Until now, Germany welcomed 50,000 refugees from the Ukraine. As our borders are open, the real number might be a lot higher. Some hosts in our community now use their guest rooms for friends and relatives from the Ukraine, mostly women and children. More than 10,000 refugees arrived in Berlin last Saturday, so the local infrastructure there is overloaded, and the people are being sent to other parts in our country.
We have registered our private room at Airbnb.org last week, and our booking calendar is open since yesterday. So far we have not received any request from Airbnb.org – but we are waiting for it every day. And we are prepared: it will be definitely more than just hosting guests. They need a new home, clothes, food, accompaniment during visits to authorities, communication to their family in Ukraine, and a lot of moral support.
Until now not so many refugees arrived in our city. The administration is ready with providing information, help and emergency housing. Waiting for the big wave.
A special challenge during the pandemic will be the Covid-19 requirements: As only 30 % of the Ukrainian population seems to be vaccinated, the majority needs a test every three days, to comply with our local regulations.
We are in the lucky position, that we have available space – no matter if we host tourists, business travelers or refugees. While in the past we had guests from all continents, we are excited to welcome our first guests from the Ukraine. At the same time we are concerned about the tragic circumstances: definitely this war will change our life and hosting style significantly.