More than 500 guest rooms — and counting — have opened up during the week of the hotel-hogging Democratic National Convention.
Guests may have to flop on a futon or tolerate roomies more likely to lobby for Milk-Bones than for political favors.
But they’ll do so in exchange for cheap nightly rates and, in some cases, the promise that a portion of the rent will be donated to their favorite candidate.
The leasing agent, the website , links people looking for lodging with empty beds in private homes. And Front Range residents are stepping up with unconventional convention lodging, at a rate of about 40 rooms per day, priced as low as $20 a night.
Dan Taylor, 35, a recently laid-off high-tech worker, just posted a room in his home in Denver’s hip Berkeley neighborhood for $75 a night, promising to donate 10 percent to Barack Obama’s campaign.
“We did it to support our political choices, but the other part was to provide a reasonable place for people,” he says. “There’s been lots of press coverage about places going for thousands of dollars a night.”
Rent Taylor’s “Denver Hang” and you’ll be guaranteed free Wi-Fi, a couple of home-cooked meals, plus insider’s knowledge about what’s fun to do in the neighborhood and how to get around Denver without a car.
That’s part of what fueled Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia’s entrepreneurial urge to make their on-the-fly social networking site into a commercial venture.
They tested the concept last fall in San Francisco during the Industrial Design Society of America convention, expecting to draw 20-something hipsters willing to bunk on an air mattress. Their three short-term tenants turned out to be designers, all in their mid- to late 30s. One was a dad. One came from India.
“We made money as hosts, and they saved money as guests, staying in downtown San Francisco for $80 a night, and that’s unheard of,” says Gebbia, 26. “But they also got to experience San Francisco through our eyes, as locals, which highly contrasts with the experience of a hotel.”
The company charges guests a 5 percent to 10 percent booking fee and handles the credit-card transaction that secures the reservation. Hosts post their listings for free. Guests have to trust that the hosts will make any promised donation to a candidate or charity.
Spend $75 a night for a room in political insider Elaine Calzolari’s three-bedroom home in Lowry and you’ll be guaranteed a hot breakfast, a place to sleep that’s “museum clean,” and, perhaps, a ride downtown. She’s had a few inquiries so far, including one from a Boston University journalism professor.
“I’ve had some very good bed-and-breakfast experiences,” says Calzolari, who works as the Colorado Senate’s calendar clerk. “I figured the guests would be delegates or serious activists, so I felt it was a safe bet.”
Outside of the two big political conventions, the site lists rooms in 139 cities in 21 countries. Guests and hosts range in age from their early 20s to their 60s.
“Not all social-networking sites have this breadth of users,” says Chesky. “I think this is because it’s not just a cool thing to do; it’s a cool website that is addressing a problem that people of all ages have.”
Dana Coffield: 303-954-1954 or dcoffield@denverpost.com
