Festival of Hospitality 2023 🏡 How do hosting and traveling help tackle loneliness?

[Claudia331]

This post is co-authored by Host Advisory Board members @Claudia331 from Italy, @Felicity11 from Australia, and @Deirdre122 from South Africa. Learn more about the Host Advisory Board.

Claudia: The Festival of Hospitality can have many meanings, including fostering connections with guests, and showcasing warmth and inclusivity toward our guests. In 2022, we wrote and got to read some incredible stories. As part of this year’s festival, we want to unpack the question: How do hosting and travelling help tackle loneliness? How can we, as Hosts, help guests feel welcome and connected? 

We wanted to write about this topic as we noticed an increased focus on the issue of loneliness worldwide. Research shows social isolation and loneliness can have a significant impact on mental and physical health, especially among older people, according to the World Health Organization. 

For me, family and friend gatherings have played an important role in helping guests feel welcome, connected and less lonely. I host two listings and am added as a co-host to two others in Lecco, Italy. I recently welcomed people from Great Britain, Canada, and Italy who were all visiting family or friends. They sent me photos and shared some beautiful moments from their visit. I love it when my guests do this because I feel like a part of their life.
The first photo is from Tom with one of his friends who joined him in Lecco at the panoramic point above my house
the second photo is from Mimma and Giorgio's family lunch

My husband and two children have lived in the remote countryside of Valle di Noto in Sicily for 10 years. It has certainly been wonderful but lacks connections for us.This year, we decided to spend a few weeks in Cinque Terre and booked a place to stay on Airbnb. It’s close to our great-aunts, cousins, and friends. 

Photo of the Ferragosto barbecuePhoto of our family dinner at my Airbnb at night during the visit.

Following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve been receiving more and more bookings for family or group gatherings. I can directly perceive, both through personal experience and my guests, the need for people to connect with each other, to enjoy each other’s company, and to spend relaxing moments together. The most beautiful aspect of hosting is that our homes can serve as places where people form affectionate connections. People can live in a homey atmosphere where families and friends feel at ease, and where loneliness and distances are diminished, partially due to our efforts and the trust we establish.

Deirdre: We frequently host groups of friends who come to enjoy our horse-riding Experience in South Africa. Sometimes, we welcome people from different countries who met during an internship in South Africa. Other times, it’s a group of longtime friends celebrating a birthday or embarking on a weekend adventure, or families traveling together. These rides are usually filled with lively chatter and lots of photo sessions. What better way to connect as a group than out in nature, surrounded by breathtaking views and wildlife.

I’ve also made friends through hosting my Experience. Once, I had guests join an Experience who ended up returning to help me exercise the horses after some time. Some of them have now become Co-Hosts for my Experience. I’ve also made a good friend in Germany who was initially a guest on my Experience. She started coming back weekly to ride with me before she returned home. She recently informed me she will be returning for three months in December and plans to join me once again for our weekly horse rides.

Me on the left with 3 of my co-hosts who were all once guests on my experience - this during one of our own team-bonding fun-rides.

Felicity: When I first started hosting, I thought this would be a small business that could work for me and fit in around raising my boys. However, what I hadn’t taken into consideration was the impact I could have on the lives of my guests and the immense sense of satisfaction I would feel as a result. We set up our cottage to be a home away from home and a place my family would want to stay if we were traveling. We have books, toys, soft cushions, cozy blankets, cheerful pictures, and lots of flowers and plants around to help create an inviting atmosphere.

Over the years, we have welcomed many families to our area as they relocate to Sydney for work. One of the most challenging aspects for newcomers is establishing local connections and building a community. We have shared many cups of tea and homemade biscuits with these new families as we provide details about local mothers’ groups, activities, playgrounds, and preschools. I’ve seen new moms in the area go on to form strong friendships and gradually feel more at home and connected to our community. It’s delightful to run into them at the shops or the beach and hear stories about how they are settling in, finding their way, forming friendships, and how my suggestions contributed to their positive experiences.

We also host many grandparents who visit our area to catch up with their grandchildren. Sometimes, relationships are not always easy, and you can sense a bit of apprehension. When you haven’t seen your grandchildren for a while, it’s not always easy to pick up where you left off or know where to start. In our cottage, we provide a range of children’s toys and books. I’ve noticed many grandparents using these resources and developing lovely relationships with their grandchildren. Many of them comment that their grandchildren love visiting “Granny and Grandad’s cottage” and they truly feel like it’s their home away from home. They’ve created wonderful and precious memories during their stay with us.

We have no idea what headspace our guests are in when they come to stay with us. I had a relatively quiet guest stay with us, and I had a few brief chats with them. One night, while my son and I were stargazing in the driveway, he arrived home. We invited him to join us, and we ended up having a great conversation about stars and galaxies. When he departed, he left us a beautiful card where he explained that when he first arrived, he had “a broken spirit and was not in a good place.” However, upon leaving, he felt “excited, focused, and back to full force.” One of the highlights of his stay was stargazing with us. I don’t believe we did anything extraordinary for this guest, but I believe our welcoming demeanor and comfortable home away from home made a difference.

When I used to travel for work, I often chose traditional bed and breakfast accommodations over local hotels due to the hosts. I would look forward to certain trips more than others simply because I knew I would receive a warm welcome from the hosts and have engaging conversations at the end of the day. Today, I have guests who return to stay with me because they know they will be welcomed, and they look forward to catching up with me and my family.

Many guests appreciate the knowledge that when they book a stay with us, there will be an on-site host who will make them feel at home. It can be reassuring to arrive in a new city or town and know there’s that element of personal contact, if needed. When guests compliment our inviting hospitality, it gives me the sense we’re making a positive impact on someone’s life. It also leads to the realization that creating a personal connection with a guest doesn’t always require a lot of effort. Sometimes it’s a personal note upon their arrival, other times it’s a chat, or it might be a quick message to ensure the guests have found everything they need. These are small gestures, but they provide a human touch and make you feel less lonely.

There is more to hosting than simply providing a bed and a roof to sleep under.  A genuine human connection often leads to wonderful friendships and experiences forming as a result. I know many Hosts who find hosting an incredibly rewarding experience and get so much out of it. I think many guests choose to stay with us because they know there’s an element of human touch and that’s what they’re looking for. Sometimes, what really makes your stay just a little bit better are those personal real-life connections. Only hosts can do this. 

Claudia: With this post, we would like to gather your stories and raise awareness of what we are already doing to tackle loneliness as Hosts and travelers. 

Have you hosted groups of friends or people interested in spending time together? Welcomed people for family gatherings or meetings? Did you organize events, appetizers, or lunches for your guests? Have you built relationships or encouraged friendship?
In the coming months, we’ll share additional ideas, aiming to inspire each other on how we can enhance our closeness and explore new hospitality opportunities. 

We would also like to raise awareness about the topic of loneliness in the coming months, as we understand that addressing it can lead to not only a more positive way of traveling but also to new opportunities for hosts and travelers.

You can also view these articles that are related to our topic here : 

• How Hosting on Airbnb Makes the World Smaller by @Marielle135 @Delphine348 @Tatiya0 
  
  

• How hosting forms connections around the world

  by @Jue0 @Jennifer3225 @Daniel1651 @Claudia331 

[Laurelle3]

@Claudia331 @Felicity11  and @Deirdre122  what a contrabution of sharing your experiences of holding out your hands of welcome to others. 

I think we can all say that Covid can be written in history as a time where people lost contact with relatives and friends by forced rules and regulations.

Yes, I  can agree with you as hosts that share their home or live onsite and meet their guestsv, have a conversation, share a drink or a meal can break down barriers with their guest. Maybe we are a link for our guests to be more settled in an unknown environment. 

[Claudia331]

@Laurelle3 thank you for your feedback! 

We think that this growing trend can be crucial for people, especially young and elder, who can combine travel, contact and connections in our houses feeling like home 

Share with us your experience if you like... did you travel to meet your friends or part of your family recently? Did you host group of people interested in stay together, strengthen their relations, live same experiences?

[Laurelle3]

@Claudia331 thinking back to the Covid restrictions yes, at times we felt shut off from the world. But we had the beach to walk along each day. The phone became a friend and messenger calls to our daughter in New Zealand as we had 2 flight bookings cancelled. 

Our main contact was with my 90 year old neighbour delivering meals to her and shopping for her needs.  But we communicated in the garden every day feeding the birds, watching the flowers and shrubs changing through the seasons. 

[Claudia331]

@Laurelle3 your answer reminds us that Covid period, even though very difficult and painful for many, especially for those who have lost their affections, allowed us rediscover the importance of small gestures, the beauty of things we have always taken for granted and the importance to take care to the positive relations, really precious for our life 

[Felicity11]

Hi @Laurelle3 

Thank you for your feedback.  It is great to hear your comments on the article.   Post Covid I think there are many people looking to travel and catch up with family and friends.   I do think that personal touch of a host can make such a difference - just knowing someone is there. 

[Shinya0]

Thank you @Claudia331 @Felicity11   @Deirdre122  for bringing up a topic so meaningful and one that I empathize with.

As Brian has also mentioned earlier in his podcasts and an article, loneliness is a big issue not only among seniors, but also among teenagers.

COVID may be one of the reasons for this breakdown in physical connection, but Yes! I agree with Felicity! 

I have always felt that the human warmth offered by hosts can provide a stay where guests can feel truly connected!

I hope that travel can be a way to learn from the many encounters, and at the same time be a provider of healing!

Travel could be viewed as an antidote to isolation and disconnection.🙏

[Claudia331]

Dear @Shinya0 you have understood perfectly the meaning of this message!

Brian’s interviews were our inspiration, feeling aligned with the great potential that travels and stays on this platform have in tackling loneliness

Many listings and many hosts allow people to meet, to live a time of authentic relationships, to rediscover the importance of physical (not virtual/digital) meetings

All this can represent a great resource for the present and the future