Anyone else's reservation list completely empty?

[Stephanie365]

While I expect this in the cold months, I have never experienced this in peak travel season in July.

A completely empty calendar.

[Richard531]

I feel everyone's pain on here.  And it really sucks.

Our experience is/was that 2 of our 8 listings slowed for a little.  We made some adjustments and ended up getting them back on track (and we still stayed @ 100% occupancy at all listings and should stay @ 100% occupancy going forward).  But it's a matter of constantly tweaking the price, staying ultra responsive, continuing to provide exceptional service, and keeping exceptional well-kept listings, etc.  I didn't like having to do a good deal of additional work to close the gap, but it was worth it.  We will end up having our best July ever. 

We are also located mostly in the desert so given the economic tapping of the breaks, we're still pretty shocked (and appreciative) that people still want to come out to the desert in the 100+ degree heat and stay with us.  I would say our listings are higher end, but absolutely NOT "category" listings per se.  And we are priced extremely competitively for what we offer.  

I guess the reason I wanted to post on this thread is: if everyone here is feeling the pinch and doing worse, somebody has to be taking that market share, right?  Where are the OMG, Treehouse, Yurt, Castle people that are all the sudden rolling in the dough?  Certainly not on this Board (or at least not saying anything).  

There's ZERO DOUBT that economic factors are having some kind of impact on all of us.  But, for the most part, travel demand is the same as it was last year, 2020 and even 2019. 

So if they're not staying at your/our places, where the heck are they staying?

[Huma0]

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@Richard531 wrote:

So if they're not staying at your/our places, where the heck are they staying?

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That's a very good question. Yes, people are feeling the pinch of the economic situation, but they are travelling. After two years of restrictions and on/off lockdowns, international travel is on the up here in Europe and the airports here in the UK cannot cope with it, having laid off so many staff due to COVID. 

I almost missed the flight for a recent business trip because the queues were insane and then the flight was delayed anyway due to staffing issues. My guests who checked out a few days ago were delayed by four hours (for a 50 minute flight) due to staff shortages. 

Meanwhile, hotels are reporting an upsurge in bookings - above the predictions for this summer - and raising their prices accordingly. Here in London, tourist attractions are bursting at the seams. 

Airbnb hosts should be benefitting from this right now. Maybe some are, but who are they? Where are they? I've seen a couple like you report that your bookings are going well, but the vast majority posting here are experiencing the opposite.

My situation is probably quite different to most in that I primarily host long term guests and very few of those are here for tourism. They come for work, internships and study. Some are digital nomads. With workplaces and universities reopening and long term stays and the digital nomad trend on the rise, my bookings should be increasing, not stopping entirely.

Where is this sector of guest booking, if not with me? Previous guests have told me that it was slim pickings when they searched for long stays in London on Airbnb. Most places were very expensive or they were a bit cheaper, but very basic and overpriced for what was on offer. My listings stood out by being affordable and far from basic, and that is why they were always booked. 

So, where is my target market staying? I'm pretty sure they haven't suddenly all won the lottery and I'm pretty sure they are not choosing to work/study from an igloo...

[David8879]

@Huma0 

Exactly the same situation in Portugal (Algarve)

Hotels booked at astronomical prices

Airports overloaded

Hosts that had not a sinlge free night even in bad times have their booking schedules wide open.

I really hate to go to booking.com or similar - I detest instant booking and lack of control and the only other OTA that let screen is VRBO which stinks to high haven 

[Huma0]

@David8879 

I don't have any experience of booking.com/similar or VRBO because those sites don't cater to homestays but, from what I've read here on the CC, booking.com in particular seems to attract awful guests. On the other hand, I haven't heard as many bad things about VRBO. Some hosts sing its praises.

What were the problems you had with it? It's not relevant to me particularly as my listings are homestays, but perhaps it would be useful information for other hosts.

[Jennifer2682]

@David8879 I hear you about lack of alternatives to Airbnb.  I've been on both VRBO and Airbnb for years and did most of my business through Airbnb as I felt their platform was easier to use and it was easier to track my financials.  I'm still on both (though no bookings on Airbnb since the release despite 98% occupancy for years) but now I'm listed on Houfy as well.  Houfy's site is basically the same as Airbnb's, but gives hosts so much more control!  It's small and relatively unheard of, but I'm hoping that changes.  Hosts and guests alike are certainly clamoring for a good alternative!  

[M199]

@Stephanie365 

We have only had 2 new guest bookings for the end of the summer season since the release and are only 63% booked vs 100% last year.  Also, due to the current economic situation we've lost almost 10 days on pre-release bookings.

That being said, I did have a 3rd time back guest in July who booked for a 4th stay in September. Yeah!

[Huma0]

@Stephanie365 

My only new bookings have been from repeat guests... If it wasn't for them, I'd be totally screwed.