How to rent a taste of the high life

Much of the “sharing economy” conjures up images of well-worn apartments, used cars and vegetarian stews in some stranger’s house. A big part of the fanfare associated with services like Airbnb is that they’ve “democratized” certain aspects of travel – after all, taking a trip is more accessible if you can pay $60 a night to stay in someone’s apartment instead of paying double or triple that amount to stay in a hotel.

But the travel-related sharing economy has more recently taken a luxury turn. You can now use various sharing tools to source luxury apartments, high-end works of art, international trips on a private jet, helicopter or yacht, and day tours or cooking classes with winemakers and professional chefs. In other words, a tool that has largely been seen as a way to force down the cost of a vacation is now also being used to buy a little taste of high society.

You can now use various sharing tools to source luxury apartments (Exclusive Exchanges, Inspirato or Onefinestay, which recently drew investment from Hyatt). Unlike Airbnb, these apartments offer traditional, beautiful interiors with antique knickknacks, Frette sheets, fridges stocked with local delicacies, high-end toiletries, in-person welcome and cleaning services. This particular choice is typically unrelated to the classic AirBnB narrative of trying to save a few bucks; instead, these services focus on a different idea of luxury: the opportunity to feel like a local for a few days. Some services even offer additional enrichment activities, like market tours and classes to master the art of choux pastry.

But not every high-end option has to break the bank. Lily Ames, a freelance radio producer, was able to buy a taste of old-school luxury – with a hefty dose of Downton Abbey – when she and her boyfriend rented a bedroom in a Scottish castle that she describes as “cute and romantic.” The couple had a room with a four-poster bed and sitting area with fireplace. “It was like living in history,” says Ames, who noted that many parts of the renovated castle were still original. The cost per night for this little slice of antiquity was £102 (C$166).

Of course, this world extends far beyond accommodations. Fashion was one of the trailblazing niches in the sharing economy, and services like Rent the Runway (which launched in 2009) have long been temporarily outfitting clients in any number of pricey designer duds. Newer luxury fashion rental services include Armarium, where you can place an order from your smartphone and choose from an even more exclusive range of designers, including Emilio Pucci and Jimmy Choo.

You can now also procure high-end works of art through ArtMgt or Rise Art, which rent out sculptures, paintings and even installations to suit a wide range of tastes. You can book a ride on a private jet with Netjets, which offers fractional ownership and leasing of private jets. You can borrow a “mega yacht” from Boatbound – which was referred to by TechCrunch as “Airbnb for boats” – and tool around Miami’s Biscayne Bay while drinking Champagne in a hot tub. And you can use Blade – the “Uber for helicopters” – to ferry between Manhattan and the Hamptons or Los Angeles and Palm Springs.

Luxury food experiences have also become a big feature of the sharing economy. With Feastly – yet another service that has been likened to Airbnb – you can find your way into the home of a big-name chef for a multi-course meal, or snag an invite to an exclusive pop-up dining event. Kitchensurfing will send the chefs to you, entertaining you and a group of guests for the evening – a taste of what it’s like to have a personal chef. And several new services – including My 3D Vines and My French Vines – allow you to rent a row of vines to be made into your very own wine.

Despite the fact that these options are undeniably a more glamorous take on the typical budget-minded narrative that accompanies stories about the sharing economy, they still tap into some of the core ideas propelling the growth of this travel segment: As we’re increasingly reminded that shared experiences – not material things – are the path to happiness, and as we travel more frequently and sometimes to the same places over and over, most of us, regardless of budget, are now looking for more “authentic” or unique travel opportunities – for many, all the better to Instagram.