Airbnb customer says Melbourne listing was canceled days before Taylor Swift concert, with owner then doubling the price
Airbnb customers paying big bucks on accommodation for Taylor Swift’s concerts in Australia say their bookings have been cancelled days before her run of shows — only for the same rooms to be listed at much higher prices.
The fans claim they’ve now been hung out to dry, and left to find alternative accommodation at the eleventh hour, with most places in Melbourne almost completely booked out.
“I was lucky enough to book an Airbnb until she days ago he let me know he had to cancel it as he had emergency renovation,” disgruntled Airbnb customer Lily told “The Project” on Thursday night.
“I questioned him. I said, ‘That sounds like something you would have known prior to three days before my stay.’”
“There was a language barrier. He couldn’t really give me an answer. I asked him when I’d get my refund. He couldn’t tell me what was going on.”
“I said could you provide me with some evidence? He couldn’t do that. I said I’m going to take this up with Airbnb. I paid around $590 for my four-night stay in Brunswick.”
But then, Lily claims, she checked the app again and found the same property listed for $1,300 — for the same dates she had originally booked.
Lily said Airbnb gave her a $30 credit in compensation which “might get me a hostel”.
Swift’s flight to Australia landed in Melbourne early on Thursday.
The flight, originating in Honolulu, Hawaii and designated VJT993, touched down at 12:50am, local time.
The pop star travelled in a Bombardier Global 6000, a luxurious private jet with a maximum range of 6000 nautical miles, and a capacity of just 17 passengers.
Swift has about two days to get over her jet lag before taking the stage for her first concert in Australia since 2018.
Her lavish life full of international travel via private jet has attracted criticism in recent months, with a litany of memes flooding the internet.
She flew 5,530 miles from Tokyo to Vegas before flying almost 1,900 miles to Melbourne just last week.
In that time, Taylor produced near 300 pounds of CO2 just visiting her boyfriend, outputting roughly nine times more than the average Australian will emit this year.
Swift’s travel schedule is hectic enough at the best of times, but has been particularly frantic in the last week, with her rushing back to the United States from Tokyo over the weekend to watch her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, play in the Super Bowl.
Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in overtime, claiming back-to-back titles, while Swift and her star-studded crew watched from the stands.
Her tour is expected to inject hundreds of millions of dollars into the Australian economy, with more than 600,000 tickets sold.
