What makes the difference between the host community on Airbnb is how they connect guests with their neighborhoods to help spread the economic benefits of travel and how they make their guests feel safe and at home.
Hosts on Airbnb meet new guest needs for greater cleanliness and privacy. Historically, 95 percent of all Airbnb reviews show that guests are satisfied with the cleanliness, rating it 4 or 5 stars after their stay. Since the launch of the Advanced Cleaning Protocol, accommodations that are part of the program have had an average cleanliness rating of 4.8 stars, based on guest reviews.
In honor of World Tourism Day, we celebrate the millions of hosts who always go the extra mile (earning 5-star reviews from their guests) and the communities in which these hosts live. According to reviews from June 2019 to June 2020, Costa Rica’s “most hospitable” towns and regions, that is, the places with the highest percentage of ads with 5-star reviews include in order:
1. Curridabat, San José
2. Turrialba, Cartago
3. Santa Ana, San José
4. Cañas, Guanacaste
5. Río Segundo, Alajuela
6. Atenas, Alajuela
7. San Antonio, Heredia
8. Alajuela, Alajuela
9. San Pedro, San José
10. Escazú, San José
Importance of rural tourism in the world
The World Tourism Organization has designated 2020 as the “Year of Tourism and Rural Development” that focuses on the economic importance of rural travel on the occasion of World Tourism Day. At Airbnb, we see travel and tourism helping rural communities around the world begin to recover from the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whether urban or rural, the health of communities is of the utmost importance and Airbnb encourages hosts and guests to follow local health recommendations. While great uncertainty remains as the pandemic moves and changes around the world, Airbnb believes that people’s desire to connect safely has only grown stronger while being apart, and the host community on Airbnb its key in making those connections happen.
In particular, the platform’s data shows a shift in travel from urban destinations to more rural areas and smaller communities. In August, for example, more guests stayed in the Catskills and Hudson Valley than in New York. And in July and August:
• In Australia, more guests stayed on the Sunshine Coast than in Sydney or Melbourne.
• In Italy more guests stayed in Sardinia than in Rome and Venice
• More guests stayed on the Etruscan coast than in Florence.
• More guests stayed on the Alabama Gulf Coast than in Miami.
• More guests stayed around Lake Tahoe than in Las Vegas.
• More guests stayed in the Smoky Mountains than in Atlanta or Nashville.
• And more guests stayed on the Oregon coast than in Seattle or Portland.
In Costa Rica, rural destinations are among the most sought after in recent months. These are Jacó, Tamarindo, Liberia, and Manuel Antonio.
“We are proud to be able to help communities outside the Greater Costa Rica Metropolitan Area to obtain more economic benefits through safe and responsible travel, especially when they are struggling to recover economically from the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a 2019 survey of guests and hosts on Airbnb, the community-generated an estimated the US $ 277 million in economic impact in the Tico country”, explained Carlos Muñoz, Director of national Public Affairs for Airbnb.
Also, they have partnered with a range of destination marketing and other civic organizations to promote domestic travel and highlight places considered out of the ordinary. These campaigns, which include specialized websites and emails, are at no cost to our partners and are helping guests discover new places near their homes.
