Air BnB Miami Beach Vacation Rental

My first vacation rental experience could have been my last.

With a few days to spend in Miami Beach for an annual cruise industry event, an Air BnB seemed to be the least expensive and most convenient option. After a hour’s online search, I found a place that was within my budget, near a taxi stand and I could buy a street parking permit for $20 for the three days. I chose a one-bedroom Miami Beach vacation rental in what I thought was a fully-occupied and renovated two-story condo complex.

The place certainly was once an off-beach motel in the 50’s and 60’s. When I arrived, remodeling was in full swing. All contemporary glass fronts, the complex looked more like storefronts than apartments. While the pool was clean, it wasn’t conducive to use due to all the construction going on around it. Turns out it wouldn’t matter because it looked like there was no one living there!

While the host made sure that the interior was clean and a bottle of wine awaited me, the washing machine was full of wet towels and linens. Luckily, I had brought my own sheets, pillows, towels and blankets.

At night, this place was deserted. Of the three condos, one had people coming and going all night long. Because the bedroom in my unit was like a concrete bunker, I slept every night on the couch in the living room area. Without light-proof window coverings on the full-length glass windows and door, there wasn’t much darkness for sleeping.

The Canadian condo owner was very nice to deal with and very helpful about the parking permit. Maybe it was his age, late 20’s or early 30’s, that this rental experience turned out the way it did. If I was young, traveling with a friend or two and looking for a Miami Beach vacation rental to crash after a night of extreme partying on South Beach or a day baking at the beach, it would be perfect. For a middle-aged, solo woman renter, it wasn’t the best option.

Will I try an Air BnB again? Probably. But I’ll know more the next time and study and analyze the photos a lot better.

Read my top tips and advice for any condo vacation rental.

Here’s the review of my Air BnB condo rental in Southampton.