Airbnb bookings for long-term stays grow in the Caribbean
Airbnb, the San Francisco-based online vacation rental company, says it has seen nights booked for long-term stays by travellers from US, UK, France and Canada almost doubled in the Caribbean between 2019 and 2021.
The uptick came as Airbnb and the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) have launched their “Work from the Caribbean” campaign, aimed at promoting the Caribbean as a preferred destination for digital nomads.
Travellers between the ages of 25 and 49 is the group with the highest growth of nights booked for long-term stays in different destinations in the Caribbean, while bookings made by families also grew. The trend of bookings made by solo travellers also grew significantly.
Several destinations in the region have been growing significantly in bookings of 28 nights or more for US and other origin country guests such as Canada, France and the UK comparing 2019 with 2021. This includes the doubling of reservations for this period of stays in the British Virgin Islands and Guyana. St Maarten and Antigua & Barbuda have duplicated their bookings for longer stays comparing 2019 with 2021. Dominica has doubled in bookings for longer stays as well, comparing 2019 with 2021.
Travellers looking to stay 28 days or more have also been specific in their required amenities for stays. According to Airbnb data, these travellers look for these top 10 amenities: wireless Internet, kitchen, air conditioner, pool, washer, free parking, TV or cable, allows pets, dryer, and a laptop friendly workspace.
“Airbnb is proud to have partnered again with the CTO to continue promoting a variety of destinations in the Caribbean so people can work and travel within. The rise of digital nomads and the development of long-stay programmes across the region continue to help in the recovery of tourism and in creating this campaign we hope to inspire travellers to stay in this wonderful region for a longer period of time,” said Carlos Muñoz, Airbnb policy manager for Central America and the Caribbean.
“The latest data released by Airbnb validates the hard work that destinations in the region have done to promote their countries as first class options for digital nomads,” explained Faye Gill, the CTO’s director, membership services.
“Countries quickly identified the niche and built the products, and services, to support growth in the most challenging of circumstances. Thanks to our partner, Airbnb, we are pleased to be able to provide a platform for our members across the Caribbean to build on the success that they have been able to achieve.”
Airbnb’s Work from The Caribbean campaign is one of the many initiatives in the CTO’s ongoing programme to help its members rebuild tourism and shine a light on digital nomad programs in their destinations. With this in mind, Airbnb has now published a social media campaign to keep promoting these amazing destinations and encourage travellers to visit for longer stays.