Expert tips to prepare for hurricane and wildfire seasons

As forecasters predict an above average hurricane season¹ and wildfires become more frequent², Airbnb has partnered with Americares on tips to support our community as they host and travel this summer.

These safety-focused tips and resources aim to help hosts prepare their homes and guests for the season, as well as equip them with information about how Airbnb assists our community if they’re impacted by an extreme weather event.

“Having reliable information is essential as hurricane and wildfire seasons begin. Through easy-to-access resources and our partnership with Americares, we aim to help our hosts and travelers plan ahead and feel prepared as they enjoy their summer trips.”

– Raychel Gary, Airbnb’s Head of Disaster Response

“Extreme weather events are a major cause of property damage and injuries worldwide. These events can occur with little warning, so it’s critical to be prepared. Storing an emergency kit on your property, following local weather alerts and noting where to shelter in the event of an approaching storm can help keep guests safe.”

– Nathaniel Matthews-Trigg, Americares’ Director of Climate and Disaster Resilience for the Americas

Disaster Preparedness Tips

To help support our hosts in promoting the safety of their guests and homes, we’ve teamed up with health-focused relief and development organization Americares on suggested steps hosts can take, available in over 60 languages. This guidance can be especially important to assist guests traveling from out-of-state who may not be familiar with local information and resources. These recommendations include:

• Help guests who may be unfamiliar with what to do in a weather emergency by pulling together important information – like emergency contacts, the property’s address, location of the storm shelter, or map of the surrounding area – and making it available in a prominent place in the home.

• Account for seasonal weather in your listing, messages, and cancellation policy by adding details about the local weather in your house rules, using the tools in your Messages tab to save tips you can share when severe weather is forecast, and offering guests a flexible cancellation policy that gives them more leeway to plan around forecasts.

• Communicate with your guests about weather advisories, and remind them of local resources and tips for protecting themselves during their stay.

• Reduce the risk of property damage by planning routine maintenance before hurricane and wildfire seasons begin – like putting together an emergency kit, trimming your trees, and checking your drainage systems. 

The full list of tips can be found here.

Major Disruptive Events Policy

Airbnb’s Major Disruptive Events policy supports hosts and guests affected by disasters that impact their ability to host in, travel to, or stay in a destination.

When the policy is in effect, it overrides the host’s booking cancellation policy and enables guests to cancel eligible upcoming and active reservations at the impacted location for a refund, and allows hosts to cancel eligible reservations without fees and other related consequences.

Our Major Disruptive Events policy typically applies when natural disasters trigger events like evacuation orders or large-scale outages of essential utilities.

We encourage hosts and guests to be familiar with this policy if they believe their travel destination or listing could be at a higher risk of experiencing a natural disaster or consequences like a large-scale essential utilities outage.

Helping People Impacted by Disasters through Airbnb.org

Supporting local communities in the aftermath of a disaster is also incredibly important. Airbnb.org, an independent nonprofit founded by Airbnb, is able to leverage the Airbnb platform and community to provide free, temporary housing to people displaced by disasters and relief workers in partnership with local partners and governments. Over the last year, Airbnb.org has responded to natural disasters across the US, including wildfires in Los Angeles and Oklahoma, floods in Ohio and Kentucky, and Hurricanes Helene and Milton in the Southeast.

Airbnb waives all host and guest service fees for Airbnb.org stays and provides hosts with free AirCover protection with every reservation. Hosts across the country continue to sign up to open their homes for free or at a discount through Airbnb.org, so they are ready to help if Airbnb.org responds to a disaster in their area.

Other Safety Features Also Available Year-Round

Wherever our community is traveling, Airbnb makes further measures and resources available to promote responsible travel and hosting, including:

• Tips for hosts on listing safety information and safety tips for guests on choosing a place to stay.

• A 24-hour Safety line for hosts and guests to directly reach our Safety team for support.

• Our Local Emergency Services feature, accessible in-app to users 24/7 – whether or not they’re traveling on Airbnb – to quickly connect them to the local emergency services, with support in 70 countries and regions.