Idaho property owner pulls site from Airbnb, leaving some eclipse campers in the lurch

Hundreds of campers hoping to watch Monday’s solar eclipse from Thornton, Idaho, were left in the lurch Saturday when the owner of the property they’d booked campsites on canceled, according to Salt Lake City’s KUTV.

The Utah television station reported that a Provo man, Wayne Andreason, made a deal with his wife’s aunt Lily to rent space on her Thornton property to campers in RVs and trailers.

Andreason claimed he prepared for the event extensively, taking out insurance on the 83-year-old woman’s property, renting portable toilets and more. He claims when he arrived for the big weekend, Lily’s son and other family members turned him away, calling the camping plans “a very big mess” and a liability.

Andreason told KUTV he was working with Airbnb and the campers who’d reserved spots (at $75 apiece for trailers and $150 for RVs) to find them new reservations or issue refunds.

Members of the Thornton-area family also told KUTV they would try to find properly equipped campsites for those with reservations.

For its part, Airbnb issued this statement: “This host has been removed from our community and we are reaching out to the affected guests to offer our support.”

“I’m just sick over it,” Andreason said. “Don’t ever do business with family.”

This story was originally published August 20, 2017 at 11:19 AM with the headline "Idaho property owner pulls site from Airbnb, leaving some eclipse campers in the lurch."