Airbnb seeks to put the kibosh on disruptive summer parties after the vaccination by launching its “Summer of Responsible Travel” plan, which focuses on providing more hosts and their neighbors, and adjusting its policies to prevent Airbnbs from other things than calm, socially remote accommodation.
The most striking change from Airbnb is a ban on one or last minute stays on the fourth of July, at least for the guests who do not has a history of positive reviews from Airbnb hosts. The company is targeting the fourth, as it says the holiday is seen as a ‘reopening date’ for the US and possibly an opportunity for big events that could spread COVID-19.
As the policy currently stands there, there are still some loopholes that could make big celebrations of the fourth of July happen. If you have booked before today, the bookings will be honored; the same is true if you have multiple positive reviews but now decide to have an outburst. But if you are new to the platform and do not have a review history, you may have a harder time booking a night stay. The policy is similar to what Airbnb tried on Halloween. On that holiday, the already booked one-night bookings were canceled and the hosts refunded, but it does not appear to be the same as the fourth of July.
Airbnb announced a global ban on house parties earlier in 2020 and is currently holding gatherings against 16 people. It is not clear how often these policies are applied, or whether more people turn up after an event that only 16 people have been invited to. The last time Airbnb blocked and canceled bookings for an event was during President Biden’s inauguration week, but the Fourth of July policy is softer. Still, Airbnb has an impact on people who have planned to book a place and save themselves money in the process.
Airbnb will also start offering discounts on sound detection devices by a company called Minut. Airbnb does not specify the discount amount, but sensors cost $ 129 and monthly subscriptions can cost as much as $ 14.99 per month. Minutes’ sensors do not record anything, but they track movement and loudness and automatically send notifications to guests when they pass certain decibel levels. It’s not as whimsical as it could be, but it can still make guests uncomfortable. According to Airbnb, hosts will need to report whether they are using Minute devices on their listing pages.
Airbnb is also expanding its Neighborhood Support Line to cover Spanish calls. Neighborhood Support is a 24/7 service that neighbors can use to complain about Airbnbs, a kind of first protection to not necessarily get hosts and guests dealing with local authorities over something like a noise complaint – as an annoyed neighbor know to call to call the starting line (855-635-7754).
Airbnb filed to be public during the pandemic, and in the process it revealed a loss of revenue of nearly $ 700 million during 2020. Everything Airbnb has done since then has happened in the shadows or it can bounce back after a hard year. Airbnb is in a difficult situation; it wants to encourage travel, but it should also keep guests safe without completely preventing them from using the service. It would seem that the “Summer of Responsible Travel” is as much about encouraging guests to stay responsible as it is about actually laying down the legislation.