Airbnb publicizes Go Close to to assist native journey and financial development
Airbnb introduces a new engagement program and announces its collaboration with local authorities, nonprofit partners and tourism organizations from around the world
Airbnb has announced two initiatives to support local travel and economic growth: a series of partnerships with travel destinations around the world and Go Near, a new initiative to support the local economy through local travel. The initiatives come from the travel industry taking first steps to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
While the travel industry, including Airbnb, has been hit hard by COVID-19 and uncertainties will remain, the company's booking data shows that travel is gradually recovering and new survey results have identified a number of trends that will shape travel in the travel sector coming weeks and months. The following describes the steps Airbnb is taking to work with local communities and best serve hosts and guests around the world based on the trends the company sees.
This work includes a number of partnerships with target marketing organizations to help these organizations use the Airbnb platform to support local economic development. Efforts to make the company's platform available as a tool for communities are based on historical data on how Airbnb has supported economic strengthening.
For example, Airbnb's host and host community had estimated direct economic impact of $ 117 billion / £ 92.5 billion in 30 countries alone in 2019. This is an increase of 16 percent over the $ 100 billion / £ 79.1 billion community achieved in 30 countries in 2018.
Airbnb works with governments and tourism agencies to support responsible and safe travel that benefits local people and small businesses.
The company is launching a new engagement program and announces its collaboration with local authorities, non-profit partners and tourism organizations from around the world, including the National Park Foundation (USA) – the official non-profit organization of the National Park Service – as part of a national marketing campaign Thrill Airbnb guests with less-visited parks, trails, and rivers near their destinations.
Through other partnerships, Airbnb will exchange travel data and insights, enabling these organizations to use their platform and channels and reach hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
In a survey commissioned by Airbnb, nearly half of the U.S. respondents said they would prefer to stay within a day for their first trip once the suspension restrictions are lifted. Since the pandemic began, the percentage of Airbnb bookings within 200 miles that return travelers can generally fill up with a tank of gas has increased from a third of all bookings in February to over half in May.
Airbnb takes advantage of nearby travel demand and updates its app and homepage to help guests rediscover the magic in their own backyards by making it easier to book local trips, even at the last minute. This includes local travel ideas and highlighting short breaks nearby. Airbnb will also launch a summer email and social media campaign under the "Go Near" banner to promote both short breaks nearby and Airbnb's recently launched online experiences.
