Key Data: Vacation rental bookings rise by 27 per cent

Worldwide: The outlook for vacation rental travel this year is looking positive after data and insights platform, Key Data, revealed a significant rise in the number of reservations made in January 2023 compared to January 2022.

The platform, which is also the exclusive data partner of the Vacation Rental Management Association [VRMA], compared reservations made on Airbnb and Vrbo for US and UK vacation rentals during the first three weeks of January to the same period in 2022. Key Data found that reservations made in the United States went up 27 per cent to 4,245,574 trips in total, and reservations in the UK increased by 19 per cent to 1,039,495 trips in total.

However, despite the rising frequency of reservations, there was a slight decline in both countries [four per cent in the United States and 11 per cent in the UK] in the number of nights booked overall. The drop in length of stay may be due to the impact of recession, with consumers still travelling but cutting trips short in order to meet their budget.

In the context of global inflation, the value of reservations made during this period sharply increased compared to 2022. In the United States, this was the most dramatic at a 43 per cent increase, while in the UK, it stood at 10.5 per cent.

Hosts and property managers in both countries generated nearly USD $7 billion [GBP £5.6 billion] in revenue in the first three weeks of January, according to the insights from Key Data.

Melanie Brown, executive director of data insights at Key Data, said: “January reservations are an important measure of traveler confidence because it indicates that consumers are booking well in advance for spring and summer trips. This early data is very promising for what 2023 holds in store for the industry.”