Airbnb 2022 Summer Release: What you need to know

[Airbnb]

Our 2022 Summer Release represents the biggest change to Airbnb in a decade. We’re introducing:

• Airbnb Categories: A new way to search that makes it easy for guests to discover millions of homes they never knew existed

• Split Stays: An innovative feature that pairs two listings when a guest searches for a longer stay

• AirCover: The most comprehensive protection in travel, included for free with every stay

Get all the details on the Resource Center, and tell us: Will you be updating your listing for Airbnb Categories and Split Stays? How will you update it?

[Peggy137]

Wow. The bloom is off the Airbnb rose it seems. They are really blowing a good thing.

[Tim42]

I don’t know what’s happening. My bookings have tried up. There’s even a free concert happening that draws over 100,000 people and I can’t get my place booked even though I am

walking distance to the concert. I dropped my prices as well.

Am I missing something? Been doing this 10+ years. Is there a slowdown due to the economy?

[Gigi169]

Been slow going since the new roll out a few months back. I’m 4 minutes from a national park that gets 2 million visitors a year and the closest hotel is an hour away and my numbers dropped dramatically since the roll out. All summer (which was the highest tourist season to date here) was less than half booked. (I’ve always been fully booked using AIrBnb only) 

so no you are not alone and tourists are coming out in mass numbers. 
I also dropped my rates down to ridiculously low and still didn’t catch anything so I don’t think it’s the rates. It’s more likely that we are just not coming up in the searches. When they started this new system I think the algorithm was “reset” and all of the momentum I’ve gained over the years was rolled back to zero. For ex: there is a listing right next door to mine. Not a superhost (as I am) and the stars are much lower than my 4.99 rating. The pics are dated, the place is in disrepair and not well maintained, it has negative reviews, and it shows right at the top of searches and my listing is buried if it even shows at all. 
Really frustrating after working so hard to get such stellar reviews and maintain my superhost status. 
I have also noticed that under the national park listing (where I should show up at the top being 4 minutes away) the listings that populate are all quite far away from the park. A long arduous drive from many but anyone searching won’t know the logísticos of our island. They just see the listing under the national park and assume it’s close.  
Those kinds of things make me crazy frustrated and Airbnb has yet to really resolve anything (in my case) even after literally hours of communications. 
Very frustrating to say the least. 
Shows me they don’t seem to care about the little guys. If you own an island or a potato house  I’m sure you might get different results. 

[Peggy137]

A  lot of us... so frustrating and yes, it's pretty obvious they don't care about their partners, US,  without whom Airbnb would be toast. 

I've heard their stock price is down, and they're losing money... Totally shot themselves in the foot with this one. People are booking more and more with alternative sites... No idea why they don't listen to their hosts.

Lastly, travellers are really getting pissed with their experience w Airbnb, lots of really bad reviews on that NYT article. 

I truly don't get it.

[Diane34]

same thing for me in Colorado. I think it is because so many new listings from corporations

[Matt-and-Tatiana0]

Another stupid thing, "split stays"! Once again Airbnb is screwing over their hosts with split stays, my place doesn't even come up for bookings if it is 7 days or more. This time of year we start booking for the holidays and now if guests want to book 7 or more days they can't see our listings because this new summer rollout doesn't pull it up.  Going to another platform is looking better and better to us.

[Mark-and-Gabriela0]

Incredible 

i know a company who has a lot of apartments, 90 % occupancy for years, now nothing… no one booking

[Mark-and-Gabriela0]

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[Mark-and-Gabriela0]

**[Link removed due to safety reasons - Community Center Guidelines

interesting article and they don’t know about the Summer Release even..

[Samuel596]

Months into this, has anyone seen growth on airbnb after the summer release? Has anyone seen their bookings go higher, or on the contrary, everyone's experiencing a noticeable drop in bookings after the summer release?

[Peggy137]

Nope. I'm booking, but less than half of what I normally did. It's my high season, I'm substantially below everything that is comparable to my place which happens to be in a much nicer area (on the trailhead in Sedona) and nada. 

I'm just not showing up for a lot of people.

[Gigi169]

Still only half booked. Seems like bookings will come in grouped together then nothing. It’s like the listing is visible, then not. 
I live 5 min from a national park with a live volcano. (We even had 2 volcanos going during December and people were flocking to the island on top of Christmas and still wasn’t fully booked.) Millions of visitors a year coming through and no hotels up here. Before the new release I had to block off a weekend a month for maintenance or it would be booked every night and we couldn’t get things done. Now it’s just vacant half the month. 
And  I’m using the smart pricing and have beautiful pics. Only have had one 4 star in almost 200 guests. All other 5 stars with stellar reviews. 
So it’s nothing I’m doing. Can only be the algorithm. I can’t think why else this would be happening.  

[Gigi169]

Forgot to mention, several of my bookings are private booking that I personally sent to the app to book. So they weren’t even Airbnb bookings but my own. I’m actually giving THEM business now. That’s pretty sad. 

[Samantha454]

Absolutely terrible start to 2023, not a single booking in January and only one in February. It’s a pretty dire situation.

With all the outgoings and upkeep of the cottage, I’m not sure we’ll be able to continue, unless things really pick up.