@Lizzie
"Perhaps if this has all passed by the summer or Autumn we could have a bbq or a meetup on the beach.... : ) Got to have something to look forward to at the moment!"
Yes, things can be arranged!
"I wonder if people are just cancelling due to the general news and fear of travelling"
We take bookings via AirBnB, TripAdvisor, HomeAway, Booking.com and direct bookings. We manage a large number of properties.
While we've had a couple of cancellations through HomeAway - one is a Virgin Atlantic steward who has been asked to take 8 weeks unpaid leave - he said with the current situation and no work and no income and the possibility of the situation carrying on longer, he can't afford his holiday - that's fair enough - and we've offered him an option for rebooking at a discount later in the year, which he said he will definitely take up if he isn't off work for too long.
But the overwhelming majority of cancellations have come as a result of the AirBnB email to guests with the false information of an incident, with the invitation to cancel at no cost.
"do you think for places like the isle of wight which aren't on complete lockdown that a secondary purpose of rebooking Airbnbs could be a good way to go"
If guests wish to move their booking to other dates, we and many other hosts are happy to do that.
AirBnB took that option away from us. AirBnB have stabbed hosts in the back.
We are lucky as AirBnB generates only about 10-12% of our income. AirBnB's actions have severely damaged income for other hosts who use only AirBnB. Only a tiny minority of AirBnB hosts use this Community, but the anger shown in here is reflected among other hosts we know who are not in this Community .....
