“IT IS a FEELING OF HOME, BUT THERE IS NOT TOO MUCH OF ‘HOME’ LEFT”: AIRBNB AND AMBIVALENT HOMEMAKING

Providing a feeling of home and an authentic experience are considered important aspects of home-sharing services that have grown in popularity in recent years. The article is based on a qualitative study exploring how renters perceive and experience "home" and "feeling at home" within the context of short-term accommodation. Contrary to the literature pointing to the importance of an "authentic," "homely" feel, the findings show that Airbnb guests' homemaking practices are aimed at establishing a sense of distance. Guests "volitionally" dismiss a sense of home by avoiding typical everyday routines associated with their everyday life at home, thus contributing to Airbnb's distinctive "home-like" setting, where a feeling of welcome is combined with a sense of detachment and estrangement. The article advances research that emphasizes complex modes of dwelling where the homely and unhomely elements are simultaneously present.