Services like Airbnb change up the hospitality game in Pittsburgh

Like many seasoned travelers, Pittsburgh native Andrea Weigl planned to stay in a local hotel when she traveled here from Raleigh, N.C., just after New Year’s for her mother’s 80th birthday party.

Her mom doesn’t drive, and Ms. Weigl wanted to be close to her home in West View in case the family had to transport her to the restaurant. Then a flight got cancelled, necessitating a third night of accommodations in the city.

Extending her reservation at the Hampton Inn on McKnight Road would have cost an additional $141. Instead, she booked an apartment at Heinz Lofts on Airbnb.

Even with mandatory cleaning and service fees tacked on, the Pittsburgh native ended up getting more for her money in more ways than one: Not only was the three-day home stay in the two-bedroom North Side apartment easier on the pocketbook and more comfortable for her family of three — it cost $343.64, compared to the $322.73 she would have paid for a two-night stay in a king suite at the hotel — but it also offered a more authentic (and convenient) Pittsburgh experience.

The Strip District is a must-visit spot on trips back home, Ms. Weigl said, and the apartment just across the Allegheny River was within easy walking distance. “It just works better for our family,” she said.

Airbnb is making it easier to scratch one’s travel itch for a whole lot of other people, too.

The San Francisco-based vacation home rental company that started with just a handful of units in 2010 now boasts some 7 million listings in more than 220 countries. To date, it’s generated more than 500 million bookings.

The locations in which people are staying has similarly multiplied. Ten years ago, close to 90% of all guest arrivals were at listings in the company’s 10 biggest markets, including New York and Los Angeles. Today, more than 900 cities have at least