We've kept the feeling of being at home anywhere. We had this vision: what if you could book someone's home the way you could book a hotel anywhere in the world? And that's what we have today. That's creepy'. But the other reason is that they didn't think a designer could build and run a company." Designer Tom Dixon's converted water tower in west London can also be booked via AirbnbĬhesky explained to Dezeen how the company won over the doubters and built a global business where "everything we do is design driven".īrian Chesky: Airbnb is a new way to travel and experience the world. People thought: 'I'd never stay in a stranger's home. "One of the reasons was they thought the idea was crazy. "When we came to the Valley, no one even wanted to invest in Airbnb," he says. Another Airbnb elite property: a loft near Old Street, London Silicon Valley didn't take the company seriously at first, partly since it was headed by designers rather than engineers - and partly because nobody thought anyone would pay to stay in someone else's home. "From that weekend it's grown to where we are today, which is 252,000 people every night staying at Airbnb at peak." "We called it the Air Bed and Breakfast," he says. The Clock Tower apartment is inside Sir George Gilbert Scott's recently converted 1868 gothic revival hotel at St Pancras The duo had the idea for a site that would allow travellers to stay in ordinary homes instead of hotels when, short of money to pay the rent on their San Francisco apartment, they bought a couple of inflatable air beds and rented them out to attendees of a design conference in the city. "We've kept the feeling of being at home anywhere." Inside the Clock Tower apartment, one of Airbnb's "elite" properties "I think this really sums up the wonderful authentic feeling you get when you're travelling," said Chesky, who founded the company with fellow Rhode Island School of Design graduate Joe Gebbia in 2008. The Clock Tower at St Pancras Chambers can be rented via Airbnb Guests share the property with its owner, Peter Tompkins, who rents rooms through Airbnb for just £150 per night (although it gets booked up months ahead). The venue, The Clock Tower apartment (main image) in Sir George Gilbert Scott's 1868 gothic revival hotel at St Pancras, is one of Airbnb's elite rental properties.
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