Travel Lodging and Airbnbs

 

It was my first official, formal trip in twenty years (not counting road trips and camping adventures) and I needed a place to stay that was fragrance-free safe. Hotels are impossible for me due to the offgassing of new furniture, laundry detergent smells, and toxic cleaning supplies used to de-stink a previous customer's stay. What do I do?

I considered driving and camping at my destination, but decided driving would take too much time and since I sold my van months ago, sleeping in a tiny car would not work. Besides the weather in Tucson was expected to be in the 90s. Nope.

I started searching online months ago. Would an Airbnb work? There are many posts and comments from people searching for fragrance-free Airbnbs or any kind of private accommodation that would be willing to be nontoxic. It seems this search is very difficult. 

Airbnb has a filter for number of rooms, number of guests, number of bathrooms, other amenities, but no general word search options. Their website even has an "Accessibility" filter so people with disabilities are able to search for wheelchair access or other helpful features. No mention of chemical sensitivity which is an official disability according to ADA. It seems they are excluding a whole group of disabled people who need fragrance-free accommodations.

I got creative and joined several online community groups and posted the question, "Does anyone know of an Airbnb that is fragrance-free?" Some of the responses were along the lines of, "NO." Or "Good luck with that!"  One woman who was an Airbnb host offered to become fragrance-free just for me not understanding that would involve washing her linens at least twenty times to get the laundry stink out of them for it to be safe enough for me. I really had little hope, but I persisted in my search.

Fortunately and miraculously, one group member was an Airbnb host who belonged to an Airbnb host support group. She posed the question on her group and gleaned a whole list of people who claimed to be fragrance-free! But were they really? We all know unless people are chemically sensitive they often don't even know what fragrance-free means.

I selected one that was a small casita for one person. The host seemed the most aware of fragrance-free cleanliness and I posed questions regarding cleaning and personal hygiene products as she did not have these things featured on her listing. Yes, she uses only vinegar and hydrogen peroxide for cleaning, free and clear laundry detergent, and provides fragrance-free and nontoxic personal hygiene products. Hmmm...OK! I didn't ask how old the mattress was to assess if it would offgas chemicals nor what kind of mattress. I didn't ask if there was any remodeling, new furniture, or new paint? I know it would be a risk, but I did what I could to make sure it was safe and booked it (no refunds!) I also purchased the optional travel insurance in case of sickness as I hoped if the space made me sick, I could leave and get a refund. (If Airbnb doesn't even recognize chemical sensitivity as a disability, it might have been a struggle to convince them had I actually became violently ill because of the space. I think a lawyer might have convinced them....)

I arrived and got into the casita. There was a second, adjoining, unoccupied Airbnb space, but no other customers were staying while I was there. The casita smelled musty! What was that? Formaldehyde? Bug spray? My lungs started hurting. Oh no, this is not good.

I noticed the air conditioning was not on and this was controlled by the host so I requested she turn it on. She suggested I open windows and run the ceiling fans on high as well. I left and began my tour of Tucson praying when I returned the air would be tolerable. I asked her if I could have access to the swimming pool since other tenants weren't there. I did not explain why I wanted access. It was not to swim, but as an option should I be unable to stay overnight in the casita, I could just sleep out by the pool in a lounge chair. I was not excited about sleeping outside with lizards, snakes, and other creepy crawlies, but it was better than suffocating. (The rental car had a slight smell of "new car smell" so I knew I would not be able to sleep there.)

I apprehensively returned a few hours later and the casita aired out magnificently! Whew! Relief! I noticed as I looked at rentals in Tucson many had the same musty smell and I am now assuming it might just be the way Tucson is when air-tight and locked up. The host did confess she uses ozone, but said she didn't use it on the casita. I do wonder what her pest control procedures are, but I didn't ask. I hoped for the best and made the assumption if she was that aware, she probably wasn't using toxic pesticides like so many in Tucson do. 

The mattress was a natural latex that was a couple years old. Incredibly comfortable with no smell at all! Her linens smelled so clean, even cleaner smelling than my own!

I have heard some hotel chains provide "hypoallergenic rooms". I stopped into the Hyatt Place and asked hoping they would let me smell one to see how safe it might be. No, they did not have "hypoallergenic rooms". Oh well. They lose my business!

I can't even express how happy I was it all worked out!! But expensive...it's not cheap to stay in an Airbnb and it was the highest expense of my trip. Did I pay extra for nontoxic accommodations? Maybe, but this is typical. It's expensive to be chemically sensitive!

Car Rentals

 For my trip to Tucson I needed a rental car. I couldn't imagine getting on a public bus, besides the time it would take to bus across the city over and over again during my stay. I wanted to traverse freely. However, there is a huge risk in renting a car.

Cars can stink in a variety of ways. Previous renters stink. They aren't allowed to smoke in the rental car, but some do. They wear perfumes, colognes, lotions, deodorants, shampoos, and sometimes have their dogs with them.

The rental companies then clean the cars. If the car stinks badly, they use ozone which I have found from past experience is deadly for me. Would they also use smelly cleaners or spray air fresheners? I called and was told they normally don't use scented cleaners, but if the car is returned exceptionally smelly, they do everything possible to rid it of stink and that may involve using chemicals of some kind. I was also told I would get a choice of cars so if it was too smelly, I could request another.

I reserved a small, compact, economy car, but at the counter the customer service agent thought it wise and helpful to upgrade it to a mid-sized SUV. Ah...no thanks. I also didn't realize the SUV was a 2024 so brand new and offgassing formaldehyde in that familiar "new car smell." Definitely not. I also drive a tiny car so I wasn't comfortable driving in an unknown, unfamiliar city in a huge car. I requested the smallest and oldest car they had.

I ended up with a 2022 Toyota Camry. It still had a slight "new car smell", but I turned on the air conditioning AND rolled down all the windows. It aired out perfectly. Note to self: old and small is best. It was an awesome car and made me want to buy a new car!

I survived my first rental car experience in thirty years! Hooray!!

I'm FLYING!!!

 

It's 2024 the year I will move! I can't even express how incredibly frightening this is not knowing where I can go that might be safe, trying to figure out how to research and plan, and then actually attempting to visit the location to make sure it would work.

I threw all caution to the wind (or rather humanity-infested perfumed-soaked airspace) and flew on a plane from Seattle to Tucson, Arizona! I got on a plane! I'm still amazed I survived the experience.

I haven't flown for twenty years since the onset of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. The thought of being packed into a small space like a sardine shoulder to shoulder with other sardines has not appealed to me, but how do I research a location and assess safety without visiting? I did consider driving, but the length of time it would take compared to a three hour flight wasn't cost affective. Losing time from work is very costly. So I got brave and donned my wings!

Thankfully, the pandemic made wearing a mask normal. I brought two just in case one wasn't good enough. I use the 3M 8577 P95 which is for odors as well as dust-like molecules. I wear them for any toxic construction or painting projects I might do. Not only do they work great, but they don't offgas any chemicals nor are they soaked with anything like formadehyde. I do well with them. 

Security was a new requirement, one I had never experienced. I'm sure those who travel often take all the changes for granted, but it was a new world for me. Some airports, like Seattle, are incredibly busy with long lines through security; other airports, like Tucson, are empty with no lines and no waiting. I kept my mask on until the security personnel asked to see my face.

The airline reservation was all online, another new experience. The cheap seats don't allow one to choose a seat as that would be an added cost. I was flabbergasted on the flight from Seattle to Tucson I had a whole row to myself! On the way back I was in an emergency seat with no one around me! How does that happen with full flights?

I love airports! The ventilation is top of the line. The ceilings are high. There is plenty of space to stay away from others. I have always found the air in airports to be incredibly clean even with jet fuel exhaust polluting the outside.

On the outgoing flight three women sat in front of me. Someone stunk to high heaven. If I turned my head just right I could smell the perfume. I stopped turning my head and had no problem. (Love this P96 mask!)

The whole time I kept getting really excited! Can I really travel! I can go to Hawaii! Mexico! Europe, even! Wow. Who would have thought! Of course, then there is the risk of a rental car, the risk of accommodation, the risk of airport buses...lots of risk. But I survived!