And suddenly, the owner of your holiday rental is hiding in the closet

©Tyler Zhang via Unsplash

Booking.com has launched an investigation into the bizarre incident.

An Irish woman got the scare of her life during a vacation in Wexford when she discovered that the owner of the vacation home had been hiding behind a false wall in the dark. Therese had booked a home through Booking.com with her partner and two children, assuming they would have the entire house to themselves.

According to her, the owner had told them beforehand that he wouldn’t be in the house, but when the family returned in the evening, she noticed that the washing machine was running. Her partner went to check and discovered a thin partition wall in the living room. When it was moved, a hidden room was revealed behind it, in complete darkness.

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Therese told Irish radio station RTÉ that she felt “like she was in a Netflix documentary” and immediately called the police. The family then left to spend the night with relatives. The woman says the experience has deeply traumatized her and will permanently deter her from booking another vacation rental. The next day, she spoke to the owner again, but he said he had never met her before. According to local police, no one was arrested, and no criminal offense was identified at that time.

Booking.com has since launched an investigation into the incident. The property has been temporarily removed from the platform and is no longer accepting new reservations while the investigation is ongoing. The case once again raises questions about safety and transparency in holiday rentals through online booking platforms.

©Tyler Zhang via Unsplash - illustrative image