Airbnb guests 'terrified' after host brands them 'peasants' in foul-mouthed Donald Trump rant
When most of us plan a holiday, a lot of time goes into choosing where to rest your head for the duration of the stay.
Whether it's a hotel or a rental apartment, travellers just want a relaxing spot they can come back to after a long day of exploring or soaking up some sun on the beach.
But two friends were left utterly horrified after a foul-mouthed, and frankly bizarre, Donald Trump rant from their host.
Shy Watson, 33 and pal Andressa travelled to Serbia, where they'd picked out a one-bed Airbnb - with an impressive 4.97 review rating - in the capital city, Belgrade.
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And while the trip itself was a success, what followed left a very bitter taste in their mouths, with Airbnb now launching an investigation into the host and his abusive messages.
As usual, Shy, from Los Angeles and Andressa gained access to the property via a key from a lockbox, which was pre-arranged.
The issues then arose when checking out of the property on 19 July due to an honest mishap.
In a now-deleted post shared to X, Shy told LADbible how she had raised a complaint with Airbnb following a tirade of abuse she received from the host after leaving the property and dropping off the keys, in which she was called a 'peasant' and 'pathetic' along with other slurs.
The messages from the host indicated the key was to be dropped off in a box that had a specified word on it, but Shy then claimed none of them featured the word, and so she put the key back in the same box she had originally picked it up from, prompting an utterly furious response from the host.
At first, he insulted her and said: "You were supposed to return it (the key) to the same place you took it from. Was that so hard? I have no problem with you giving me a score of -10, just don't be silly and pretend, it's ridiculous."
In an endless stream of direct messages within the Airbnb app, he continued: "I have a lot to say about you, especially about your intelligence. As far as I'm concerned if you come back to Belgrade, you won't be staying in my apartment. We don't accept petty bourgeois. Peasants."
But it didn't end there, with further messages reading: "Your the first poor souls to do something like this, which is not surprising considering where you're from. F*** off."
The conversation then took an even more unexpected turn when the host began ranting about the United States and Donald Trump, claiming Americans are 'too stupid as a nation' and warning her 'you will perish'.
"Since you're from the most primitive country on the planet, it makes sense that you don't respond. Unfortunately, you think you are above everyone.
"If I were to write to you that you a bunch of s**t and that your country has not even existed for 500 years... you would not understand. Because your lack of intelligence prevents you from doing so.
"The Roman Empire and many others have collapsed and you peasants are not even aware of how quickly you will collapse. First of all, because most people are as stupid as you. Led by that idiot of a president of yours. I hope you never come to this beautiful country again. You are peasants. Poor and miserable peasants. F**k you."
He added: "We don't want even want those peasants from the US to come to us led by that yellow-headed, intellectually-limited, psychopath."
"I was terrified"
Speaking to LADbible about the bizarre ordeal, Shy said she didn't reply to the messages from the host until sending one last final message, which read: "That is the mailbox we took it from."
She went on to report the incident directly to Airbnb, which has now confirmed it is investigating. The host went on to un-send the messages before apologising.
Shy said: "Airbnb eventually did refund me and they sent a $200 credit for future travel, but it took a lot of hounding to get it.
"They just kept sending me basic emails until I sent several messages in a row and they haven't informed me about what they are going to do with the host.
"I have no clue if they will ban, suspend, or even punish him. I was so shocked and it terrified me, honestly. I got super rattled from the whole experience, especially as a woman traveling only with another woman in a country we had never been to. No one had ever spoken to me like that in my life."
Screenshots showed how the messages had later been deleted by the host, who simply said: "I'm sorry. I had a tough day. Please don't hold it against me. I guess it happens to everyone."
"He eventually sent a weird apology after un-sending his messages, to which I never replied" Shy continued. "It's crazy. I don't like America either but Jesus Christ! I hadn't had anything like that before. If they don't ban him then I genuinely worry for the safety of future Airbnb'ers."
Airbnb response to complaint
Airbnb has since confirmed it is investigating the incident. LADbible was told the company had reached out to Shy to offer a refund and monetary goodwill voucher due to the inconvenience. A spokesperson said: “We are aware of this matter and our investigation is ongoing.
"We take all reports of discrimination extremely seriously and in accordance with our Nondiscrimination Policy, take action against users who are found to have violated our policy, including removal from the platform where necessary. We have issued the guest with a full refund for this reservation.”
According to the booking website, people using Airbnb must abide by their nondiscrimination policy, which requires users to 'treat each other with respect regardless of their background, religion, nationality, ethnicity, disability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or age.'
When users violate the policy, they can face being removed. The firm also said it provides 'personalised support' to help find users an alternative place to stay if they feel they have been discriminated against.
Topics: Airbnb, Travel, US News, World News
James Holt