Hi everyone,
Did you see the announcement on the 100+ upgrades across Airbnb?
In May, Airbnb leaders and Host Community Leaders held an event for local AU Host Clubs to discuss what these changes mean for Hosts. It was great to see @Cathie19 participating in the chat.
A highlight of the event for me were the insights on how the travel landscape is developing both globally and locally and I wanted to share some of these with you here. This is based on analysing booking data and surveying 10,000 consumers across 5 countries. Here’s what we learnt about Australia:
Aussies are staying together and for longer
- We have seen a 123% increase in stays around National Parks across Australia and the percentage of rural nights on Airbnb has roughly doubled from mid 2019 to mid 2021.
- 42% of Australian bookings are in rural locations (up 18% from 2019)
- With 11% of our nights booked between 1st of January and 31st April 2021 here in Australia being long term stays.
- From surveying Australians, we found that 41% of Aussies see traveling more as a lifestyle where they can spend more time in different places throughout the year
It’s so interesting that almost 50% of Australians say that who they ’re with and what they do together is the most important factor when planning travel this year. We are treasuring our family connections now more than ever.
Other Highlights
Host Clubs
- Many clubs have been still connecting with each other even during COVID. Groups like the Hunter Valley Host Clubhave got together to chat about all things hosting and check in with each other.
- Recently the team from the Sunshine Coast Host club organized a meetup with local city councilors in reaction to new laws proposed in Noosa Shire. They had an incredible turnout with hundreds of local Hosts banding together to make positive change.
- Other leaders and Airbnb Ambassadors have been featured in newspapers & on TV around the country to discuss their experience hosting.
Host Demos. The Australia Country Manager did a deeper dive into 3 new features: Inbox, Arrival Guides, and the Today Tab. Many Hosts were excited to see the improvements to Inbox, such as scheduled messages. For more information on the announcements made by CEO, Brian Chesky on May 24th, check out this article.
It’s been so wonderful hearing from some of our Australian Community Center members lovely hosting stories and how they have been welcoming guests from New Zealand recently, too.
And don’t forget, if you would like to connect with your local Host Club, find your Club here.
Are you looking forward to a family holiday soon?
Thanks,
Nick