Airbnb has swept the world as the go-to marketplace and homestay network that enables people to travel and rent residential properties for their short term visits. From an apartment for a night, a castle for a week, a treehouse, or a Fijian island, Airbnb, quite literally has it all. And if you find a really kind host, you may get the property for a total bargain!

The business, was founded by three savvy entrepreneurs (or, back then, broke students) Nathan Blecharczyk, Joe Gebbia, and Brian Chesky – struggling to pay their rent. After coming up with an idea to rent out three airbeds in their apartment, and seeing a turnover of guests, they realized they were on to something. They built a website, found funding, and started up their Airbnb project in 2008 that would lead them to own a business valued at $1.3 billion, with its headquarters based in San Francisco.

Airbnb has over 2,000,000 listings in 34,000 cities and 191 countries.