Airbnb Experiences is a significant play by the private accommodation sharing giant to diversify beyond its core proposition.
But, one year on, how is it performing so far?
At the Buy Tourism Online conference in Florence, Italy, last week, an Airbnb executive noted two interesting statistics regarding its Experiences operation:
- It is notching more than 8,000 bookings per week on the platform.
- It is receiving upwards of 1,200 requests a week from hosts for new Experiences.
In an interview with PhocusWire, Airbnb confirms that weekly Experience guests have indeed grown by 20% since January 2017, and that increase will continue as the service expands to new destinations in 2018.
Of the markets with current offerings, Europe, the Middle East and Africa top out at more than 1,400 Experiences on the platform, while North America has more than 850, Asia-Pacific has more than 550 and Latin America has nearly 300; October saw the highest number of bookings to date.
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On average globally, Experience guests are paying $55 per booking, while some hosts across markets stand to earn more than $100,000 this year.
Airbnb says the service is particularly popular among Homes guests, which includes business travelers, many of whom fall into the "bleisure" category of booking while on the road.
An official continues:
"We're seeing more and more people combine business trips with weekend stays and finding ways to create unique experiences even if they are on the road for work.
"Booking an Experience while on the road is a natural extension and a great opportunity for road warriors to embrace their trip and live like a local."
As previously reported, while overall adoption of Airbnb has flattened and brand awareness has topped off, the company has started to look toward offering end-to-end travel experiences.
According to Airbnb, most people are booking Experiences either very close to their trip start date or while a trip is in progress, indicating the uptick in Experience activity may help the company on its mission toward seamless travel planning.