Ask HN: How do you verify if a short-term rental is remote-work-friendly?
The biggest consistent friction? Trying to figure out if a place actually has a real workspace. Hosts often mark “dedicated workspace,” but that could mean:
- a kitchen barstool
- a folding chair at the end of the bed
- or in one case… an ironing board
As a solo traveler who prefers working from the Airbnb itself (vs co-working or cafes), I’ve spent hours scanning listings, zooming into photos, and messaging hosts, just to make sure the chair isn’t plastic and there’s a table I can sit at for 6+ hours.
So I’m curious:
How do you vet this before booking?
Do you stick to hotels? Use other platforms? Any filtering hacks?
What’s the worst or most misleading “workspace” setup you’ve encountered?
Would love to hear your tactics, trying to deeply understand how other remote workers navigate this.
If this is really an issue, just book suite-style hotel rooms instead of random Airbnbs.
Some hosts say “yes” but don’t send a photo. Others show a table… but it’s a wobbly barstool next to the microwave. For people doing full-time remote work, it's a gamble — and the vetting becomes a time suck.
That’s the gap I’m trying to understand: not just if the info exists, but how much effort it takes to extract it reliably.
Also, booking hotels aren't necessarily ideal for longer term stays
I’m curious if there’s space for a thin layer that solves this niche really well.