A Thai tourist says she was refused an Airbnb booking in Tokyo because she is Thai, after a host allegedly cited repeated problems with previous Thai guests.
The woman shared screenshots of the exchange in a Japanese travel group, saying she had tried to book a property in the Asakusa area along the Sumida River.
In a response to her booking request, the host apologised and said the property owner had decided not to accept Thai guests.
The host alleged that previous Thai guests had damaged property, flushed toilet paper into a bathtub and caused plumbing problems, brought their own household items, failed to separate rubbish and left the property dirty.
The host also acknowledged that the woman might be different from previous guests but said the alleged problems had occurred “many times” and asked her to understand why the booking could not be accepted.
The post prompted debate among Thai travellers, with some criticising the alleged behaviour of previous Thai guests while others said the host should not generalise based on nationality.
One Thai Airbnb host said in the discussion that refusing guests solely because they are from a particular country would violate Airbnb’s policies and could amount to discrimination.
The host said some Airbnb operators may have had bad experiences with guests from certain countries, but such concerns should not be communicated by openly rejecting an entire nationality.
Another commenter said they had stayed at Airbnb properties in Japan and followed Japanese waste-sorting rules and other house rules, adding that hosts should consider individual guests’ records and reviews rather than judge them based on nationality.
The incident has not been independently verified beyond the screenshots shared by the tourist, and it is unclear whether Airbnb has reviewed the case or taken any action.