Airbnb says family travel will be at an all-time-high this summer, while demand for domestic travel remains strong. Rose Dykins reports
Airbnb has highlighted key summer 2022 travel trends based on a survey of its active guests across the US, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Japan and South Korea – more than nine in ten of whom are considering travelling over the season.
According to Airbnb, solo travel is not front of mind for its customers, with the majority of respondents expecting to travel with family and to connect over new travel experiences this season. Family travel is Airbnb’s fastest-growing segment for summer stays booked during the first quarter of 2022 (compared with the same quarter in 2019).
Airbnb also found that domestic travel will remain strong this summer, representing more than half of all nights booked in the first quarter of 2022 for summer stays. This is despite the fact that the international travel has recovered to pre-pandemic levels and continues to rise, with an increase in international summer stays booked compared to the first quarter of 2021.
And when asked why they might travel with Airbnb over the summer, most guests said they were seeking “adventure”.
Airbnb says it has experience a surge in interest for distinctive accommodation such as “tiny houses” (up by 173 per cent) barns (up 160 per cent) domes (up by 134 per cent) and treehouses (up by 116 per cent). The company expects the countries that will have the most treehouse stays this summer to be the US, France, Canada, the UK and Costa Rica.
Finally, of the people surveyed, more than nine in ten said they were flexible about their travel dates this summer (at least occasionally). This is an interesting post-pandemic development, and suggests Airbnb customers have become more accustomed to a more flexible approach to where they live and work.