Hosts of Airbnb rental homes inside the territory assist spur tourism within the Virgin Islands through lodging guests who live longer and spend more, in line with figures provided by Airbnb representatives.
Speaking at a gathering Tuesday at the Windward Passage Hotel, Rachel DeLevie-Orey, Airbnb public policy partner for the Caribbean and Central America, stated that the type of visitor Airbnb attracts generally tends to live 2.1 times as long in their vicinity as guests in traditional lodgings, which include inns. Airbnb visitors additionally spend forty-two percent more in local communities, she said. “Your homes are for your groups. You’re near grocery stores, cafes, and eating places, and these are places that sight visitors can benefit from whilst they may be living in the network. It’s miles something you can inspire them to take advantage of via providing them tips,” DeLevie-Orey said. She stated hosts might want to do that both via recommending inside the Airbnb platform itself or with the aid of leaving brochures of neighborhood companies within their homes for guests to utilize.
Several of the almost 100 attendees who came to Tuesday’s meeting had already used the platform and hosting. Several have been what Airbnb describes as “awesome hosts.” A notable host has a unique gain within the platform because their listings are positioned at the top of the display and a number among the first seen when a guest searches for condominium listings in the distinctive place. To acquire this, DeLevie-Orey stated, a bunch ought to have 80 percent of their evaluations at a five-famous person score and by no means have canceled on a booking, not even once. High-quality hosts have given various pointers to the audience as to how they could acquire their repute and keep their rooms stuffed. Residents defined how to take better images for their Airbnb listings or even how frequently they updated their listing information. DeLevie-Orey stated that the idea that a typical Airbnb guest is a younger sofa-surfing traveler has changed.
“The business enterprise and customers have evolved. Globally, the median age of the consumer is in the early 30s; however, inside the Caribbean, the median age is mid-40s. We are talking about a greater experienced vacationer and regularly an extra prosperous traveler. That is the form of folks that are coming to the Caribbean,” she stated. The sort of vacationer who stays with Airbnb is commonly looking for more reviews throughout their stay as well, DeLevie-Orey said. “That approach, while they arrive, they want to look for something beyond the beach. Whether this is arts or food, or something else culturally relevant, there is an urge for food for that among our vacationers,” DeLevie-Orey said.
The Airbnb Experiences software has not been provided in the U.S. Virgin Islands as of yet. Still, DeLevie-Orey said there was a chance of that happening in the future as a hobby about the territory maintains to develop. The new characteristic is advertised as a way for Airbnb visitors to discover nearby excursions effortlessly. Alani Henneman-Todman, director of communications for the Department of Tourism, and Imani Daniel, from the St. Thomas Recovery Team, told the target market about different measures that need to be taken if a person is to turn out to be an Airbnb host within the territory. Henneman-Todman defined the significance of a host’s stockpiling arrangements need of a herbal catastrophe.
“Should a natural or artificial catastrophe manifest, you should have key objects in the vicinity on your ability guests and visitors,” she said. Putting a typhoon checklist inside their Airbnb listings would be useful as properly, she delivered. Daniel said hosts have to also think about coming to the St. Thomas Recovery Team that gives a loose service in which a bunch can put all their vital files on a backup platform that might ensure a backup of critical documents that would be destroyed in the event of a catastrophe. The Economic Development Authority was also present at the Airbnb event with a booth prepared using the Enterprise Zone Commission Managing Director Nadine Kean. Kean laid out several products made through artisans inside the territory and defined how various gadgets, such as domestically crafted soaps and candles, add guest enchantment because the objects are authentic to the way of life. Put surely, DeLevie-Orey said Airbnb is an “employer designed as a platform to permit humans to leverage their maximum treasured property, their houses and their time, and to percentage them with site visitors and to contribute to the tourist economy.”
