The 2018 year will bring much excitement to Airbnb, with the home-sharing platform's 10-year anniversary approaching. The fast-growing company has also recently released its predictions for what the next 12 months will bring, including its most popular destinations and the cities that are likely to see the most visitors.
Let's take a look at what Airbnb expects 2018 to look like, based on bookings already made for the first half of the year.
It's not surprising to find that the most popular cities for Airbnb bookings are also some of the most popular destination hot spots in general: Tokyo, Osaka, and Paris. Following closely behind are cities like New York City, London, Rome, Orlando, Miami, Sydney, and Lisbon.
These ten destinations are the most booked on the platform, but also tend to be popular in a global sense. Some of the smaller cities, such as Lisbon, aren't exactly large "bucket list" cities. However, they are steadily growing in popularity.
The 2018 Winter Olympics will be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea. That's why it's no surprise to see cities like Gangneung topping the list of trending destinations. In fact, the city's bookings are up 2175% for the coming year!
It might be more surprising to learn that the second-highest trending destination is Edmonton, Canada. There, bookings are up 284% for 2018. You'll also find quite a few Midwest cities gaining popularity, such as Indianapolis (up 256%) and Columbus, Ohio (up 254%).
If you're looking for something a bit more exotic, you'll be in good company in Vietnam – where cities Da Nang and Hanoi are up 255% and 212%, respectively – or Brazil – where Matinhos (209%) and Guarapari (205%) make the trending list.
Trending Spaces
Most travelers are looking for a more typical stay in a home or condo. However, other types of spaces are also gaining popularity. Attesting to this, bookings of nature lodges are up 700% and RVs are up 133%.
Experiencing Something New
In 2016, Airbnb introduced Experiences. They allow travelers and locals alike the opportunity to experience new flavors, locales, and music in a particular city. These bookings, offered by hosts in cities across the world, provide a fun way to explore an area in a new way and are also gaining in popularity.
Experiences involving food and drink are by far the most popular through Airbnb. In fact, they account for 29% of the total experiences booked on the site. These include things like food tastings, home-cooked dinners, food and wine tastings, and even local culinary workshops.
Nature and music (such as concerts) are also popular, each accounting for 9% of bookings through the site. Airbnb predicts that the demand for experiences like live concerts and unconventional outdoor excursions (such as white water rafting and the like) will boom in 2018.
The top trending experience for 2018 is located in Lisbon. There, travelers can try the best flavors that the city has to offer. Other trending experiences include walking to the top of the Hollywood sign in Los Angeles, checking out a hidden jazz club or secret tree house concern in London, and "raising a glass to prohibition" in New York City.
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