Attendees say short term rentals are canceling days before Coachella festival, leaving some stranded

COACHELLA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) - Out of town Coachella festival-goers are taking to social media this week, complaining about canceled short term rental reservations just days before the festival.

Now, many say they're left without a place to stay, and are scrambling as prices rise. 

"They had announced Justin Bieber as a headliner, and me and my friends were so excited. We're like, we have to book everything now. Then, Easter morning, we woke up early and I had a message from my Airbnb host just apologizing, saying 'Hey, I'm so sorry, I'm canceling Airbnb," Andrea Gutierrez, a Coachella attendee from Los Angeles said.

Gutierrez said the host of the Palm Desert Airbnb claimed it was due to city regulations that prohibit weekend rentals, but the city disputed that claim.

"The City of Palm Desert does allow short-term rentals, including on weekends and during special events such as festival season. There is no restriction prohibiting weekend rentals. All short-term rental operators are required to obtain and maintain a valid permit issued by the City," a Palm Desert representative said.

Gutierrez believes her reservation was a victim of price gouging.

"Just a few hours later, the same listing was up for $5,000 instead of the $2,000. So it seems like there was some price gouging going on," she said.

She's not the only one. This week, platforms like TikTok and Instagram have been flooded with videos of users claiming their reservations were canceled last minute and re-listed at higher prices.

It's left attendees like Gutierrez with little options, facing sky high prices ranging from $4,000, up to $140,000 for the weekend.

La Quinta realtor David Gibson says high pries aren't unusual for festival season, but price gouging hurts the Valley's market.

"For smaller houses, obviously they're cheaper than the bigger houses. You get larger houses that'll even go for $100,000 for the week. Where it's not acceptable is if people try and change the deal after they've already made an agreement," Gibson said.

In their policy, Airbnb says hosts can cancel up to 48 hours and face fees ranging from 25-50% of their reservation total.

A spokesperson for Airbnb said in a statement, "We are not seeing a notable uptick in cancellations. We know host cancellations can disrupt plans, which is why we have deterrents like cancellation fees, calendar blocks and a ban on re-listing at a higher price."

Gutierrez said she inquired with Airbnb about the potential re-listing at a higher price, but was not given an answer due to privacy reasons.