UP FRONT | LODGING
A Pirates Life for Me boathouse, South Carolina
Long-Term Lodging With remote work and school, vacation rental sites see extended stays
BRIAN CHESKY, CEO and co-founder of Airbnb, believes that the line between travel and daily life is becoming permanently blurred as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic that continues to sweep the globe. People are starting to stay longer at Airbnb locations, rather than opting for quick getaways, making travel less of a special event and more of a way of life. “As length of stay increases, those two worlds start blurring together,” Chesky says. “Because people were traveling nearby — the places they were going —
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GO ESCAPE | SUMMER 2021
many of them didn’t even have hotels. They’re traveling and staying longer because they’re more flexible.” The flexibility that comes with remote work and learning is also changing when people travel, according to Airbnb’s 2021 travel report. “A significant percentage of Americans are more open to traveling during off-peak times of year and days of the week — one-quarter of those surveyed, in both cases,” Airbnb reports. Another 24 percent of respondents “see themselves undertaking more
longer-term stays.” Sixty percent of longer-term stays were by guests who worked or studied while at their rentals. At its core, “work from home” can be substituted with “work from anywhere” — which is giving people greater flexibility when it comes to their lifestyle, according to Chesky. But the trend goes beyond workrelated travel. Due to COVID-19, leisure travelers are less comfortable staying at bustling resorts or visiting crowded tourist districts. >
AIRBNB
BY MORGAN HINES
