, a few karaoke bars, etc. And by "cozy" I mean cozyyyy! It was a studio with a bed, futon, small dining table, tiny kitchen and bathroom, and a washing machine. I mean this was Tokyo after all, so we weren't shocked by the size.

The best thing about the apartment was Keita himself! Keita was sweet and beyond friendly, brought us a bag of Japanese snacks and sweets and introduced us to his sweet (sleepy) baby boy.

The apartment may have been small but we fried up noodles and beef each night in the kitchen. And the price was cheaper than any hostel dorm rooms we could find anywhere in Tokyo. 

You can't beat it! Listing is here. Thanks Keita :).

Airbnb Bali, Indonesia: our very luxurious villa

We may have had our tiniest Airbnb ever a few weeks ago in Hong Kong, but during our 6-month backpacking trip we also had our most beautiful Airbnb to-date in Bali, Indonesia.

Way back in early December we decided to stray a bit from our backpacker budget and splurge on a 6 day honeymoon escape. We wanted a place we could lounge around all day, swim, layout, and repeat.

However, the hardest part of the entire experience was choosing our Balinese Airbnb. There were tons to choose from. And finally we found it: Villa Ruku Ruku.

Villa Ruku Ruku was beyond beautiful and the perfect honeymoon retreat. The villa had two master bedrooms and bathrooms, a private pool, open kitchen, a maid that visited the house each morning and a view over the rice fields.

Benjamin met us at the villa, mixed up some fresh watermelon juice and gave us the keys to our place. At the same time I was able to arrange a masseuse to visit the house later in the week for an onsite massage ;). And we arranged a private van driver to give us a 10-hour tour of Ubud in central Bali. The fact that it rained a couple days during our time in Bali was fine by us too...tropical rain meant it was still hot enough to swim. It also didn't hurt that everywhere in Seminyak delivers so we had dinner at the villa each night.

There are SO MANY beautiful Airbnb's in Bali and Villa Ruku Ruku did not disappoint...happy hunting :).

*In case you missed it: Airbnb in Hong Kong*

{Warm rain!}

Airbnb Hong Kong - our tiniest one to date

Hong Kong is expensive...especially in comparison to our 6 month backpacker budget. Gone were the days of $18 beach bungalows in Thailand and we were looking at paying a good $25 (EACH!) for a dorm room with 10 beds....ugh.

Well...Airbnb to the rescue!! I was stoked to find this private room in an apartment in Mong Kok, a local area of Kowloon, right off of Ladies' Market. 

At only $40 per night, it was a steal! The location was perfect--we could get anywhere we wanted in Hong Kong super easily especially since the metro was literally 30 seconds away.

We found a dumpling restaurant down the street where we happily visited each day for breakfast/lunch each day.

The hilarious part was that this private room was tiny...I mean really tiny. But what should we expect? Some neighborhoods in Hong Kong are the most densely populated IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. 

The other hilarious part was that the granny of the family slept in the hallway. So each night we arrived back home, granny was sleeping nearby ;).

This was a great place to stay for a few days. Would we stay for longer than that? Probably not. But hey we only paid $40 per night for a place to sleep and that's all we were after.

Perhaps on our next trip to Hong Kong, we will up the budget to have our own private apartment overlooking the harbor...kinda like this one ;).

Introducing: The Airbnb Around the World series

It was nearly 3 long years ago that I took the plunge...my first Airbnb experience.

We were headed to New York City. Bed bugs were running rampant in the hotels. Hostels were so expensive...even the 10 bed dorm rooms. It was summer in the city and we wanted a neat place. What to do, what to do.

We had heard of this great San Francisco based startup company before. A website where you can rent out your apartment to fellow travelers. Or maybe a spare bedroom. Or even a couch.

Would it be...weird to stay in someone's place? I mean what if they are sleeping there at the same time? Looking back at our travel experiences, our favorite moments were always when locals were involved: showed us around, chatted with us, dined with us, hung out with us.

Then we got to thinking about how cool it would be to stay in an apartment during our trip to NYC. We put it together and voila! Soon I had signed up for Airbnb, created my profile and bid on our first Airbnb: a room in a German guy's apartment a stone's throw from Central Park. At only $60 per night, it was a steal. And as fate would have it he accepted us!!

Right around the corner from the subway, a short stroll to the Museum of Natural History and a couple blocks away from the world's best garlic bagels with garlic cream cheese (Absolute Bagel, I love you). Our Airbnb host was Claudio. His spotless apartment had stripes on the wall, a/c, our own set of keys so we could come and go when we please and a random picture of Audrey Hepburn here and there.

We were hooked then and there. Ever since our first ever Airbnb experience, we have vowed to always use Airbnb whenever possible. Since that wonderful trip, we have put quite a few Airbnb experiences under our belts: a small studio in a canalhouse in Amsterdam, a cute apartment in Lisbon's old quarter, two apartments in Iceland and most recently a honeymoon villa in Bali and a teeny, tiny room in Hong Kong.

I absolutely love the Airbnb concept. And it's not just the concept I love...

1. The apartments/houses can be cool...some are really, really cool. A SF apartment with a skeeball and arcade game inside? Treehouses in the Pacific Northwest? Castles in Ireland? Houseboats in Amsterdam? Beach cottages in Venice Beach? Villas in Bali, Italy or France? Airbnb even throws together their very own themed wish lists! Like 'glamping' (luxury camping), surfer retreats, the best ski chalets, and the list goes on and on.

2. Airbnb is often cheaper than hotels (and hostels!). We saved atleast $100 per night (in a nice place) by staying in a New Yorker's Airbnb.

3. Local perspective and some great hospitality! One of our Airbnb hosts in Iceland provided breakfast for us. Another host left us a bottle of wine if we could change the sheets for the next Airbnb-er. Some leave maps and restaurant suggestions. Airbnb even offers Neighborhood Guides for the World's biggest and well-known cities.

4. While you can rent a private room or a shared room, you can also rent the entire house/apartment. Staying somewhere long-term? Enjoy the convenience of your own kitchen and a nice little home away from home.

I could go on and on and I cannot recommend Airbnb high enough. Not to mention, after you've used Airbnb a few times, they will send you Airbnb coupons to discount your next stay (I got one for $25!).

I've decided to share our Airbnb experiences we love so much and start a small series on the blog: Airbnb Around the World.

I'll kick off my first post soon but here's a small ode to our previous trips with Airbnb!

*Thanks Claudio! Love your Central Park apartment and stripes on the walls...thanks for being our first Airbnb!*

*Our Lisbon, Portugal, apartment was the perfect location for those late night wanderings around the old town and summer Portuguese street parties.*

*Our stays in Akureyri and Reykjavik were the perfect-sized apartments for our Icelandic roadtrippin' foursome.*

I can only hope that these experiences will encourage any fellow travelers out there to give Airbnb a try, you won't regret it! Here's how to get started.

Any fellow Airbnb-ers out there? Where'd you stay? How did you like your experience?