Interesting points. I think we fundamentally agree but I've ended up with lower expectations for hotels than you. What I've gotten from cheap traveller's motels sounds like precisely what you're describing, which is a lot like a lot of the AirBnB-for-profit places I've stayed in terms of service.
I do agree that AirBnB has been generally superior to hotel-hunting and that the review system is powerful. And I completely agree that as a guest AirBnB is superior to regulated short-term rentals, especially in the places where the host goes above-and-beyond to be available and/or provide local tips and flavor.
I certainly wouldn't advocate that AirBnB get rid of whole-apartment rentals because they're not a good guest experience - much to the contrary it's always been great for me. But I think AirBnB are going to be up against the wall soon legally, at least in major metropolis areas, and eliminating the hotel-style whole-apartment rentals could be one solution.
I do agree that AirBnB has been generally superior to hotel-hunting and that the review system is powerful. And I completely agree that as a guest AirBnB is superior to regulated short-term rentals, especially in the places where the host goes above-and-beyond to be available and/or provide local tips and flavor.
I certainly wouldn't advocate that AirBnB get rid of whole-apartment rentals because they're not a good guest experience - much to the contrary it's always been great for me. But I think AirBnB are going to be up against the wall soon legally, at least in major metropolis areas, and eliminating the hotel-style whole-apartment rentals could be one solution.