A woman says her Airbnb host tried to triple the price of her stay after finding out she was going to see Taylor Swift

• A woman booked a New Orleans Airbnb for next year as she has tickets for Taylor Swift's Eras tour.

• After she told the host about this and the booking was accepted, they tried to triple the price, she said.

• The woman refused to cancel the booking, and an argument ensued.

A woman said she booked a New Orleans Airbnb for her stay in the city next year for Taylor Swift's Eras tour but was shocked when the host tried to triple the cost, and a heated argument ensued.

Ariel Stewart posted screenshots of an exchange on TikTok on October 31. They appeared to show that her booking had been confirmed for October 26 to October 28 next year and that she told the host the reason for her stay was Swift's concert.

It's just one recent example of people accusing their Airbnb hosts of misbehavior. Earlier this month, a guest said their host dumped all their belongings, including their passport, into the street after mixing up the checkout date. A woman also recently criticized Airbnb and her host after saying they had not refunded her booking when she learned her mom was dying.

The screenshots appear to show that Stewart received a message back from one of the hosts, listed as Heather, saying the pricing had not been "properly set" and she would have to "collect additional funds."

In the screenshots, Stewart asked about the new cost and the host told her it would be "2400, plus taxes and fees" for the two nights — which she said was about triple what she originally paid.

Stewart said the host offered her other properties in the area and asked her to cancel the booking if she did accept the change in cost.

Stewart said she didn't accept the new price point but didn't want to stay in the other properties because they were farther away from the concert's venue.

"I am sorry but the request will stay as it is because I know that the other location is definitely further and we did not want to be too far from the Superdome," Stewart wrote to the host in the screenshots. "I decline changing the rate to a more expensive rate and decline to have my reservation moved to another location. After speaking with Airbnb, you can choose to cancel me but it will penalize you and block those dates from being booked in the future."

A heated exchange then appeared to ensue. The host seemed to blame Airbnb for setting the prices and automatically accepting Stewart's booking, accusing Stewart of trying to "steal" from and "threaten" her.

"We were trying to help you by letting you stay at the other property, but now have no interest in hosting you because you have made us feel very uncomfortable," the host wrote in the screenshots. "Airbnb lets us cancel guests who make the types of threats you just made too, btw."

Stewart said she had been speaking with someone at Airbnb support. In the posted conversation, she said that she didn't make any threats or try to make the host feel uncomfortable and that she would not be canceling the booking.

The host then appeared to ask her again to cancel, saying she would be issued a full refund and adding that she would not be provided entry codes to the property and there was no way she would be staying there.

"We are trying to be as cordial as possible," the host said in the exchange posted by Stewart. "We are just letting you know that we will not be hosting you at this location at this price point. The sooner that you cancel, the sooner you will be able to get a new property booked."

Stewart said Airbnb had told her not to cancel and that it was the host's responsibility to do so.

The host then appeared to change tactics, asking Stewart to "move on."

"We do not need to waste each other's days going back and forth saying the same thing over and over again," the host's messages read the TikTok. "I am genuinely sorry for the circumstances."

The host appeared to send several more messages reiterating that Stewart wasn't staying in the property and chastizing her for not canceling: "You're welcome to justify your behavior to whoever will listen, I'm assuming you don't have a lot friends, but that doesn't mean we have to listen to it."

The Airbnb property seen in the post isn't available to view on the website, but several of the host's other properties are, which she appears to run with two other hosts as a small company. Insider has reached out to her for comment through Airbnb and through their own website.

The property is also listed on their company's website for $662 a night on average.

Stewart's initial video was viewed more than three million times and amassed a flurry of comments — many from Swift's fierce fan base, the Swifties, who are notoriously skilled at internet detective work when one of them has been perceived to be wronged.

Fans filled Stewart's comments with links to the Airbnb listing, noting every time the listing was changed or reuploaded under a different name. They also seemed to uncover the host's full name, work out that she and another of the hosts were married, and find the real-estate company one of them worked for.

Stewart shared a couple of updates after her initial video. In one, she showed screenshots of her conversation with Airbnb, where she was encouraged not to cancel on her end.

In another, she posted further messages from the host, who appeared to call her "dishonest" and threatened to contact her employer. Stewart described the whole ordeal as a "horrific nightmare."

"I understand it would have been easy for me to cancel, but how do I justify this happening to another person?" Stewart wrote in the caption. "I can't, and her lack of professionalism and knowledge of hospitality shows as she threatens my job."

On November 3, Stewart said she was still waiting to hear back from Airbnb about how to resolve the situation.

Insider has reached out to Airbnb for further information.

Correction: November 17, 2023 — An earlier version of this story incorrectly listed the dates of the booking. The correct dates are October 26 to October 28 next year, and not October 24 to October 26 next year as previously stated.

Read the original article on Insider