I booked an Airbnb for an upcoming trip (in about a week), and the host just contacted us via SMS saying she has some family issues. She asked if we would be willing to stay in a different apartment in the same building instead of the one we originally booked.
According to her, the alternative apartment is similar - it is on the photos, but it's not quite as nice and doesn’t have as good of a view. As compensation, she offered to invite us for a meal.
What concerns me is that she specifically asked to handle this privately (outside of Airbnb), rather than making the change through the platform.
I’m unsure how to proceed. On one hand, I understand that unexpected situations happen. On the other hand, this feels a bit risky—especially being asked to go off-platform and accept a downgrade.
If we insist on keeping everything within Airbnb, I’m worried she might just cancel the booking, and since the trip is only a week away, we could end up scrambling to find a new place (possibly at a higher price).
Has anyone experienced something similar? What would you do in this situation?