Airbnb permanently bans all parties and party houses

Hosting a party at an Airbnb is now permanently banned at all properties, the short-term rental platform has announced.

Earlier this week, Airbnb Chose to codify a temporary ban on all parties and events it introduced in August 2020. The temporary ban, which the company says has proven effective, was put in place during the pandemic as many bars and clubs closed and Airbnb saw an increase in party behavior. to their rental properties.

“We were concerned about this because of both the disruptive nature of unauthorized parties and the risk of such gatherings spreading the virus,” the company said. “Over time, the party ban has become much more than a public health measure. This has evolved into a fundamental community policy to support our hosts and their neighbours.

Since implementing the temporary ban, Airbnb says it has seen a 44% year-over-year drop in party reporting rates and has received positive feedback from hosts, community leaders and elected officials. But the 2020 ban wasn’t the San Francisco-based company’s first party crackdown. In 2019, after a fatal shooting at a house party in California, Airbnb banned holiday advertising from Airbnb rentals on social media.

Now, with the total party ban in place permanently, disruptive parties and events will continue to be banned. Properties considered “chronic party houses” will also be banned.

Airbnb says there will continue to be “serious consequences” for guests who attempt to break the rules, ranging from account suspension to removal from the platform altogether. In 2021 alone, more than 6,600 guests were suspended from Airbnb for attempting to violate the party ban.

In the future, some exceptions may be included in the holiday policy for specialty and traditional hospitality venues, but Airbnb is currently investigating this possibility and nothing is finalized yet.

And as one restriction becomes permanent, another has been lifted: occupancy caps. In the summer of 2020, Airbnb announced an occupancy cap of 16 people in response to concerns about large gatherings. But now, with the rollout of vaccines and the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, the cap is removed. This means that large properties, including European castles and Caribbean villas, can start to welcome larger groups and multi-generational family trips again.

“This decision was made based on feedback from long-time and trusted members of our global host community, and will take effect in the coming months,” Airbnb said.