Hostaway reveals latest travel trends
US: Vacation rental management software Hostaway has outlined five trends the company is observing across its platform ahead of the summer season.
Hostaway’s data reveals that long-stays have increased by 106 per cent since 2019. During 2020 and 2021, this type of booking accounted for 9.5 per cent of the total and has risen in the last six months to 10.3 per cent.
This trend prompted Airbnb’s recent new feature update – Split Stays. Offered automatically when users search for a trip longer than one week, Split Stays pairs two nearby homes, back-to-back, for the specified duration of the trip.
Other trends observed at Hostaway include demand for luxury vacation rentals, which has increased by 15 per cent year-on-year since 2019. Swimming pools, hot tubs and mountain views are three of the most common features of luxury homes.
Regarding location, travel to Canada is up by 57 per cent in 2022 compared to 2020 levels, whereas Mexico is up to 200 per cent over the same period. The UAE is also the fastest-growing nightly rate for vacation rentals, up 47 per cent in 2022 compared to 2019 levels.
On Hostaway’s platform, the proportion of direct to total bookings globally increased from an average of 7.8 per cent in 2019 to 13.5 per cent in 2020, and 16.8 per cent in 2021. Currently, this is standing at 16.1 per cent for 2022.
Marcus Rader, CEO of Hostaway, said: “Here at Hostaway we love seeing trends emerge from our data. The overall picture is that confidence in travel is definitely back. The volume of US travellers visiting Mexico this year, the growth of the sector in the UAE and the cash being spent on the luxury end of the market are all opportunities short-term rental operators in those areas should be taking advantage of right now.”
Hostaway provides channel integrations with partners such as Homes & Villas by Marriott International, VRBO, Booking.com and Airbnb, with over 100 software partners.
