Sydney locals encouraged to host on Airbnb for annual light festival, Vivid

The largest festival of light, music and ideas in the Southern Hemisphere is returning to Sydney later this month for its biggest program to date. Offering a vital economic boost to the city, and with bumper crowds from the regions and interstate expected in Sydney between 26 May and 17 June, now is the perfect time to host on Airbnb.

In 2022, Vivid Sydney saw a record breaking opening weekend with over 440,000 visitors coming to Sydney and the full program attracting over 2.5 million attendees, an over 7 per cent increase from 2019 pre-pandemic attendance. 

Visitor numbers are expected to surge once again, and with over a third of attendees coming from outside of Sydney last year¹, the event offers a welcome opportunity for people to list their room or home to help the city to accommodate the influx of tourists while also earning additional income to offset the rising cost of living.

“Hosting on Airbnb is a great way to help showcase Sydney’s incredible world-class events and the diverse and exciting experiences the city has to offer,” said Susan Wheeldon, Airbnb’s Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand. 

“Nights stayed in private room listings in Australia grew by almost half in 2022 compared to the year before² and private room Hosts in Australia earned a total of over $92m while the typical private room Host earned more than $4,100.

“Hosts collectively earned more than $17 million³ by Hosting during the three weeks of Vivid last year, with individual Hosts earning a median of over $2,200⁴ over the event period. 

“Airbnb offers a unique opportunity for new and existing Hosts in Sydney to be a part of this incredible period of creativity and innovation in the harbour city, while also creating an opportunity to earn extra income to combat cost of living pressures.

“In the current economic environment, people want to travel affordably. And after years of being isolated during the pandemic, they’re looking for ways to connect with people and have authentic experiences, meaning now is the perfect time to stay in an Airbnb Room, an all-new take on the original Airbnb.

“Home sharing helps cities use existing homes to scale up their capacity where there isn’t enough space in traditional forms of accommodation, it also empowers locals to provide sustainable and affordable options across the city which benefits the local economy.

“Hosts on Airbnb also play a valuable role in making guests feel extremely welcome, and our Sydney Hosts are no exception as they help to point guests in the direction of the best hidden gems and local businesses to support.”

With more than an estimated 1.4m spare bedrooms sitting empty in Sydney⁵, home sharing presents a unique opportunity for new Hosts to generate some much needed income during the current cost of living crisis, while also helping out those looking for more affordable accommodation.

Private rooms are an affordable way to stay as a solo traveller or duo. Globally last year, more than 80 percent of private room stays were under USD $100 a night, with the average rate of a private room in Australia at $104 AUD per night. 

With one million listings now in the Airbnb Rooms category, there are private rooms⁶ in more than 60,000 cities and towns around the world, and among them, Sydney ranks fourth in the top five trending destinations⁷ globally.

Christie Johnson is a Sydney Host who has opened her Kirribilli home to guests for various major events including Vivid and New Year’s Eve celebrations on the harbour.

“We absolutely love being Airbnb hosts. We started opening our home to others back in 2015 and it has been an incredible experience ever since. The journey of us being Airbnb hosts allowed us to welcome people and give them an opportunity to travel to a new destination, while still having all the comforts of being ‘at home’.

“We have hosted hundreds of guests from literally all over the world. Most of our guests generally book months in advance because our location is highly sought after. They normally stay for about a week, so they can relax and fully enjoy the stay. Having major events like Vivid in Sydney has promoted more tourism growth and we are so incredibly thankful to be able to have people experience these incredible events and make forever lasting memories.”

Now in its 13th year and it’s most extensive program to date, Vivid Sydney will transform the city into an illuminating fusion of creativity, innovation and technology for 23 nights, with more than 300+ events celebrating the essence of Sydney’s soul including its diversity, beauty, resilience, First Nations culture, and vibrant creative community.

From the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Townsville hosting its first ever interstate footy fixture, the world cycling championships in Wollongong or last year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Airbnb Hosts have a long history of helping cities accommodate big events, while generating benefits for local families and communities. Home sharing allows cities to flexibly increase the number of guests they can accommodate without expensive building and infrastructure projects, providing a more sustainable way of accommodating a surge in visitors.

In a survey⁸, more than a third of Australian Hosts said one of the reasons they host is to earn money to help cover the rising cost of living, while almost four in 10 said that hosting income has helped them stay in their home. Many Hosts also do not use their property for short-stay accommodation all-year round – with many doing so on an ad-hoc basis to help meet their mortgage repayments, pay bills or save for their retirement.

With the event fast approaching, we encourage those who are thinking about Hosting to start getting their property and listing ready. Last year, Airbnb made it even easier to Airbnb your home through Airbnb Setup, featuring one-to-one guidance from a Superhost, the opportunity to host an experienced guest as your first guest, as well as one-tap access to specially-trained Community support agents. Together with even more AirCover for Hosts, which tripled damage protection to $3 million and expanded guest identity verification, among other top protections for both inside and outside your home, it’s a great time to become a Host and start earning.

Hosts can also earn $100 if a spare room listing is created or reactivated by June 30. For more information and to fill out the required form once your listing is activated, visit www.airbnb.com/ausparerooms. *Terms and conditions apply. 

For more information on Vivid Sydney and to view the full program go to www.vividsydney.com. Get social using @vividsydney #vividsydney