Airbnb reveals top destinations for British digital nomads
Highlighting a growing trend for long-term stays, Airbnb reveals where British digital nomads are choosing to base themselves in summer 2022. Rose Dykins reports
Airbnb has shared insights into the booking behaviour of British digital nomads for Summer 2022 – including the most popular places they are choosing to work from.
According the home rental company, almost half of all nights booked globally during the first quarter of 2022 were for stays of one week or longer. And in the UK alone, the amount of long-term stays booked increased by a third during the same period.
This suggests customers are embracing the flexibility to live and work anywhere, as the rise of remote working has untethered many people from the need to be in a fixed office every day.
Instead, Airbnb says more people are using its accommodation to stay for weeks, months or even entire seasons, and that in 2021, one in five of its guests reported using Airbnb to work remotely.
Airbnb shared data from emigration specialist Reiss Edwards, which found the highest level of searched in internet history was made in Britain for the term “move abroad” last month on Google – rising by 1,000 per cent in April 2022.
The rental company revealed its most popular destinations for long-term stays, as well as the locations British customers were choosing to base themselves in summer 2022. The results are as follows:
Most Popular Destinations for long-term stays:
- Lisbon, Portugal
- Dubai, UAE
- Bristol, UK
- Birmingham, UK
- Manchester, UK
- Cape Town, South Africa
- Glasgow, UK
- Liverpool, UK
- Seoul, Korea
- Los Angeles, California, US
Trending international destinations for summer 2022 for Brits
- Ibiza, Spain
- Corralejo, Canary Islands, Spain
- Tulum, Mexico
- Alcúdia, Spain
- Pollença, Spain
- Naples, Italy
- Lanzarote, Spain
- Antalya, Turkey
- Nerja, Andalucía, Spain
- Olbia, Sardinia, Italy
Airbnb says that, of its six million listings across the world, nine out of ten of them are already "long-stay ready", while many offer the features digital nomads need, such as verified wifi and a dedicated workspace.
Samantha Scott, an Airbnb digital nomad guest, says: "Thanks to Airbnb, I can call anywhere in the world, home. The platform taught me how to adapt my lifestyle to the culture and people I'm around. It's fun.
"Living this way since 2018. I've learned how important it is to use the right filters, check reviews (and wifi speed) and I always prioritise a dedicated workspace, to support my work-life balance."
To embrace the work from anywhere trend, Airbnb is teaming up with governments to support their efforts to bring remote workers to their communities. The rental platform launched its Live and Work Anywhere initiative to partner with governments and destination marketing organisations (DMOs), and help promote locations seeking to attract digital nomads.
Airbnb has also made it easier for people interested in sharing their home with guests. Its new ten-step onboarding process helps people understand how much their property could make on Airbnb.
By visiting airbnb/host, aspiring hosts can sign up for informative webinars, connect with Superhosts for one-on-one advice, and the company has also introduced AirCover as a free support service for its hosts wanting to protect their properties in case of damage.