How to Avoid Bad Airbnb Listings and Get the Most from Your Travel Booking

Your comfort during any stay in a rental experience depends on the questions you ask and clearly communicating your needs to the owner, according to the women of the Yascone family, owners of 11 Airbnb from Stay in Louisville . Here are their pro tips to empower you to have a delightful stay during your travel experience.

The Yascones offer properties throughout Kentucky that are dedicated guest homes, vacation rentals, corporate rentals, or event + stay. The family of female real estate talent was recently signed by Dr. Holly Carter’s Relevé Entertainment,a multi-faceted entertainment company specializing in talent management, brand development and television/film production as part of the development of a new reality TV show
Says Dr. Carter, “These ladies are intense, unfiltered, wildly passionate, hilarious and real. I couldn’t be more excited about working with them.”

The Yascones emphasize that there are no dumb questions, so anything you have sensitivities to or your special should be communicated to the host before booking.

Some of their general booking tips include:

  • Read at least 10 reviews of the property you’re considering.
  • Location! Location! Location! Most Airbnb host will not divulge their address but some will, so why not ask; If they will not give you their address ask for a landmark or cross street information. Also, if you have a destination for example, a convention center ask how far they are from that, before booking.
  • If cleanliness is the most important thing to you then let the host know before checking in. So, they can put the cleaning service on high alert.

 

 

Each Yascone also has their own specific tips to share with travelers.

Faith’s Hacks

  • The best way to pick an Airbnb is they must have exterior shots of the neighborhood, also clear and sometimes overly explained interior. ALWAYS READ EVERYTHING IN THE DESCRIPTION.
  • Remember to ask how cold or warm the central air and heat become so your comfort levels are met.
  • Always ask about parking. Too often properties have inadequate parking or metered street parking. I believe that no question is a dumb question so anything you have sensitivities to or special needs you have to communicate with the host about them prior to booking.

Love’s Hacks

  • Airbnb offers you a chance to experience living as a local. It is a great opportunity to fully experience a community. Great for guest who may be considering moving to a new city.
  • With Airbnb you can experience amenities you may wish to purchase but aren’t fully ready to invest in yet. Having that fully automated “Tokyo TikTok” home may be worth the investment or not. Isn’t it best to find out about products before buying it yourself? You can easily discover what is just cool on vacation and what you can’t do without.
  • If traveling on business, please make note of what you require to get your work complete. Read all the amenities. Some areas may not be able to guarantee Internet service. It is best to read everything and not assume that everything is provided especially if your job depends on it.

Joy’s Hacks

  • Check the amenities and reservation restrictions before booking many Airbnb’s allow you to bring your fur babies but you want to make sure you check house rules before booking. Also, you can always ask a host to consider your pet even if it is restricted.
  • Airbnb VRBO home away or any of the short-term rental platforms are excellent options if you want everyone to stay together and have an experience with more space. Look for enhanced design elements that will elevate your experience.
  • Look for Airbnb guest homes that have keyless entry with security codes to offer ease of check-in.

Matriarch Glenda Yascone:

  • The number 1 thing important for Airbnb Host or Guest is of course Location, Location, Location! The location will dictate the type of guest and the needs of the guest.
  • If you are thinking of investing in purchasing a property to be an Airbnb – try staying in your own space at least once. If you are comfortable, your guest will be comfortable. If you need something in the space your guest will need the same so invest in providing it.

Chocolate & Wine CRUISE on San Francisco Bay: Fall 2022 Edition

Join us October 15, 2022 for the Chocolate & Wine CRUISE on San Francisco Bay onboard a luxury yacht, where you will taste wines and chocolates

The day’s adventure takes place onboard a luxury yacht, where you will taste wines from a local winemaker, along with samples from a curated selection of local chocolate, toffee,  and wine.

Walk among the various artisans and experience their latest creations. Explore and luxuriate on the yacht, and enjoy it all during the 2 1/2-hour cruise on the San Francisco Bay.

Then take home some of that great food and wine you’ve discovered and purchased onboard for continued enjoyment.

EXCLUSIVE: The Chocolate & Wine Cruise is Limited to only a 100 attendees

GET TICKETS HERE.

1:00-3:30pm (yacht sets off at 1pm SHARP).

Must be over 21 years of age.

Proof of Prior COVID Vaccination Required.

WATCH THE VIDEO!

 

READ THIS INFORMATION ABOUT HOW TO USE YOUR ADVANCE TICKET

1. Purchase Advance Tickets

2. Your purchased ticket or tickets are reserved for you. Please bring your ticket confirmation sheet with you to Will Call for the Salon, with a Photo ID.

3. If you purchase more than one ticket, all attendees must be present in order to receive the tickets, which are under your name only.

4. Each ticket purchased is good for the day of the event only.

5. Due to the limited capacity for this event, No refunds available within 72 hours of the event (or after Advance Ticket sales are completed, if sold out earlier)

6. For faster check in, bring your confirmation printout (with scanner bar code on it)

First ever Purple Sea Urchin Festival rocks West Coast Tastebuds and Saves the Environment

The United States’ first ever Purple Sea Urchin Festival* took place on the Mendocino Coast recently. Fort Bragg, the largest city on the Mendocino Coast, is one of the biggest producers of sea urchin in California, and with the overabundance of the urchins in the waters these past few years, there is no better time to celebrate this sea delicacy.

Why a focus on urchin now? And why purple urchin? The chefs, educators, and residents of this area are deeply passionate about the interwoven ecological web of the beautiful and mysterious ocean that makes up the landscape of their daily lives on the Mendocino Coast. Abalone has long been a unique part of Mendocino – with local campfire cooking, seasonal tourism boosts, and signature festivals celebrating it as a delicacy. With the collapse of the sea star population, the exponential growth of purple urchin, and the subsequent decimation of the abalone population, residents are constantly looking for eco-friendly ways to resolve these intertwined issues and reduce the impact of this invasive species.

“The current circumstances have given us an opportunity to experience uni from these less-popular but equally-tasty purples,” states Cally Dym, 5th generation owner of Little River Inn. “Fort Bragg has long been a major producer of sea urchin in the United States – but virtually all of the product has been shipped out of the area, and until recently not a single restaurant offered uni on their menu. With a growing understanding of local food sheds and local food webs, we think now is the perfect time to ‘Taste the Place’ and expand our understanding of the purple sea urchin.”

During the three-day festival, some of the most beloved and iconic local hotels and restaurants along the coast, including The Harbor House Inn, Little River Inn, Noyo Harbor Inn, Glendeven Inn & Lodge, The Inn at The Cobbler’s Walk, Elk Cove Inn, Princess Seafood Market & Deli and Izakaya Gama in Point Arena, served urchin-focused menus and specials. Select inns and hotels also offered deals on lodging and other services.

The weekend also had a strong educational component, with the Mendocino Area Parks Association, Watermen’s Alliance, Noyo Science Center and Freedive Shop providing instructional demos and hands-on experiences. Urchinomics,  a restorative seafood company, played a part in the festival by supplying select restaurant partners with purple urchin (‘uni’). Urchinomics is a company dedicated to restoring kelp forests by removing overgrazing barren sea urchins, feeding them on land, and selling them on to distributors and restaurants.

Examples of the weekend’s Urchin tasting activities include:

  • Outdoor demo and 5-course purple urchin tasting menu presented by Urchinomics and Chef Matthew Kammerer at Michelin-starred The Harbor House Inn.
  • Uni demo and educational talk at Van Damme State Beach; sample fresh uni on the beach. Josh Russo from the Waterman’s Alliance and international free dive competitor Greg Fonts of The Freedive Shop demonstrate how to open and clean urchin. Participants  learn how to harvest urchin, the impact purple urchin has on other fisheries and innovative solutions to the problem.
  • Sake Seminar at Little River Inn. Sake expert Kerry Tamura of World Sake Imports walks attendees through the best sakes from seven different Japanese prefectures, highlighting the features of the terroir in the glass. Guests also learn about urchin while sampling uni snacks.

“As a chef in today’s world, it is my job to choose more sustainable ingredients and showcase them to the public,” states Matthew Kammerer, Executive Chef at Harbor House Inn. “Chefs have more of a role in today’s food scene, where education about products, including why and how to use them can help shape the public’s dining perspective and have a positive outcome on future generations. Purple sea urchin has been on our menu since day one.  We are proud to serve all local products but this one has extra meaning for us. Not just its flavor, but to help remove some urchin numbers from the ecosystem that is on the verge of collapsing.”

Continues Dym, “Urchin is delicious and that in itself is a reason to create an urchin festival. What fascinates me is the role purple urchin plays in the ecosystem of the Northwest Pacific Ocean and telling that story to festival goers.”

The Bamboo Room adds ambiance to SoCal’s Craft Cocktail Lounge Scene

Opened in June of 2021, Bamboo Room is a cocktail lounge set in the heart of the Westlake Village community outside of Los Angeles, and has a menu that includes craft cocktails, beer, sake, wine and bottle service. Their wide range of signature cocktails are crafted with high quality and fresh ingredients, as designed by the Michelin Star chef co-founder Chef Anthony Alaimo and partnerJeffrey S. Helfer.

The lounge’s interior ambiance focuses on earth tones and not surprisingly bamboo accents. Guests are able to relax on comfortable furniture or enjoy the dimmed lighting in the Bamboo Room’s library section. They can also sit outside around modern firepits. Depending on the night, guests can also listen to live music or a wide range of visiting DJs.

Bamboo Room was inspired and created with an international perspective, incorporating various global influences from co-owners Alaimo and Helfer, who met over 10 years ago when they both resided and worked in Macau, China. Influenced by their experiences abroad, they decided to share part of their journey with the local Westlake Village community and create a space that is unique and reflective of a worldly trend and vibe.

Locals consider it an escape where they can unwind, enjoy a drink, listen to music, and mingle with friends (and potential new friends). For them it helps replace the urge to take a long drive into the City of Los Angeles for a night out. Convenient and comfortable.

Bamboo Room
www.bambooroomwlv.com

30760 Russell Ranch Road, STE C
Westlake Village, California

San Francisco Chocolate Salon Returns on April 2nd as the Premiere West Coast Artisan Chocolate Festival

The 14th Annual San Francisco International Chocolate Salon takes place this Spring on April 2, 2022. The Chocolate Salon has long been known as the original artisan chocolate festival on the West Coast.

Chocolate aficionados, fanatics, lovers and addicts can taste & experience a wide range of artisan, gourmet & premium chocolate in one of the world’s most famous culinary metropolitan areas.

Chocolate Salon participants include chocolatiers, confectioners, and other culinary artisans, such as Amano Artisan Chocolate, Z. Cioccolato, LetterPress Chocolate, Michael’s Chocolates, Formosa Chocolates, Goufrais, Siamaya Chocolate, CocoTutti Chocolates, Fookie, R & J Toffees, Brigadeiro Sprinkles, The Good Chocolate, p.o.p. candy co., flying noir, the Wishing Well Workshop, Fabula Tea, and more.

For more information or tickets, visit www.SFChocolateSalon.com or HERE.

The San Francisco Chocolate Salon, Los Angeles Chocolate Salon, Sacramento Chocolate Salon, Seattle Chocolate Salon and International Chocolate Salon are produced by TasteTV, which originally created the first Chocolate Salon event in San Francisco in 2007, inspired by its cultural cookbook on chocolate, entitled “French Chocolate.” French Chocolate is available on Amazon.com and on www.FrenchChocolateCookbook.com.

Local and State COVID Guidelines apply.

Chocolate & Wine CRUISE on San Francisco Bay: Spring 2022 Edition

Join us April 23rd, 2022 for the Chocolate & Wine CRUISE on San Francisco Bay onboard a luxury yacht, where you will taste wines and chocolates

The day’s adventure takes place onboard a luxury yacht, where you will taste wines from a local winemaker, along with samples from a curated selection of local chocolate, toffee,  and wine.

Walk among the various artisans and experience their latest creations. Explore and luxuriate on the yacht, and enjoy it all during the 2 1/2-hour cruise on the San Francisco Bay.

Then take home some of that great food and wine you’ve discovered and purchased onboard for continued enjoyment.

EXCLUSIVE: The Chocolate & Wine Cruise is Limited to only a 100 attendees

GET TICKETS HERE.

1:00-3:30pm (yacht sets off at 1pm SHARP).

Must be over 21 years of age.

Proof of Prior COVID Vaccination Required.

WATCH THE VIDEO!

 

READ THIS INFORMATION ABOUT HOW TO USE YOUR ADVANCE TICKET

1. Purchase Advance Tickets

2. Your purchased ticket or tickets are reserved for you. Please bring your ticket confirmation sheet with you to Will Call for the Salon, with a Photo ID.

3. If you purchase more than one ticket, all attendees must be present in order to receive the tickets, which are under your name only.

4. Each ticket purchased is good for the day of the event only.

5. Due to the limited capacity for this event, No refunds available within 72 hours of the event (or after Advance Ticket sales are completed, if sold out earlier)

6. For faster check in, bring your confirmation printout (with scanner bar code on it)