Short Term Rental (AirBnb, etc.) Reception In Europe

The third link shows the survey was in 2021 and Booking.com is one of the sponsors of this newsletter. Hmmm. They may have a dog in this fight as might an Airbnb owner.

A lot has changed in the past four years and remove an interested party from the information to increase validity. Did they publish the questions so we can judge if they are leading or impartial?

Mainly a big city issue. Not unusual for a Parisian, opposed to AirBnb's in his own city, to rent a gîte in a Dordogne or Alsace village and not complain about it.

Recently political actions to curb Airbnbs in multiple countries suggests that this somewhat dated study is out of step with changes in attitudes and legislation in Spain, Italy and so. (An association with booking com reminds of Philip Morris supported studies that said smoking is healthy!)

But I am sure you are right that many folks in Barcelona and Lisbon and so on love Airbnbs. They want to earn extra income and many want more tourism. Divided opinions surely exist on this among the locals-- though I tend to doubt they are popular now as they were a few years ago though. Like adding salt to a soup-- a little is good but a lot is too much. Where to strike the balance? Or should we have no regulations? I dunno.

And Mr E, Is the purpose of this post political? If so, hats off! Crafty of you!

Happy travels.

The study was conducted by: Ipsos European Public Affairs at the request of the European Commission, Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, Survey coordinated by the European Commission, Directorate-General for Communication (DG COMM “Media Monitoring and urobarometer” Unit)

The survey was by country and not by city. 25700 interviews were conducted in the 27 member states in September of 2021.

The exact questions are in the links above. Very transparent survey actually.

In the 3.5 years since the survey was conducted the number of worldwide Airbnb listings has dropped from nearly 13 million to closer to 8 million. In Europe the 2024 tourist season was about equal to the 2019 season. A google found anti-Airbnb articles going back to before 2016, so that’s not new. I have no idea how, if at all, this would change the survey if it were done today.

I think the problem with the study is identical to the problem with a just about every short-term rental discussion I have ever encountered. Over-generalization without regard for the location of the short-term rental. Yes, the survey is by country, but it really needs to be by city to have teeth. Then again the individuals of the city have the power to legislate the short-term rentals and if they do that well, then maybe they have a positive perception of their result? Dont know.

There one statement that is wrong 100% of the time: 1) Short-term rentals _____insert anything you want, good or bad __. If it isn’t location specific, or if it tries to equate the world with one or several bad, or good, example cities, then its ideological and not factual.

I would say if you wanted to use this in your reasoning "should I stay in a short-term rental" you could say the survey shows that short-term rentals are not seen as evil by the overwhelming number of Europeans in general. Good start. But specific local attitudes can be different because us of unique conditions. So be dang sure when dealing with something that can be volatile that you do a little extra due diligence and ensure that you are respecting the will of the locals by renting legally.

Good points Mr E!

P.S. The below was just posted here responding to anti-tourism sentiments in Spain:

Posted by PatK
Barcelona
03/20/25 11:20 AM
10 posts
Report

As an ex-pat living in Barcelona, I wouldn't worry about it. The tourist-targeted protests were (a) during the summer, when the city can be utterly slammed, and (b) targeting tourists eating at places like McDonalds. If you're trying to connect to the culture, you're generally not who they're frustrated with - and as Paul says above, most of the protesting is focused at the government, not at visitors. (In fact, it's been inspiring as a non-native to participate in some of the marches that have taken place to help renters in the city.)
The one cautionary note that I will make is that you will infinitely improve your odds of a smooth trip from local-attitude perspectives if you stay in hotels/hostels/pensions and not an AirBnB style accommodation. The housing market is under serious pressure, and the one place you might get some genuine anger is if people see you as a part of that problem. Otherwise, in October, as a thoughtful traveler, you'll be fine!

David, sometimes I get it right.

Its not a problem here. I live in what use to be an Airbnb in building which is about 5% airbnb in a part of town that is probably close to 5% airbnb and no one really cares one way or the other .... until they come to realization that most of the renovations in the area are the in part due to tourism in the are which is in part due to tourist accommodation in the area. ... then they are happy i suspect. But with 95% of Hungarians living in a home owned by one of the occupant of the home; we dont have a lot of rental pressure either. It does exist around the universities (students) and at the very bottom end of the financial spectrum to some degree.

Barcelona sounds like a whole nother nightmare.

You know me Mr E! Sometimes right. Sometimes wrong. But never in doubt!

Oh, I saw this:

" Even travel guru Rick Steves himself recognizes the convenience
Airbnb offers and its transformative effect on how people travel the
world. However, he also acknowledges that the app's popularity
adversely impacts housing markets and communities.

Airbnb [is] very efficient, very economic, but it has, in a lot of
cases, a devastating impact on the fabric of communities because if
you're a landlord, you can make a lot more money by getting rid of
your traditional tenants and renting out one, two, three, four-night
stays via Airbnb," he explained in a YouTube video. "It causes the
traditional people, the fabric of the community, to move out and it
becomes really a vacation destination without that community."

In the same clip, Steves noted that years ago, he used to stay in a
bed and breakfast in Salema, Portugal, operated by fishermen families
who rented rooms in their homes to supplement their income. While
these rooms still exist today, they are outnumbered by Airbnb
properties.

Read More:
https://www.islands.com/1537771/rick-steves-why-rethink-booking-airbnb/

David

But never in doubt!,
You will see “I don’t know” often in my posts. But thank you for the complement. You are a prince.

I suspect that Rick did not say those words as absolutes, but he wasn’t careful enough to phrase it in a way that would prevent his words from being interpreted as such (absolutes).

Either that, or it is Ricks view that all or most or the majority of all places where short-term rentals exist are being destroyed by the short-term rentals ..... Meaning that 82% of the European citizens who see them as a benefit, or no impact are wrong and don’t understand Europe or their country as well as Rick does. Wait, that survey was 42 months ago, it’s totally reversed, and 82% agree with Rick now? Doubtful.

Half a dozen cities have for all intents and purposes banned short-term rentals. Again, maybe that’s why the don’t see them as a problem. Good for them. I love it when democracy works.

All sarcasm aside, good discussion David.