Airbnb Doubles Down on Experiences, Expanding to 1000 Destinations and Adding New Passion Categories in 2018

By Airbnb · February 23, 2018

Driven by 5000 Experiences across 60 destinations, bookings have grown 2500% in the past year
Airbnb will expand Experiences to 1000 destinations by the end of 2018, including places such as Easter Island, Tasmania and Iceland
Airbnb is announcing new Experience passion categories such as Airbnb Concerts, Social Dining, and Adventures, and is expanding its Social Impact Experiences by working with more than 1000 non-profits in 2018
Some of the most-booked Experience hosts have earned more than $200,000 through their offerings

In ten years, we’ve seen Airbnb hosts drive magical travel at unprecedented scale. And since launching Trips in November 2016, we’ve shown that this doesn’t just apply to Homes. Our vision of end-to-end travel, encompassing where you stay, what you do and who you meet, has helped almost a million travelers better get to know destinations through Experiences, travel activities crafted and led by expert locals.

This formula is working. Driven by thousands of new Experiences across 60 cities, Experience bookings grew 2500% during 2017, and we’ve seen Experiences grow 25X faster than Homes did in the first year. In addition, we’re finding that guests who book Experiences overwhelmingly love them: 91% of Experience bookings receive five star reviews.

2,500%

growth in Experience bookings in the past year

1,000

Experience destinations by the end of 2018

$200K

in earnings for some of our most-booked Experience hosts

In 2018, we’re doubling down on Experiences, both in terms of expansion and the quality and uniqueness of our offerings. By the end of this year, Experiences will expand to more than 1000 destinations, including unique places like Easter Island, Tasmania and Iceland.

In tandem, we’re ensuring that Experience guests always find authentic, well-curated activities that travelers can’t find elsewhere, and more importantly, those that align with their interests and passions. Over 50,000 hosts have applied to host Experiences, but high quality is important and we select our Experience hosts based on expertise, local access and their ability to offer great hospitality. In doing so, we are also helping hosts make extra income doing what they love. Some of our most-booked hosts are making more than $200,000 per year offering Experiences.

Experiences are also building knowledge about what every destination has to offer, from local cuisine and arts to music and outdoor adventures. With that in mind, we’re adding new passion categories – Airbnb Concerts, Social Dining, Adventures – and expanding Social Impact Experiences:

Airbnb Concerts, intimate live shows in unexpected venues that most travelers don’t know about.

Social Dining, specialty dining Experiences planned by hosts that help travelers make friends from all over the world

Adventures, multi-day excursions off the beaten path that travelers plan a whole trip around: such as living with Bedouins camping in the Sahara – we’re even looking into trips to the North Pole