Perched on the Rhine river between the borders of France and Germany , Switzerland’s largest city has plenty of great options for those seeking a short-term rental.
(Photo: VV Nincic via Flickr / CC BY 2.0)
Basel is a popular tourist destination, but also attracts large numbers of students and business travellers coming here for extended perios, many of whom choose to stay in apartments on a short to medium term basis during their stay. As is often the case in cities, Airbnb has the largest portfolio for short term rentals in Basel; however, there are a few other accommodation platforms operating in the city, the best of which are listed below.
Booking.com
Mainly known as a hotel booking platform, Booking.com also has plenty of apartments in Basel available for weekly rentals, and are our favourite choice for stays of 1 day to 2 weeks. On the dates we researched, we found a number of apartments available, most of them being serviced apart-hotels that benefit from a concierge service as well as added security. For a non-serviced, independent option, we found a lot of people recommending Skyline Penthouse Apartments which is conveniently located 5 minutes from downtown and 10 minutes from the airport. Roomy, clean and comfortable, the majority of their apartments feature balconies with sweeping views across the city. Weekly rentals in April started at around €1,250. All bookings on the platform come with a Best Price Guarantee and there’s also a comprehensive reviews section featuring feedback from previous guests.
Homelike
Targeting people looking for an apartment for a period of anything from a month through to several months, thehomelike.com is particularly popular with expats and business travellers who appreciate the enticing photography and the large selection of apartments, many of which are within walking distance of Basel’s downtown. Monthly studio rates are around €2,000 for furnished rentals in the upscale district of St Alban, and €2,800 for two-bedroom apartments in residential Bachletten. One major benefit is that unlike many of its competitors, Homelike is upfront about its costs, with no hidden expenses and a monthly rental price which includes all utility bills.
HousingAnywhere
With roughly 50 Basel apartments on their books, we picked Housinganywhere.com as our third choice for finding mid to long-term stays in Basel. When we looked at monthly rentals, we found an apartment for just over €1,700 a month and a two-bedroom apartment for a little over €3,000 in the centre. As well as a wide range of apartments throughout the city, the website features useful tips for visitors, listing alerts, a multilingual customer support team, and an instant messaging service for landlords & renters. Housinganywhere.com also has a cancellation policy which allows for full refunds if you’re unhappy with the property, providing you alert the platform within 48 hours of the start of your rental period. The agency’s fees are a one-off charge equal to approximately 25% of the first month’s rent.