15 Unforgettable Airbnbs That Cost Less Than $100 a Night
You don't have to be rich to have a one-of-a-kind vacation.
Sure, you can spend hundreds a night on unique experiences like renting an architectural masterpiece or staying on a private island. But you hardly need to shell out a fortune just to do something none of your friends have.
Want some ideas? We scoured Airbnb to find the quirkiest rentals available on a $100-a-night budget from a North Carolina llama farm to a Seattle house boat to Florida home built from a shipping container. Here are the wildest places to stay listed for less than $100 as of Wednesday, May 25.
The most mysterious house in St. Paul
Location: St. Paul, Minn.
Cost: $55-$75 per night
Perhaps not for the easily spooked, this St. Paul castle is available for overnight stays, as well as "paranormal investigations, ceremonies, rituals etc.," though these activities, the description notes, may require an additional security deposit.
The home, which, according to its listing, was once named the most mysterious house in St. Paul by a local news outlet, has rooms available to rent from $55 per night, while the "master chamber" is available for $20 more.
A shipping container
Location: Gainesville, Fla.
Cost: $25 per night
Maybe you’ve heard about shipping container conversions, an increasingly popular take on the tiny house trend. Now you can test it out with a night in a 400-square-foot shipping container apartment.
“If you're looking for a place in Gainesville don't pass on this container,” reads one review on the Airbnb listing. The unusual Gainesville getaway sleeps three and is located on its hosts' property.
Llamasté, a farm getaway
Location: Asheville, N.C.
Cost: $75 per night
As one might expect, there are llamas at Llamasté, a farm retreat on 25 acres of land outside of downtown Asheville, but that's not all. The farm at the base of a mountain is also home to goats, two dogs and a cat, according to its listing. There is room for up to two guests at Llamasté, with a bedroom to themselves and shared access to the property’s porches, common space and outdoor areas, including the labyrinth, barn area and forest.
A grain silo
Location: Helenville, Wisc.
Cost: $85 per night
Farm accommodations are fairly common on Airbnb. Less common: a "glamping" experience inside a turn-of-the-century silo. Guests staying at the Helenville, Wisc., farm rent the whole 40-foot tower, which has four floors and a loft.
The silo sleeps up to four visitors, but it's more akin to camping than to a hotel room, the listing warns. Travelers should be willing to trade insulation and an in-unit bathroom for hammock swings and a 360-degree views of the surrounding farmland.
A trailer in a loft
Location: Los Angeles, Calif.
Cost: $82 per night
Can't choose between a rustic trailer vacation and a loft retreat? You can have both if you're staying in Los Angeles. A 1954 trailer parked indoors is available to rent for what the listing calls "a more interesting way to stay in LA."
A vintage trailer inside a 6,000-square-foot artist loft is available to rent in the city's arts district. For $82 per night, two guests get their run of the 16-foot trailer, as well as access to the rest of the shared space in the loft. The 16-foot trailer serves as a private bedroom for two, who share the surrounding loft space with the hosts who live there.
A Seattle houseboat
Location: Seattle, Wash.
Cost: $99 per night
If you've always wanted to sleep in a houseboat, head to Washington State for an affordable stay. The "Sugar Shack," a bright red and avocado green vacation home floating atop a Seattle lake, offers room for two guests aboard. Guests can view the Space Needle from the top of the vessel in good weather, the description notes, and vacationers have access to the full boat, as well as a bathroom on shore.
Ballard Lighthouse
Location: Seattle, Wash.
Cost: $70 per night
It's difficult to find an authentic lighthouses to rent on a budget, with an average nightly price of $207 in the U.S., according to the website. Budget-conscious travelers can scratch that itch at this lighthouse-shaped home in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood, which has a bed for two guests in a room in the basement. For $70 per night, guests can access all parts of the home, including the top floor and second-story porch with views of Puget Sound. For more information, visit the home's Airbnb listing.
D.B. Cooper's Hideaway
Location: Phoenix, Ariz.
Cost: $55 per night.
You can find a good deal of boats and vans for rent on Airbnb, but planes are much rarer. Enter D.B. Cooper's Hideaway, one of two plane-themed Airbnbs listed by a host in Phoenix. Named for the airborne robber who infamously hijacked a plane in 1971 and parachuted out, never to be found, the accommodation is one-half grounded plane and one-half tiny house. The larger of the two spaces, the Hideaway costs $55 per night to rent, while its smaller counterpart costs $27. Both have room for up to two guests each.
Off-grid tiny house near a volcano
Location: Pāhoa, Hawaii
Cost: $89 per night
Tiny houses, the minimalist housing phenomenon popular among extreme downsizers, are a dime a dozen on Airbnb. A lot less common: a tiny house with a front-seat view of volcanos. This tiny, off-grid eco-cabin with ocean and volcano views is situated on the island of Hawaii. The cabin itself is near an active lava flow, which guests can tour with the home's owner, according to the Airbnb listing. The tiny house fits up to four guests for $89 per night.
The Roundhouse
Location: Eugene, Ore.
Cost: $68 per night
The Roundhouse is exactly what it sounds like: a circular home made of cedar and glass, housed in its owners backyard. According to the listing, the house is a private cottage designed to be rustic and inspirational. Up to three guests renting the space get access to a fire pit, bathroom and shared kitchen in the octagonal Oregon abode.
A vintage caboose
Location: Lock Haven, Penn.
Cost: $74 per night
This train car for rent just outside of the Penn State campus is the real deal: a 1941 restored caboose that can host up to two guests. According to its listing, the caboose has been restored to its original condition and retrofitted with a bathroom, shower and dining area. The train car, which is only available to rent in warmer months of the year, can be booked for for $74 per night.
Solar-powered school bus
Location: Golconda, Ill.
Cost: $54 per night
If you can't imagine how a school bus could be a cozy home, you haven't seen the bus for rent on a farm in the Shawnee National Forest. According to its listing, the school bus is powered by solar energy and overlooks a lake. Groups of up to three visitors can rent out the bus, which is decked out with a bed, Christmas lights, wood paneling, shelves and a couch, for $54 per night.
Off-the-grid dome by hot springs
Location: Truth or Consequences, N. M.
Cost: $90 per night
Travelers visiting this round guest house located near a natural hot spring will take a break "from commodified life with a visit to our temporary autonomous zone," according to the listing. What that means: an off-the-grid experience in an unusually-shaped abode with WiFi, solar power and foot-thick walls. The Truth or Consequences dome can sleep up to two and is available to rent for $90 per night.
Trailer in the mountains
Location: Taos, N.M.
Cost: $59 per night
The yellow trailer for rent in Taos is no typical mountain glamping stay. The 1954 Silver Dome trailer is situated in its host's backyard with views of mountains in every direction, according to the listing. In addition to sweeping views and an outdoor fire pit, the trailer itself offers room for four in its full bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living room for $59 per night.
Virginia "mini-farm"
Location: Charlottesville, Va.
Cost: $84 per night
At this Charlottesville Airbnb, visits with chickens and the opportunity to bottle-feed baby goats is part of the package. According to the listing, this owners of this Virginia "mini-farm" keep goats, bees and chickens in a free-range fenced pasture. Guests can visit with the animals and can request to bottle-feed baby goats expected this spring. The farmhouse sleeps two and costs $84 per night.