Airbnb Hosts And EU Policymakers Discuss Future Of European Travel
As the summer travel season begins and the EU prepares for further easing of international travel on July 1, Hosts on Airbnb from across Europe met with European policymakers last week to discuss the future of tourism.
The dedicated virtual session was led by Catherine Powell, Airbnb’s Global Head of Hosting, and was attended by four Hosts on Airbnb including two Hosts from Airbnb’s new Host Advisory Board, and EU policymakers from the European Parliament and the European Commission.
The productive discussions focused on how best to work together to rebalance tourism and ensure that the return of travel is safe, sustainable and benefits everyone. There was an emphasis on the need for clear and fair regulation for short term rentals and how best to support local, rural communities to deliver authentic experiences to travelers.
According to Airbnb’s recent Airbnb Report on Travel & Living, rural travel is a top summer trend as European travelers are getting ready to travel again. In May 2021 the volume of cross border search in Europe more than doubled compared to April and we are seeing a surge in interest in less populated destinations. In 2015, rural travel accounted for less than 10 percent of nights booked globally on Airbnb. From January to May 2021, it accounted for more than double that and was even triple that in some countries, including France (45%) and the UK (48%).
"We’ve been in training for pandemic isolation in my rural area for 200 years! Post pandemic, people are more than ever seeking escape, which can be found in our green and quiet rural areas with lots of space for family activities, near to family and friends they usually live far away from." Marielle Terouinard, Host on Airbnb from Eure-et-Loir in France.
Last month, Airbnb announced the biggest top-to-bottom upgrade of the Airbnb service inspired by the major shift in how people are traveling. The announcement highlighted steps that streamline and simplify the process to become a Host. Half of new listings that were both activated and booked in early 2021 got a reservation request within four days, and the average annual earnings per Host who had welcomed at least one guest was $9,600.
The session also delved into the topic of regulation and the need for a harmonized approach to short term rental regulations that are fair and proportionate for home sharers in Europe. Airbnb recently announced its support for industry specific proposals on short term rentals at EU level, highlighting new progressive agreements with France, Greece and the Netherlands and the roll out of the new City Portal tool that gives governments and tourism organizations access to data, insights and compliance tools.
These proposals were detailed in Airbnb’s pledge to The Great Rebalance of European Travel, a series of commitments to work with communities across the region, spreading economic benefits to more people and preventing the return of the overtourism phenomenon, where too much tourism is concentrated in too few places.
About Airbnb
Airbnb was born in 2007 when two hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to over 5 million hosts who have welcomed over 1.5 billion guest arrivals in almost every country across the globe. Every day, hosts offer unique stays and experiences that make it possible for guests to connect with communities in a more authentic way.
About Airbnb.org
Airbnb.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating temporary stays for people in times of crisis around the world. Airbnb.org operates independently and leverages Airbnb, Inc.'s technology, services, and other resources at no charge to carry out Airbnb.org's charitable purpose. The inspiration for Airbnb.org began in 2012 with a single host named Shell who opened up her home to people impacted by Hurricane Sandy. This sparked a movement and marked the beginning of a program that allows hosts on Airbnb to provide stays for people in times of need. Since then, the program has evolved to focus on emergency response and to help provide stays to evacuees, relief workers, refugees, asylum seekers, and frontline workers fighting the spread of COVID-19. Since then, hosts have offered to open up their homes and helped provide accommodations to 100,000 people in times of need. Airbnb.org is a separate and independent entity from Airbnb, Inc. Airbnb, Inc. does not charge service fees for Airbnb.org supported stays on its platform.
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