A woman went on a quick girls’ trip to Nashville only to get woken up by an unsettling encounter at her Airbnb.
“Why is there a man in our [Airbnb]?” she wondered. “And I looked at the door and I saw him,” said Erica Blake (@ericaaaablake) in a video that’s amassed more than 179,000 views. A man had randomly wandered into her rental at night, disturbing her and her friends while they were sleeping.
What happened at this Airbnb?
Erica and a few friends took a fun girls’ trip to Nashville that was going incredibly well at first. They booked an Airbnb for the weekend in a one-bedroom apartment with a couple of extra beds in the living room.
From every angle of the apartment, she could clearly see the door to the unit. On a Saturday morning at around 3:50 a.m., she said she heard knocking at that door.
“He knocked for several minutes—Unsure exactly how long that happened because it was one of those situations where… you’re in and outta sleep and wondering if you’re still dreaming,” Erica said. “Two of the girls heard that light knocking… Then a few of us heard that followed by the very distinct sound of the digital lock unlocking.”
At first, Erica thought it might have been another one of the girls staying in the unit. But three of the girls sat up in bed to look across the room, only to see a shirtless man entering their rental space. “My sister looked at me and shouted really loud, ‘Why is there a man in our apartment?’” Erica said.
Instead of leaving, the man walked toward the kitchen island, where the knives in the rental were kept. He then spoke in an incredibly calm, conversational tone.
“You guys didn’t order anything?” he asked. Erica’s sister quickly answered no. The man then turned around and walked away without saying another word.
How did the man let himself in?
The women were stunned by the encounter. They quickly realized it was not just a “lucky guess” of the digital door code and that someone had access to it. Commenters were quick to share their thoughts after viewing.
“I used to host [on Airbnb],” said Jess Jai. “That’s for sure your host giving out a master door code rather than taking your email and generating a code via Latch that expires the second your reservation ends. I hate that.”
But Erica quickly refuted that idea. “He did [use] the Latch app and took [two] of our emails to provide access. But I’m also wondering who else he granted access to…”
The Latch app can provide one-day access codes to guests, making it a common companion service to Airbnb rentals. But Airbnb hosts usually provide that door code to only one person at a time.
Jai replied, “That’s crazy. I lived there [in the area for years] and hosted on weekends. I had full control via the app when someone’s code ended and the next code began. That sounds like a creep with cleaner access…I always checked calendars a billion times to make sure I wasn’t entering an occupied unit… So sorry you had that terrifying experience.”
@ericaaaablake A shirtless man broke into our @airbnb at 3:50 am this past Saturday ? Girls please share with all your friends, this could have ended so much worse. #storytime #girlstrip #scarystory #beaware #travelsafety ♬ original sound – Erica
Commenters’ own experiences
Other commenters shared similarly frightening experiences staying in Airbnbs.
“Our Airbnb in Paris was robbed last month. Airbnb wouldn’t replace our item and they expected us to stay in the apartment as they wouldn’t refund the remainder of our stay. They expected us to stay in an apartment that was being accessed by thieves who had a key or the combo,” said one viewer.
Another pointed out that this could be a Nashville-specific issue, saying, “This happens so often in Nashville. I think some of the Airbnb owners are in on it.”
The Mary Sue has reached out to Erica via TikTok and Airbnb for comment.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
