I've never used them before, honestly it seems like a super shady organization that can just take your money and vanish vanish .

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​​​​​​Have you used them for GenCon and would you recommend them?

There have been reports of bookings being canceled by the renters when they realized they could make more money. Or canceled last second for unknown reasons.

Keep in mind, Airbnb is not a hotel site, but more like ebay listings for rooms where you hope what they posted is what you really get with no real measure to seek recourse other then a "Sorry" and hope for a refund.

AirBNB isn't going anywhere any more than, say, Lyft or Uber is.  All they are is the middleman between 'you' and 'some other person's crash pad', sort of like Uber is the middleman between 'you' and 'some other person's car'.  (Naturally, it's not *really* that simple, but it's close enough for the point I'm trying to make.)

It's the other person who's word you have to take, not AirBNB's itself.

Haven't used them; wouldn't plan on them for something like Gen Con.  Unfortunately, 1 bad apple spoils the barrel - have seen people recommend AirBNB for Gen Con but then there is just enough of the crap above that I would rather just get an outlying hotel and know that I've got that space at that price.  Peace of mind.

Once you are outside of downtown, you're driving in anyway and there are plenty of hotels in the outlying areas around Indy that you can find something.

A member of my gaming group tried AirBnB this year. He booked his rental prior to the Housing Portal. A week after the portal opened, his AirBnB room was cancelled by the renter, and relisted on another similar service at 5 times the previous price.

As long as the renters are free to break contracts, I will not recommend AirBnB for an event like GenCon unless you know the renter, or have a backup plan.

And if you already know the renter, you can handle it between yourselves, without a cut going to AirBnB...

Someone in my party used AirBnB (or VRBO, can't remember, pretty much the same thing), and said it was fine besides staying with like 10 other randos in the house. I have used VRBO myself for non-Gencon things and not had a problem. That being said, I do see how it could get iffy for such an high-volume, in-demand time as GenCon. I have seen micro-houses up for rent around LOS and was kinda curious about those mostly just because I'm curious about staying in a micro-house.

I have tried AirB&B as a back-up booking twice so far this year. Both were cancelled by the owner. The first didn't give a clear reason why, but I assume it was as gib_rebeg stated as I saw a similar booking open up soon after for 3x the price. The second said "The property was undergoing construction and they were cancelling all reservations". When I asked what kind of construction would take 7-8 months that wasn't completely rebuilding the property, they just said it was construction and they had to cancel. I stopped checking after that so I don't know if they relisted or not on that one.

So yeah. Not impressed with AirB&B as I, as a renter, have to pay upfront and any cancelation fees, but the owner gets to cancel with impunity for something that could be very important to the trip and literally make-or-break it. 

~Komori

I subleased one last year.  Worked out ok. It ended up being cheaper then a hotel.  I went and got a hotel room this year, less chance of last minute cancellation. 

With AirBnB, the property owners have the right to cancel for any reason... even at the last minute. This isn't a problem if you are going somewhere that hotels are not sold out, but when it comes to major events like Gen Con, with AirBnB the owners can continue to list their property (at a higher rate, of course) even after an agreement is made with someone which allows them to cancel your rental. I have used Home Away for Gen Con and was very satisfied with it, but I am not sure if they have the same policy on their rental. It sucks when you think you have a place lined up and the owner cancels and you are unable to find another place to stay. Personally, I avoid using AirBnB because of the number of nightmares I have seen with them. 

We used one last year and loved it. Able to get 6 of us in a house 2 miles from the CON. Agree with the others though make sure you have open and honest communication with the property owner throughout to lessen the chance of a cancellation. We're renting the same house again this year because we've established a great relationship with the home owner.

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I have friends who rent out space on AirBNB who make some good money doing it.  I'm considering renting one for GenCon.  Especially if I can split it with someone.

Have a look at our place downtown. www.airbnb.com/rooms/32612332?The location and quality of this plase cant be beat !!    Its a long walk  a short scooter ride or few mins uber to convention cental. Right now it's one of the only 2 bedrooms (2.5 baths) under $1000 per night, and think you'll be impressed with the quality.A our primary home a gourgouse house  on a lake about 40 mins from downtown. And  designed our downtown place so we (and/or airbnb guests , or friends) would have a spot to stay that is equal to or better then place they left. 

Please mention this blog post if you contact us via Airbnb and we'll offer a bit of a break on price.

OK...try this again without the grammatical errors.  (where is the spell check LOl)  

Have a look at our place downtown. www.airbnb.com/rooms/32612332? The location and quality of this place cant be beat !!  

Its a long walk a short scooter ride or few mins uber to convention center. Right now it's one of the only 2 bedrooms (2.5 baths) under $1000 per night, and think you'll be impressed with the quality.  

Our primary home a gorgeous house  on a lake about 40 mins from downtown. And  designed our downtown place so we (and/or airbnb guests , or friends) would have a spot to stay that is equal to or better then place they left. 

Please mention this blog post if you contact us via Airbnb and we'll offer a bit of a break on price

With many things - you need to do a bit of work to makes the assessment. I would be skeptical of:
* Properties without 5+ reviews (or only reviews are years old)
* Properties not listed by a super agent
* Properties that appear to be too good of a deal

If you hit those, I would book with confidence. Even major hotels have screwed people during GenCon

I live locally and attend Gen Con annually. Last year we stayed at my friends rental close to downtown.  It worked great for our group.  So much so that this year we didn't even bother with the lottery.  Instead we are staying at my friends new rental that is slightly closer and has quite a bit more space.  I believe, however, that the other space is still available.  It is about a 5 minute Uber/Lyft to the convention center and is perfect for a group of 5-7.  Actually, if you usually stay in a hotel it will be extremely spacious for a group of that size. If anyone is interested let me know and I can put you in touch directly.  I don't know how much he is asking, but can guarantee if you reach an agreement he won't cancel.

I've tried a to get a couple of AirBnB rooms, only to have them cancelled as well. Way to sketchy a system where the renter can just cancel at any time.

Glad I caught this. I Secured an AirBnB fairly close to downtown for a good price.  I’m going to book a hotel on the outskirts as a backup. It’s just a drag to have to book Lyfts from so far out.