Airbnb £100-a-night ‘cottage’ in Amsterdam turns out to be shipping container
The ‘clean home with a private bathroom’ turned out to be mattresses on the floor and a portable toilet
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.An Airbnb property advertised as a “cottage” in Amsterdam turned out to be a shipping container with mattresses on the floor.
British tourist Ben Speller had booked the listing, which cost around £100 a night, for a stay in the Netherlands last week.
He booked the property, described as a “clean home in Amsterdam with a private bathroom”, as a base during his trip to watch Tottenham Hotspur’s football match against a local team, Ajax.
However, after heading to Pauwenpad, southeast of the city centre, he said he and his friends drove past the shipping container three times before realising it must be the property they’d booked.
“We thought, ‘This can’t be it,’” he told Dutch site AT5. “But when we got out it turned out that it was true.”
Speller said he rechecked the Airbnb listing, which he claimed had been changed since booking to say “container home” instead of “cottage”.
Upon opening the shipping container on the side of the road and discovering three mattresses on the floor and a portable toilet inside, they immediately locked it and left.
They booked a hotel instead, racking up a further bill of £230.
Speller was denied a refund from the person who listed the property, named only as “Jacob” on the site, but Airbnb has since reimbursed him the full £330.
A spokesperson for the home sharing site told The Independent: “We have removed the host and listings from our platform. Misrepresented or fraudulent listings have no place on our platform, and our team works hard to constantly strengthen our defences and stay ahead of bad actors.”
AT5 reported that the container had been plonked on the roadside without a permit.
It has since been towed by city contractors; attempts to locate the owner have so far been unsuccessful.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments