AirBnB is the home to some of the most astounding and affordable rentals on the planet. Nowhere else can you visit Paris, Milan, Hong Kong, and New York City for so little cash. Even the worst fleabag motel will run you more than the beautiful rooms you’ll find on the website. It’s honestly the only way to travel, whatever your style or needs. However, there’s a side to AirBnB that’s hidden beneath the glitz and glamour, with a few unusual real estate owners putting up some real oddities that will surely entice those who prefer to add bizarre and unusual to their accommodation plans.
For all you jet-setters who want things that go off the beaten path, and sometimes into the downright macabre, we located the 18 weirdest AirBnB rentals from around the world; and into the Twilight Zone.
Irish Castle – Galway, Ireland
Restored to original specifications but also bearing plenty of contemporary technology, you’ll be resting easy in the master bedroom, high in the parapets where you can look out over your fiefdom, and the peasants who toil below.
French Gypsy Wagon – Burgundy
Keeping things as minimal as possible, there’s medieval charm to spare with a view of the glorious French countryside near a quaint and archaic village. Two people can try this out if they’re thinking about living the caravan life, or drive a couple hours to visit the City of Lights, Paris.
Converted School Bus – Salinas, CA
Though you will have to endure a little time on the short bus, it’s well worth it to rest on the Tempurpedic bed and enjoy the fine acreage that this sits on, beneath the clear night sky. Additional amenities include a little sun salutation yoga complete with gong to get your Chakras aligned.
$50/Night
Seashell House – Cancun, Mexico
The impressive home rests right beside the owners and architects, who lavish their guests with personal attention or privacy, depending on your preferences. A private pool comes as part of the package along with air conditioning that fights off the Mexican heat.
$308/Night
Dog Bark Inn – Cottonwood, ID
As dog-friendly as a place can get, you’ll sleep and eat inside this larger-than-life beagle, with innumerable canine-themed accoutrements. It will fit a whole family, including whatever four-legged children you happen to have.
$98/Night
Amsterdam Windmill – Utrecht, Netherlands
A pair of bikes and room for six, you can enjoy the run of the entire place, and even do some light jousting should you feel like touching your inner Don Quixote. A short trip will put you right in Amsterdam for all the wonderful, sinful, and intoxicating elements the city has to offer.
Mirrored House – Pittsburgh, PA
A surrealist dream rental, this AirBnB offering is for those who seek to sleep in unusual surroundings. Mirrors adorn nearly every surface, giving you a prismatic view of the world that will undoubtedly affect your dreams, and challenge your perceptions during your waking hours.
$165/Night
Gingerbread House – Geyserville, CA
Sculpted lights by Miguel Elliott help complete the utterly fanciful feel of this house, capable of sleeping 3 comfortably. An exterior wood fire and a copse of trees provide a rustic sensibility, while a nearby pool, hot tub, and sauna offer modern comforts above and beyond the norm.
Bird Island – Belize
Those who are part fish – or just need to get as far away from it all as possible – will be able to rest easy on this airy private island sitting atop an atoll right on the sea. Snorkeling, swimming, and reef exploration all sit as close as the front door, without a neighbor for nautical miles.
Rotterdam Cube House – Netherlands
A triple-story home in the heart of Rotterdam, this fully outfitted home proves it’s hip to be square. The eye-catching architecture is nothing compared with the pampering interior that uses space to maximum effect, acting as three-dimensional, cubist art.
$159/Night
Casa Arbol Treehouse – Nicaragua
Placing you over the canopy of the nearby forest, the Casa Arbol is situated right near a massive private wildlife reserve. When you weary of the striking sunrises and breathtaking sunsets, you need only look to the forest to find exotic creatures both great and small.
Shipping Container Home – Balearic Islands, Spain
Located on the village rooftops, this is living proof of what a couple of shipping containers can do with a little ingenuity and the right contractor. A small pool and barbecue creates a festive environment that complements the classy woodworking and unusual design of this tiny, two-storied paradise.
Royal Train Carriage – New South Wales, Australia
Anyone with a fixation for ferroequinology will find this to be Eden in locomotive form. Made wholly out of a decommissioned railway car formerly meant for those with the bluest of bloods, as much of the original interior has been saved as humanly, and safely possible.
$123/Night
House Boat – Marina del Rey, CA
Though the houseboat craze has mostly disappeared from the public eye, you can book your own private yacht, grounded in California just a single block from the beach. It’s one-percent-level living without the hassle of actually needing to know what a boom does or any fancy nautical knots.
$190/Night
St. Pancras Clocktower – London
At the zenith of the Sir George Gilbert Scott gothic revival hotel, this is a single bedroom suite with complete kitchen and sitting room. Made to preserve and celebrate this historic landmark from the 1860’s, it’s heaven for history buffs. ~$226/Night
Sugarloaf Point Lighthouse – New South Wales, Australia
Though most lighthouses require you be a caretaker to stay in them, AirBnB is fortunate enough to offer guests the ability to enjoy beachfront life on the Australian coast inside one of the iconic marvels of safety and technology. $298/Night
Nakagin Capsule Tower – Japan
The Japanese had a period after the second world war that showed their ingenuity, parsimony, and talent for making the best of a bad situation. You won’t be able to sleep at the famous Capsule Tower, but will be allowed to visit as much as you please, with the actual resting done a couple of blocks down the street in a respectable apartment. $143/Night
The Boot – Tasman, New Zealand
Like the Gingerbread House, The Boot is a nursery rhyme brought to life. Thankfully this doesn’t come with an old woman and her bevy of children. Instead it’s quaint and cozy inside, perfect for honeymoons, with furnishings that give it a distinctily Through the Looking Glass appeal. $214/Night
