Festival of Hospitality 2023🏡 How Hosting on Airbnb Makes the World Smaller

[Marielle135]

This post is co-authored by Host Advisory Board members @Marielle135  and @Delphine348  from France, and @Tatiya0  from Thailand. Learn more about the Host Advisory Board.

Marielle:  Airbnb has revolutionized the way people travel, forging connections that span the globe and transcending traditional accommodations. With its innovative platform, Airbnb has helped facilitate cultural exchange, promote local economies, and foster a sense of belonging for travelers. Hosting, wherever you live, is like traveling without moving. Delphine, Tatiya, and I first met through the Host Advisory Board and have been going on this trip for different periods.

I have been hosting on Airbnb for more than 7 years. I live in the French countryside in the middle of wheat fields. It’s a little village that locals wouldn’t have likely considered an interesting destination for travelers. And here we are  two listings as a Host, and three listings as a Co-Host later. Hosting has made people in my village realize we are not in the middle of nowhere but in the middle of somewhere.

Somewhere people traveling to or  from holidays like to stop. Somewhere families or friends, despite the distance, choose to catch up. Somewhere locals can accommodate their families if their place is too small to organize a large event. Hosting has not only enriched my way of looking at the world but has also enabled me to have a look at the world coming together.

I’ve also observed a shift in how people travel and in their perspectives. For some, COVID-19 has created a worrying and new way to evaluate where they stay: some guests consider the isolation of a place, the overall space, and its quietness as all added values nowadays. Many hosts and travelers have had the chance to sit back, look at their life, and relax (or stress) during a period none of us could have imagined living through and surviving. Despite being located in different places, both hosts and guests have enabled many people to continue living their everyday lives in a different way, and to reconsider their future. 

Maybe because we live in remote areas, or are overwhelmed by locals in busy cities, the arrival of a new face with memories of travel, and life experiences are an enrichment for both the Hosts and guests. That's what hospitality does for me: it heals the pain and shortcomings. The more we share and create a good guest experience, the more we feel stronger as members of a united world. 

Delphine: I started hosting in 2020 just before the COVID pandemic began. After living abroad in Africa for 10 years, my husband and I came back home to France. I needed to figure out what I would do for a living. We bought an old house near ours, with the idea of creating a listing on Airbnb. I dove into renovation work for 15 months with the help of a very efficient contractor. I loved this part of imagining the best layout for my future guests, based on our previous experience as guests.

As soon as my hosting journey began, I realized it was exactly what I needed to do. Welcoming my guests, looking after their needs, and doing my best to introduce all the points of interest in my area is a real satisfaction.

I soon discovered the Airbnb community with the Community Center. I learned a lot from other Hosts’ discussions and questions and decided to volunteer to become a Community Leader for my area. Becoming a Host has opened possibilities and connected me with Hosts around the world, as well as with my local community. I only wish I had had this opportunity sooner.

Tatiya: I started hosting on Airbnb in 2013. I have met so many people around the world, including guests who have become my friends and others who I would have never met if it weren’t for Airbnb.

I’ve welcomed guests in the listings I host, along with places I support as a Co-Host.I also offer  two in-person Experiences, and two online Experiences. 

I've kept in touch with past guests over the years, and when I travel, I make a point to reach out to them if I'm in their city. One highlight includes a time I was visiting a couple I first met several years ago. While we were having lunch, their six-month-old daughter turned over for the first time. I was honored to be there to witness one of their family’s “first” precious moments.

Marielle: This summer, Tatiya  traveled across Europe and met Delphine and me in France, in our countryside. We enjoyed quality time together, and even celebrated Delphine’s husband’s birthday. Tatiya cooked a Thai dinner for us and had plenty of food and wine discoveries while staying with me and Delphine. That is how deep the Airbnb community hospitality is.

The evening at Delphine’s house with Tatiya’s home-cooked Thai dinner.

[Eneida-Beatriz0]

Que maravilla, soy nueva en la plataforma, creo que se viven experiencias bonitas y son las que te ayudan para seguir adelante, de las experiencias no tan buenas aprendes a conocer.  Ojalá podamos seguir conectadas para poder aprender de tus experiencias, Dios te bendiga, Santa Marta (Colombia). Te espera