Hosting Update: Superhost news, travel trends, and more

[Catherine-Powell]

Hi everyone,

I’m pleased to be sharing this Host update with you, which has some exciting news and resources for our community including changes to the 2021 Superhost assessments, guest insights, and hosting tools updates. 

As people’s wanderlust begins to return, a top goal is to help you, our Hosts, prepare for travel’s return. As CEO Brian Chesky noted, “People can’t wait to travel again and when they’re able to, we anticipate significant pent-up demand, which will be directed to you.” 

This is an exciting time, but also a time where we still need to consider our own and our guests’ safety, and adjust to the new normals of work, travel, and play. I hope the information in this update gives you some useful tools and peace of mind as you begin to revisit your listings.

I’ll be back in touch again soon with more news! 

Take care of yourselves, 

Catherine

[Yuan100]

@Catherine-Powell 

Thank you for the update especially towards Superhost program. In Singapore, we do not have the domestic travellers that would choose to stay in Airbnb, but rather prefer hotels for a staycation. Hopefully, by 2022 we're able to welcome some international travellers. 

Being in Thailand now as a 'temporary nomad', I see a lot of hotels are slashing prices, giving F&B credits etc and I believe in other countries too. It is going to be hard for Airbnb hosts to compete when tourism opens up (esp in this part of the world with so many surpluses of hotels). The only significant difference between Airbnb and hotel is the connection to be made with 'local host'. So I think it's important for Airbnb to continue to pursue this unique positioning as a selling point in the upcoming campaigns with inter-continents kind of ads.

Yuan

[Mary996]

Thanks @Yuan100  for expressing this so well and so clearly.

I hope things pick up for us all in due course. Do you have essential workers who require accommodation? Is that a possible source of revenue and advertising in your country?

[Yuan100]

@Mary996 thank you for your suggestion!! it's a small country so everyone here has their own home to go back to. Imagine with 5.5 million people where it measures 50 kilometres (31 mi) from east to west and 27 kilometres (17 mi) from north to south with 193 kilometres (120 mi) of coastline 😓

I really miss hosting, they bring so much life to me. 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

Pet friendly is not in the top searches here but free parking on premises is.

We hosted maybe 5 groups with a dog in 3,5 y of hosting but more than half of our guests asked for a parking

[Amy621]

All I know is that I found it very difficult to navigate around in this update.  I don't think I've been invited to one before and feel lost, so I am signing out.  🙂

[Talia21]

I got no information from this. Is there an actual topic?

[Stephanie]

Hiya @Talia21 ,

In Catherine's message is a link to the Resource Center qrticle with more details. I'll share it here for you as well:https://www.airbnb.co.uk/resources/hosting-homes/a/superhost-news-travel-trends-and-more-from-cather...

Thanks,

Stephanie

[Jo620]

I'm hosting for the first time  and i'm really excited about starting. Thanks for all of the advise so far.

[Claire68]

My father is blind and says he doesn't use Air  B N B because he can never find a place that will accept dogs. I asked him to  change his filter settings but also shouldn't we have a service pet area and isn't it  illegal not to accept service dogs ? 

Sustainable perfect idea. In my new air b n b property i will be offering a co,plimentary basket of fresh fruit and vegetables, home produce produce locally sourced and insectidide free.

[Trude0]

I see in the linked article that: 

• “Pet-friendly” is the most searched-for amenity by guests (somehow I doubt this...)
• Jacuzzis are currently trending 79% year-over-year in guest searches

I love pets, and I have an outdoor jacuzzi in my garden - visible from my guest house.

BUT: My listing will never be pet-friendly, and I will never make the jacuzzi available for guests. I'm just not that desperate for bookings.

After having serious damages done to my house by my latest guest (related to water and not following instructions), and having Airbnb call it "ordinary wear and tear", I can imagine what kind of "ordinary wear and tear" could come from allowing pets and letting guests use the jacuzzi.

I hope the HAB will look into this topic: "Reasonable interpretation of the term ordinary wear and tear". I can see from this forum that this topic might be of interest for quite many hosts.

[Charles1173]

This is off topic but We need help desperately. 
Our home has been on ABNB for 2 yrs recently we got our first reservation, and on the same day our home was SUSPENDED until after July 4 th .
No explanation has been given 
We were referred 5x to the trust department and no return response for 10 days now.  
I brought to their attention that someone is listed on our account page and to pls remove them- that couple had my current ph # years ago.... 

So basically we’ve been deprived of an income for 2 yrs , even though I reached out multiple occasions only to be told our listing is active and viewable, Not one friend or family has ever been able to find our home , when our address is searched it brings up all the ABNB accounts all around us.
So essentially we’ve driven traffic to the site and made money for the company and our neighbors , all whilst our brand new home sits empty. 
Does this sound like something  any of you have experienced?  
Is this really how they treat their business partners? 
Thanks for any help / advice you can offer 
Erin & Charles Keels