24 Hours in Berlin

Getting to know the Grey City in a jiffy.

Brandenburg Gate. Wolfgang Staudt. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Berlin is a gritty city, and one whose food, architecture, monuments and culture can only be explained through its grave past. The German capital is a historic center of Europe as the nerve center of Nazi Germany in World War II, the greatest symbol of the Cold War’s infamous Iron Curtain and the prime city to see grand Prussian architecture. While many German institutions like monuments, transportation and active government buildings paint a picture of this historical influence, the picture of Berlin would be left incomplete without mentioning its spirited present. 

In between landmarks like the Reichstag, Germany’s Parliament building, the famous Brandenburg Gate, the remains of the Berlin wall and Prussian palaces lies an amalgamation of diverse restaurants with owners from every corner of the world, a bustling nightlife of clubs and bars, a thriving local music scene and a fashion-forward community. 

Berlin is an urban city through and through; its streets and unassuming apartment buildings (sprinkled between colorful modern architecture) comparable to those of Istanbul with an artistic, stylish flair reminiscent of New York. Live through a bit of history and a bit of present with me as I spend a day in Berlin:

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We’re out and about today, but refuse to approach our day on an empty stomach, so we head to a local breakfast place, Erchy’s. Other days we have feasted on the cinnamony pastries of a staple German breakfast cafe, Zeit fur Brot, and even some German-made cheeses bought from German grocery store REWE when we really wanted to masquerade as Berliners. But today is Erchy’s. Their food will fuel the traveling to be done.

Swans in the palace gardens of Charlottenburg. Su Ertekin-Taner.

Graffiti near the S-bahn. Su Ertekin-Taner.

Lily pads in the palace gardens of Charlottenburg. Su Ertekin-Taner.

Charlottenberg. Rfunnell. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Graffiti in Berlin. Mitch Altman. CC BY-SA 2.0

We immerse ourselves in Berlin’s public transportation system after food. We use the U-bahn, the German metro, and then the S-bahn, Berlin’s fastest form of transportation to get to today’s location. At times using Berlin’s transportation reveals more about the divide of Berlin via the Berlin wall than any museum could, I think.

Altogether, the journey takes about 45 minutes from the center of East Germany. As we travel, the underground tunnels melt into cloudy skies that overlook old beige buildings decorated completely with graffiti. Berlin’s graffiti scene is one of the most vibrant in the world due to the rise of a countercultural voice during the Cold War and the Berlin Wall days. Graffiti galleries, exhibits, and alleys like the East Side Gallery, Cafe Cinema and Raw Gelande are staples of the Berlin community. As I wander through my thoughts, I sense the train stop. The trek has been made and so, we expect to be met with a reward.

The Charlottenburg Palace more than qualifies as a reward. This Baroque palace was originally constructed on behalf of Friedrich III’s (later King Friedrich I) wife Sophie Charlotte, hence the name. The interior of the palace is richly decorated, representing the height of Prussian high culture: porcelain from the royal porcelain providers KPM lines the walls, mantels are decorated with an East Asian-inspired blue and a ballroom fit with large windows divides the palace in two and overlooks the gate. The signs that guide us through the palace also note, however, the racist portrayal of Middle Eastern and East Asian figures throughout the palace’s art; the Prussian monarchy hoped to assert its dominance in every corner.

Behind the palace, we escape into nature, or a manufactured sort of nature: the Charlottenburg Palace Gardens, inspired by those of Versailles. We walk near rivers of lily pads, greet some sheep tended by palace attendants, swans and even some bike riders; the access to this park is free.

Chicken gemuse kebab at Ruyam. Su Ertekin-Taner.

Doner kebab. Addison Berry. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

By the late afternoon, we have ambled back near the center of East Berlin. We decided on chicken gemuse doner at Ruyam Doner, which offers the best doner kebab in Berlin, though we did consider a meal at one of the many Vietnamese restaurants — established by the large Vietnamese community —in the area. The line spills out of the restaurant and into the street; everyone is craving some of this chicken gemuse. But the line quickly shortens until we are ordering our kebab of moist chicken, a spicy blend of sauces, and slightly heated bread. 

Turks are the largest ethnic minority group in Germany and often occupy entire neighborhoods like Keuzberg. Many Turks immigrate to Germany for work and stay, or accompany family members who have already migrated. As a Turk, I feel lucky to taste a part of my culture on the streets of Berlin.

A biergarten in Elisabethmarkt. digital cat. CC BY 2.0

We end our day with a biergarten, or beer garden experience. A biergarten usually consists of an open air bar filled with long tables of merry drinkers and well, their drinks; the biergarten is integral to the German citizen and open-air lover. 

We encounter fewer merry drinkers than we plan to, but still sit alongside friends talking and a couple laughing. I have a feeling we’ve arrived in the belly of Berlin, especially as more Berliners gather round, huddle up, and grab some warming alcohol during this chilly summer. 

For travelers hoping to find a warm community with a common motivation–tasting the richness of German beer–a biergarten might fulfill your needs.

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While my day quickly ended after my biergarten experience, no two 24 hours in Berlin can be alike, so here are some more options for day adventures to quench your traveling thirst.

Reichstag building. Jurgen Matern. CC BY-SA 3.0

Monuments

Reichstag: The Reichstag, the Parliament building of Germany, actively houses Parliament meetings throughout the year, and somewhat unusually, also allows visitors year round. Attending a tour of the Reichstag means sitting in the German Parliament’s main chamber, observing interior corridors with Russian graffiti completed after the Russian capture of the building in the Battle of Berlin and receiving an oral history from World War II on.

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe: This Holocaust Memorial, designed by New York architect Peter Eisenman, consists of 2711 concrete blocks of varying heights laid out in a rectangular city block. Visitors might note that the blocks increase in height as they approach the middle of the monument; many speculate that this effect reflects the rising fear and agony of the Jewish community throughout World War II. 

Brandenburg Gate: While this neoclassical gate was originally constructed in the 18th century, much of its history lies in the coming centuries. The Quadriga statue of horses perched on the top of the gate, for example, tells a history of Napoleon’s acquisition of Berlin. Napoleon transported the statue out of Berlin to reflect his victory over the Germans. The Brandenburg Gate also symbolizes the division between East and West Berlin during the Cold War, as the Wall was constructed within a couple meters of the gate.

World Clock at Alexanderplatz. Berthold Werner. CC BY-SA 3.0

Berlin TV Tower. A_Peach. CC BY 2.0

Public Squares

Alexanderplatz: This public square named after Russia’s Tsar Alexander I is a commercial and transportation center that houses malls, public art and even live events like concerts. Visit the world-famous World Clock that tells the time of countries around the world, watch a stark yellow tram pass by through crowded streets, or even spot the Berlin TV Tower from afar.

Potsdamer Platz: Potsdamer Platz, located about a mile from the Brandenburg Gate, contains much of the city’s culture. Find the Sony Center dome housing an international cinema, restaurants, offices, museums and the center of underground transportation here —all constructed after the destruction of the public square during World War II.

Museums

Ishtar Gate in the Pergamon Museum. Rictor Norton and David Allen. CC BY 2.0

Pergamon Museum: The Pergamon is one of the museums located on Berlin’s “Museum Island.” The building boasts its collection of classical antiquities from Middle Eastern civilizations and Islamic cultures. The most famous exhibits include the Market Gate of Miletus, the Ishtar Gate that opened up to the processional way to the eponymous capital of the Babylonian Empire and the Aleppo room featuring paneling with images of both the Islamic and Christian faith. 

Topography of Terror: Such a historical city requires a history-based museum. The museum itself is located on a plot that once housed administrative buildings of the Nazi Party, like the headquarters of the SS and the Gestapo. The one-floor museum uses exhibition panels (supported by historical documents and quotes) to guide visitors through the rise and eventual fall of the Nazi Party.

Other

Brandenburg Gate. Dennis Jarvis. CC BY-SA 2.0

Historical Walking Tour: A city with such plentiful history necessitates a historical walking tour. Sightseeing walking tours take visitors through World War II and Cold War monuments like the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe and the demarcation of the Berlin Wall, respectively, as well as some of Berlin’s must-see sights like the Brandenburg Gate and even the Reichstag.

Cuisine

A dish from Madami. George M. Groutas. CC BY 2.0

German cuisine: While much of German food pays its cultural respect to other international cuisines, some German dishes are uniquely synonymous with German culture. Sausages accompanied by sauerkraut or potato salad, rouladen, beef-wrapped bacon, onions, mustard, and pickles and sauerbraten — a German pot roast — all grace the menus of German restaurants. Try restaurants Schwarzwaldstuben in Mitte, Max and Moritz in Kreuzberg, and Clarchens Ballhaus also in Mitte for a taste of Germany.

Vietnamese cuisine: Due to the influx of Vietnamese immigrants —many of whom were temporary contract workers — into East Berlin during the Cold War, the city offers much authentic Vietnamese food. Some high-rated restaurants include Madami located on Rosa Luxemburg Street, Monsieur Vuong on Alte Schonhauser Street, and Maison Umami on Schlesische Street.

Turkish cuisine: Much like the Vietnamese, a Turkish community slowly immigrated to Germany for work and stayed to build institutions that reflect their culture, like the Turkish restaurant. Doner, lahmacun (the Turkish Pizza) and borek (a salty Turkish pastry) proliferate in Berlin. Some high-rated restaurants include Hasir in Kreuzberg, Adana Grillhaus on Manteuffel Street, and Osmans Tochter near Helmholtz Platz.

Nightlife

Clubs: The Berlin party scene is second-to-none. Berlin’s clubs are perfect for those craving a new eccentric song to add to their playlist or a place to wow their friends for a night. Room 4 Resistance’s playlists of tunes with genres ranging from contemporary pop to industrial techno attract a diverse group of music lovers. For those music lovers who prefer to stick to a genre or two, Weeeirdos’ techno sets and Hoe_Mies’s R&B and trap music might be a perfect fit.

Biergarten: Outdoor lovers might prefer the biergarten, or beer garden, night experience. Under a dusk sky, between clumsily strung up lights, lies a comforting community of German beer lovers gathering around wooden benches and tables and self-serving the ale. Try the Prater Beer Garden, Schleusenkrug, and Golgatha Beer Garden for some biergarten action.

Bars: Whether you desire a cocktail or a dance floor for the night, a Berlin bar or two will satisfy your appetite. When in the party capital of Europe, you must do as partiers do, and partiers love to gather on these alcohol-washed oases. Gay bar Model Olfe, aesthetic Victorian-inspired bar Geist im Glas and the traditional Bar 3 are all excellent alternatives for a night of drinking and dancing.

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Su Ertekin-Taner

Su Ertekin-Taner is a first year student at Columbia University majoring in creative writing. Her love for the power of words and her connection to her Turkish roots spills into her satire, flash fiction, and journalistic pieces among other genres. Su hopes to continue writing fearless journalism, untold stories, and prose inspired by her surroundings.

Discover These 8 Gay Villages from Around the World

Gay villages, or “gayborhoods,” are neigbhorhoods within cities that provide safe spaces for LGBTQ+ people to express themselves openly and form communities. Many gay villages feature bars and restaurants, vibrant nightlife and boundless queer history. Wherever one may find themselves, there is likely a gay village just around the corner waiting to be discovered. Here are eight gay villages from across the world. 

1. Shinjuku Ni-chome, Tokyo

Buildings and neon lights in Tokyo’s Shinjuku ward. Andy Miller. Unsplash

In the heart of Shinjuku ward in Tokyo, between modern skyscrapers and dazzling neon-lit billboards, hides one of Asia’s most vibrant gay villages. Shinjuku Ni-chome, shortened to just Ni-chome, has the highest concentration of gay bars in the world. Ni-chome was once Tokyo’s red-light district, but when prostitution became illegal in Japan in 1956 it became Tokyo’s gay village. In a city known for its nightlife, Ni-chome is home to fusion restaurants and nightclubs open late into the night. Many of Ni-chome’s gay bars are small and personal, fostering their own tight-knit community within the city. Ni-chome was the location of Japan’s first gay pride parade in 1994, and is where the country’s first permanent LGBTQ+ center opened in 2020. 

2. Oxford Street, Sydney 

A brightly colored building near Taylor Square, Sydney. Ted McGrath. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Located in the Darlinghurst neighborhood of Sydney, Oxford Street is known for its nightlife, shopping and dining venues. It is also the heart of Sydney’s LGBTQ+ community, playing host to the annual Syndey Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Unlike other Pride events, which usually occur around June, Mardi Gras is held in March, drawing over half a million attendees. The first Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras was held in 1978. The organizers of the event were arrested and outed by the police, which garnered national attention. The next year in 1979, another event was held to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York City, as well as to bring attention to the events of the previous year. Every year since then, queer Australians have gathered along the western end of Oxford Street to socialize, party and remind Australia and the world that they will not be silenced.  

3.  Chueca, Madrid 

Pride flags hang over a crowded street in Chueca, Madrid. Ted Eytan. CC BY-SA 2.0

Chueca is a timeless neighborhood in an already historic city. Located in the heart of Madrid, this gay village is defined by its lively crowds as much as by its many cafes and boutiques. Chueca’s annual gay pride event, known as Madrid Pride, is the largest in Europe with an average crowd of over 2 million people each year. The neighborhood also hosted WorldPride Madrid 2017, an international Pride event that promotes LGBTQ+ issues globally. WorldPride 2017 was one of the largest Pride events in history, attracting an estimated 3.5 million attendees. Chueca has more to offer than just shops and festivals. For those with a love for romance and history, one can visit the Church of San Anton, where visitors will find the bones of St. Valentine himself. 

4. Buenos Aires, Argentina

Colorful buildings in Caminito, Buenos Aires. Barbara Zandoval. Unsplash

Unlike other major cities, Buenos Aires lacks a specific gay village. However, this doesn’t mean that Buenos Aires isn’t a gay-friendly city, or that there isn’t a queer community in the Argentine capital. Rather, LGBTQ+ travelers will find pockets across the city’s many barrios that cater to gay and straight patrons alike. San Telmo, Bueno Aires’ oldest barrio, is known for its historic streets and contemporary art installations. In the city’s largest barrio, Palermo, one can find both stunning botanical gardens and the city’s largest collection of gay bars and clubs. The belle epoque buildings of Barrio Norte can instantly transport travelers to the streets of Paris. None of these neighborhoods are explicitly Buenos Aires’ gay village. Rather, visitors and locals alike will find a queer-friendly environment all across the city. Argentina is a leader of LGBTQ+ rights in the region, becoming the first country in Latin America to legalize same-sex marriage in 2010. Regardless of where travelers find themselves in Buenos Aires, they will find a progressive city paving the way for gay rights and liberation. 

5. Gay Village, Montreal

A Black Lives Matter street mural in Montreal’s Gay Village. Martin Reisch. Unsplash

Montreal’s Gay Village is one of the most prominent of its type in the French-speaking world. Known as “Le Village Gai” in French, the community had to overcome decades of oppression before becoming one of the most well-known gayborhoods in the world. During the 1970s, gay businesses in the city were regular targets of the police, who often raided bars and other establishments. Police violence didn’t deter Montreal’s LGBTQ+ population. Rather, Montreal’s gay residents formed a series of demonstrations to fight injustice against their community. Now the area is one of Montreal’s most popular neighborhoods. It draws visitors from all over the world, and hosts the largest Pride in Canada. Fierte Montreal, literally “Montreal Pride,” drew more than 3 million attendees in 2019, which also makes it the largest Pride in a French-speaking city (sorry Paris!). In classic Montreal fashion, two gay villages technically exist in Montreal: an English one located near downtown, and a French one on Saint Laurent Boulevard. 

6. Canal Street, Manchester, England 

Canal Street in Manchester, England. David McKelvey. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

When one thinks of cosmopolitanism in the U.K., most think of London. However, travelers shouldn’t count out the city of Manchester. Canal Street easily competes with London’s Soho for the center of Britain’s queer scene. The street dates back to the early 1800s as a transportation hub, when Manchester was rapidly growing as a major industrial center. Canal Street derives its name from the Rochdale Canal which runs alongside it. By the 1950s,  the neighborhood was facing urban decline. This was around the same time that Canal Street became Manchester’s main gayborhood. Like many gay villages around the world, the community faced hostility from police during the 1980s. It wasn’t until the 1990s that Canal Street was able to thrive openly as a gay village. Now the street is a proud and open community, drawing locals and travelers from both the U.K. and across the world. It is home to the annual Manchester Pride, the second-largest Pride event in Britain after London’s.

7. Ximending, Taipei, Taiwan 

A rainbow-colored street in Taipei’s Ximending district. waychen_c. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Known for night markets and traditional temples, Taipei should be near the top of anyone’s list when traveling in Asia. It is also one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world, and a leading example of equal rights in the region. In 2019, Taiwan became the first and only country so far in Asia to legalize same-sex marrriage. This makes Taipei not only the center of gay culture in Taiwan, but a perfect example of what LGBTQ+ equality could look like in Asia. The city’s gay village is located in Ximending, a shopping area of the historic Wanhua district. Situated near the famous Red House Theater, Ximending offers a plethora of gay bars and nightclubs open late into the night. In a city like Taipei, you don’t need to be a local to enjoy what this friendly city has to offer travelers of all kinds. However, you might need to be a night owl to fully experience this gayborhood. 

8. Schoneberg, Berlin 

Nollendorfplatz in Berlin’s Schoneberg neighborhood. Schoneberg is the oldest gay village in the world. Oh-Berlin.com. CC BY 2.0

Located in the western part of Berlin, Schoneberg’s history as a gay village spans nearly a century. The neighborhood’s roots lie as a village in the Middle Ages, all the way back in the 13th century. In the 1920s, as Berlin grew in size, Schoneberg became a part of the German capital. That is around the same time the area became the center of the city’s emerging queer scene. Gay nightclubs and other venues flourished during the Weimar Republic, before almost all of them were shut down when the Nazis seized power in 1933. Now, Schoneberg is once again a proud gay village. Much of the gay life in the neighborhood is centered around Motzstrasse, a street that goes right through the center of Schoneberg. The street is where Berlin’s Lesbian and Gay City Festival is held each year, one of the largest of its kind in Europe. Whether one comes for its history or its nightlife, Schoneberg is a constant reminder that queer people have always been a part of Berlin life, just as they have been a part of communities around the world.

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Aerex Narvasa

Aerex is a current student at Occidental College majoring in Diplomacy and World Affairs with a minor in East Asian Studies. He is passionate about sharing people’s stories through writing, and always strives to learn about new places and cultures. Aerex loves finding new music and exploring his hometown of Los Angeles in his free time.

Beyond the Wall, Berlin’s Multicultural Roots Shine Through

When Germany’s capital is mentioned, people often think of Berlin’s turbulent history, thriving arts scene and hipster culture. However, multiculturalism ought to also come to mind. With 21% of its population hailing from non-German backgrounds representing 190 countries, Berlin is becoming a true melting pot. Often nicknamed “Multikulti,” Berlin portrays itself as a tolerant city aiming to attract talent from abroad while celebrating its diversity within.  

Guest-workers from Hungary in East Germany. Lehmann. 30 Sept. 1988. CC3.0

A History of Migration 

After World War II, the Allied Powers divided Berlin into four regions. The American, British and French regions made up West Berlin and the region occupied by the Soviet Union made up East Berlin. Immigration to Berlin was largely influenced by the dynamics of the divided city’s various zones. After the war, there was a strong need for labor to help rebuild Germany. West Germany recruited “guest-workers” to fill this need from nearby areas such as Turkey and southeastern Europe. The East German government recruited guest-workers from other socialist countries, such as North Vietnam and North Korea. More recently, many immigrants escaping conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa have sought refuge in Berlin.

An Arabic market in Neukolln Gürer CC2.0

Multicultural Districts in Berlin

Although Berlin has a sizable international population, being an immigrant in the city is not without its problems. Areas of Berlin with high immigrant populations tend to be weaker economically and are known for social problems including high unemployment, increased crime rates, drug trafficking and gentrification. Ethnic minorities are usually present only in certain neighborhoods and are underrepresented in German popular culture and politics. Immigrants are also subjected to acts of hatred and violence due to strongholds of White nationalism in areas of East Berlin. Additionally, previous immigration policies in Berlin have focused on tolerating, rather than accepting, immigrants in the city. The term “Auslander” or foreigner negatively refers to immigrants in Germany, speaking to the difficulties they face with integrating into German society.

However, things are slowly changing. Immigrant communities in Berlin are proudly showcasing their cultures for others to see. Travelers who visit Berlin’s multicultural hubs can help change the narrative of immigration in Germany. 

Sehitlik Mosque in Berlin’s Neukolln district. Zairon CC International 4.0

Neukolln

Today, the majority of Berlin’s immigrant population resides in the center of the city in the districts of Neukolln and Kreuzberg. Although previously known for its unemployment and drug problems, Neukolln is reinventing itself as a hip and multicultural center. One of Neukolln’s iconic areas is Sonnenallee, often nicknamed “Arab Street,” which is home to many Middle Eastern restaurants, grocery stores and baklava shops. Walking through Sonnenallee, one is nearly as likely to hear various Arabic dialects and Turkish as German. Neukolln is also home to the Sehitlik Mosque, which is the most visited mosque in Berlin. The mosque participates in the Long Night of Religions, an annual event where houses of worship all over the city open their doors to the public to promote tolerance and interreligious dialogue. 

Turkish market in Kreuzberg. Gürer. CC2.0

Kreuzberg

Berlin’s Kreuzberg district is often nicknamed “Little Istanbul” for good reason; the neighborhood is home to the largest Turkish population outside of Turkey. On Tuesdays and Fridays, Kreuzberg hosts an expansive Turkish Market, selling everything from fresh produce and spices to fabrics and street food. Kreuzberg is an excellent place to try Turkish staples such as doner kebab and gozleme. Markthalle Neun is another acclaimed international market in Berlin. On Thursday evenings, it hosts “Street Food Thursday” with seemingly endless vendors serving diverse culinary options. Berlin’s Jewish Museum, also located in Kreuzberg, is the largest museum in Europe focusing on Jewish history and culture. Known for its nightlife and hip culture, Kreuzburg is rising in popularity. At the same time, this has given rise to gentrification which makes it difficult for migrant families to afford life there. 

One of the many warehouses in the Dong Xuan Center in East Berlin. Gürer. CC2.0

East Berlin’s Vietnamese Population 

Vietnamese make up the largest Southeast Asian population in Berlin, most of whom reside in the eastern part of the city. The Dong Xuan Center in Lichtenberg is home to Berlin’s hub of Vietnamese culture: a warehouse-like market that contains vegetable shops, clothing stores, beauty salons and authentic restaurants. 

The House of World Cultures in Berlin. Mennerich. CC 2.0

House of World Cultures 

Founded in 1989, the House of World Cultures is an arts and cultural center that hosts exhibitions, conferences and themes focused predominantly on non-Western cultures and societies. Located in the Tiergarten area near the Spree River, the center’s primary focus is to provide Berliners with an authentic view of contemporary art and culture from around the world. Past events include a Korean film festival and various world music events. 

Performer at the annual Carnival of Cultures. Reichert. CC 2.0

Carnival of Cultures

The Carnival of Cultures is a four-day celebration of Berlin’s cultural diversity that occurs every spring. Festivities include music, dance, street performances, street food and crafts. On Pentecost Sunday, the last day of the celebration, a procession of floats travels through Kreuzberg.

Immigration has shaped Berlin’s culture and history for decades, providing a fascinating framework for travelers to explore. Despite the contested status of refugees in Germany today, migration into Berlin is nothing new. Visiting these multicultural spaces is a step toward tolerance and appreciation of the beauty and diversity so often brought about by means of immigration.

Megan Gürer

is a Turkish-American student at Wellesley College in Massachusetts studying Biological Sciences. Passionate about environmental issues and learning about other cultures, she dreams of exploring the globe. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, singing, and composing music.

Should one use an airbnb?

From the consumer’s side, the sharing economy is pretty fucking rad. Anyone who grew up riding in taxis and then suddenly switched to Uber knows why: getting into a cab used to be like stepping into a scene from Mad Max: Fury Road, with drivers who were very frequently about as sane as the War Boys.

Uber drivers, however, depend on good ratings from those riding with them, and as such, have an incentive to not drive like lunatics. Likewise, you as the consumer get rated, so you have an incentive to be on your best behavior.

Consumers get the same sort of benefit with Airbnb: it’s not free, like traveler favorite Couchsurfing, so it doesn’t have the same sketchy feel, and it grants customers the opportunity to stay in actual homes in the neighborhoods they’re visiting, rather than in a generic hotel room.

The problem is that the “sharing economy” manages to conveniently undercut decades of labor laws, housing laws, and civil rights laws in ways that the legal system hasn’t caught up to just yet, which is causing some pretty ugly side effects. Uber deserves attention — it dodges and fights regulations that would apply to other cab companies, underpays its drivers, and leave cities that set a higher standard for them — but for now, we’re just going to focus on Airbnb.

What’s wrong with Airbnb?

Airbnb has two really big problems with it that ultimately stem from the same issue. And to be fair, these aren’t necessarily issues that were created by Airbnb, so much as they are issues that stem from the entire concept of the “sharing economy.”

1. Airbnb is playing by a different set of rules.

I live in the seaside town of Asbury Park, New Jersey, and Airbnb is a thing here: a lot of people will rent out their homes for a weekend to get some extra money, and Airbnb and its competitor VRBO are the simplest ways to do it. This is a tourist town, so the town encourages people to invite tourists into their homes. But some of the larger businesses in town are hotels, and there’s a good number of boutique hotels and BnB’s as well. And while they are large for the town, they aren’t mega-conglomerates like Hilton or Marriott. They’re small businesses. So it’s easy for them to be undercut by Airbnb. A homeowner’s profit margin doesn’t need to be as big as a hotelier’s — they aren’t running a full operation, they’re just trying to make some extra cash.

All of this would be fine — competition makes the market work, etc., etc. But users of websites like Airbnb and VRBO often don’t submit to fire safety and coding regulations that would be required of hotels and regular BnB’s, despite being legally required to. It’s also relatively easy for the Airbnb hosts to dodge paying their taxes, as they’re small enough to fly under the radar. This puts the Airbnb users at an unfair advantage, and it pisses a lot of hotel and BnB owners off.

Airbnb presents themselves as scrappy underdogs fighting big mean corporate hotel chains. When New York hoteliers claimed Airbnb was cutting into their business, Nick Papas, an Airbnb spokesperson told Bloomberg News:

“In fact, without Airbnb many of these travelers wouldn’t be able to visit New York City at all or would have cut their trip short. While the big hotels have been clear that they are concerned about losing the opportunity to price gouge consumers, we hope they will disclose the percent of their profits that stay in New York City and the percent they send to corporate headquarters outside of New York and, even, outside of the country.”

But Airbnb is not an underdog — last year, it was valued at $20 billion. That’s in the same league as Hilton ($27.8 billion) and Marriott ($22.9 billion). Since Airbnb isn’t responsible for making sure it’s users are paying taxes and are up to code, it’s basically just playing with the bumpers up.

By presenting themselves as a mere platform connecting people in the “sharing economy,” rather than as the manager of a huge network of small vendors, Airbnb is skirting regulations and making out like bandits.

2. Airbnb may be the reason “the rent is too damn high.”

The publication Grist explained the basics of this problem in a recent article, using the example of Tarin Towers, a resident of a rent-controlled building in San Francisco. Her building was bought by a real estate developer who wanted to charge way more for the rooms, so he offered the residents buyouts. Towers did the math and realized that even with the buyout, she wouldn’t be able to afford a new apartment in the city’s absurdly inflated rental market. From Grist:

“Towers held out as her old neighbors left and new tenants started moving in. Unlike the old neighbors, these new people were young, mobile, transient. And there were a lot of them. [Her landlord] O’Sullivan, it turned out, had leased the building to a startup called the Vinyasa Homes Project. Towers soon discovered that Vinyasa had listed her building on Airbnb, advertising it as a ‘co-creative house.’ The listing made it sound almost like a commune. ‘You want to join a community of like-minded peers who are doing inspirational things?’ it read. ‘This is the place for you.’ Unlike in the communes of yesteryear, however, each bed is going for more than $1,500 a month — and these are bunk beds in shared rooms. That means each apartment could now be bringing in $10,000 a month in rent.”

Towers eventually was forced out of her apartment, and took the buyout. She can’t afford a new rental in the city, so she’s housesitting until she figures something out.

This is a problem everywhere, though: in Barcelona, in Berlin, in New York, in New Orleans. It’s particularly tragic in the Big Easy, as it’s forcing out the last long-term residents who held on in neighborhoods devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

It’s the worst for cities with tight housing markets and a heavy flow of tourists. Remember the New York City mayoral candidate whose platform was “the rent is too damn high”? It may have gotten that high in part because of services like Airbnb — it’s way easier to wait for someone who will pay $2 grand a month for an apartment when you can rent the apartment out for exorbitant prices to travelers in the short term.

Photo by Leigh Blackall

You could argue that Airbnb isn’t responsible for the misuse of its service. But they aggressively fight any measure that would put the onus of responsibility on them. When San Francisco tried to pass a measure that would restrict the number of nights a year a unit could be used for short-term rentals, Airbnb spent $8 million fighting against it. When San Francisco tried to pass a rule that would force Airbnb to ensure its hosts were up-to-code, they donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to local political campaigns.

Some cities have fought back effectively. Barcelona has seen a population drop in its historic neighborhoods thanks in large part to its tourism industry, and as a result, have started slapping Airbnb with fines for offering apartments that weren’t registered with the city, and Berlin and Paris and even New York have been fighting back as well. But this is a problem that’s far from solved.

3. It’s not totally Airbnb’s fault.

In Airbnb’s defense, there’s no good business reason they would voluntarily take responsibility for policing their users. It’s not a charity, and it would be very expensive for them to check up on every single host. It would be a guaranteed way to decrease profits, which, incidentally isn’t legal — companies are required by to take actions that benefit their shareholders.

But this is why we have regulation. Airbnb isn’t tasked with doing what’s best for the local communities: our governments are. So this is a problem that’s fixed not by Airbnb being benevolent, but with good policies and effective enforcement. Which means it’s a battle that needs to be had on a city-by-city and country-by-country basis.

The problem is that we simply don’t know how serious the problem is yet — there’s been a little bit of research, but it’s far from conclusive, and has possibly been biased against services like Airbnb. There’s no reason to think that good policies couldn’t help solve the problems that Airbnb and its “sharing economy” counterparts cause. But more work needs to be done.

So what can we as travelers do?

Let’s be up front: staying at an Airbnb is a cooler experience than staying at a hotel. I have a friend who stayed in a goddamn castle in Italy. I know people who have stayed in treehouses in Oregon and igloos in Norway. In the Netherlands, you can stay in an honest-to-god windmill. And it’s cool that we’re giving regular people this platform to make some extra money, host out-of-town guests, and maybe try something new. So I won’t say “don’t ever stay at an Airbnb or a VRBO.” This is the future, and the solution to its problems will be through systemic change, not through any single individual’s actions. But it’s also time to call bullshit:

There is no such thing as the sharing economy. It’s just called the economy, and it’s been around for millennia.

Are you trading goods and services for cash? Yeah — that’s the economy. You’re just doing it in a different place. Airbnb and Uber haven’t reinvented the economy, they’ve just used the internet to create a new space in which economic transactions can happen.

So with that in mind, here are a couple of things you can to be a part of the solution:

1. Support fair regulation of Airbnb & VRBO in your hometown.

If your town has a lot of tourists, try to be supportive of government attempts to regulate businesses like Airbnb and VRBO. The companies will do shitty ad campaigns about how your city is turning it’s back on money and innovation, but that’s just a scare tactic. Anyone who has lived in a tourist town knows that, even if the economy is dependent on tourist dollars, what’s good for the tourists isn’t always good for the locals. Try and push your local governments to strike a balance between making money and supporting the local community. Get involved. Get organized. This is pretty much always the best solution to anything.

2. Try to avoid the shitty Airbnb hosts.

You can take steps to avoid giving money to the douchebags who are misusing the service. Think of it as another thing you want to research, along with “safety,” “service,” and “cleanliness.” In short, you want to seek out spots that the current owners actually live in.

Becky Caudill over at Casa Caudill has some great tips for spotting the shitty hosts using the platform itself. Here’s what she suggests looking for when you’re checking out the photos of the location provided by the host:

"

• Seek out properties that are decorated like you or your friends would decorate your own homes.
• Look for plants (not just fresh flowers).
• Check out the art. Is everything from Ikea or another mass market supplier? Or are there original prints or photographs on the wall? On shelves? Is there any artwork at all?
• Does the kitchen come with basic supplies like salt, pepper, olive oil, etc? People who live somewhere will have these things on hand. (Although maybe not in NYC? It’s my understanding from friends there that people eat out every night and never cook so maybe they don’t need these things?)
• Do the owners read? Are there books other than travelogues visible in the pics? (And for goodness sake, if you see hundreds of travel brochures that’s a dead giveaway this place is operated solely as a vacation rental property).
• Stay in real neighborhoods, not tourist areas."

It also helps to delve into the comments a bit. Can you get a sense from the comments as to whether this is actually someone’s home, or is it more of an “operation”? Are there big discrepancies between the reports of the rooms? That could be a sign that there are multiple rooms that are lived in by different people in your building, indicating that this is being done by a landlord, not an owner or a tenant.

And of course, if you end up in one of these “operations” in spite of your best efforts, it’s okay: just go onto Airbnb and mention it in the comments. Helping others identify exploitative hosts is as important as helping them identify bigots or creeps. And that’s what the review process is for.

As always, the name of the game is damage control — try your best to support the local communities you’re visiting. Sometimes you’ll fail. Other times you won’t. And don’t assume that all things that are shiny and new are inherently good.

THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON DON'T BE A DICK TRAVEL. 

MATT HERSHBERGER

Matt Hershberger is a writer and blogger who focuses on travel, culture, politics, and global citizenship. His hobbies include scotch consumption, profanity, and human rights activism. He lives in New Jersey with his wife and his Kindle. You can check out his work at the Matador Network, or over at his website.