My bookings (Toronto, Canada) are way down so far this year compared to other years. I can’t figure out why. Are other people experiencing a big drop in bookings? If you comment please say where your listing is so we can figure out if this is a local problem or affecting everyone.
My bookings are not down. I’m in El Paso, TX. You should check to see where you are showing in search, or make sure you are showing at all. How many views per week are you getting? Competition is increasing all the time and you’ve got to stay on top of your listing to be competitive.
Everything is as always here in South Florida. I noticed that last year we had fewer guests from Europe - most guests were Canadian or from the USA - but that seems to not be the case this year so far.
If hosts are relying on Airbnb to promote them, then they might find it difficult to maintain a back-to-back booking rate. As @KKC says this is more than likely due to increased competition. Hosts need to promote their listings elsewhere too and not rely on Airbnb.
Time for another poll, GutHend??
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My bookings are down by about 75%, and I believe mostly due to the search change (previously discussed in other threads) where it doesn’t show my listings until you zoom in almost all the way.
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I seem to be getting a lot more short notice booking, was looking bad for this weekend now OK. Colorado.
Think the poor snow season is a major factor.
This is what I noticed:
Prices dropped because of competition.
I need to stay on top of that and see what’s out there and either reduce or raise prices to make the same amount I did in previous years. I know many hosts here don’t change their prices once they established them but I just can’t imagine how it’s possible not to be flexible and still make some serious income.
Also there were LOTS and lots of glitches in the system. My listings were not visible if a guest wanted 28 days and over. Then if it was not on first page it would not show at all. Then my IB listing suddenly became regular one. Recently a group of 7 rented my pool house and they told me they didn’t see me there until same day as they booked . And it was there for 26 days!!
About some of them I found out from my guest’s, some figures out myself
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I’m in Toronto, as well. My bookings are down a bit this year, as well.
My bookings are at about half what they were last year at this time. I always show on the first page of the listings but there is a LOT more competition. When we began in February of 2017 there were 48 listed in a small tri-city area, There are now 127 ( 5 added this week). Searching the threads for other ideas to promote my listing and planning to be more pro-active that just waiting for bookings through Air.
I started in 2014 and there are about 10 times more comparable listings. I’ve always managed to stay on the first two pages. My speculative reasons for this include stumbling on this forum and learning so much. Also, I’ve constantly improved my listing while keeping my price competitive. In addition to being on instant book I think being willing and able to take last minute bookings helps. The lower priced places book sooner but when they are gone, they are gone.
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My bookings were down last year. I looked into it and when we first started there were only 8 of us in this Northern California area. Now there are at least 30. So many more choices for the guests. So I changed to instant book and slightly, by 10 dollars lowered the price. We allow dogs and kids, I have the place set up very easy to maintain, so we have the vast majority of dog travelers. Within a week our bookings returned to normal.
Unlike @KKC’s market, around here there are never any nights without conveniently located beds available. What I have seen over the past year is that there are more listings, but the kicker has been that the average price per night has dropped about $25.00 per night. In January the price for a room dropped around $40.00 per night.
I actually blame AirBNB for this price reduction. The amounts that they suggest when you first add a listing are ridiculously low, and new hosts fall for it. Overall, there has been a race to the bottom.
Of course, I have heard the argument that the lazy hosts who don’t provide decent rooms and/or service will disappear leaving the stellar listings standing, but in a major urban center this logic just doesn’t hold water. There is always someone who needs some cash. If there weren’t, there would be no Über drivers.
If this trend continues, I will pull my listing during the high cost heating months and shut down those rooms.
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I’m in the Niagara Region, and our property is surrounded by vineyards. Typically, our guest apartment is booked about 50% for May, June, July, August and September by end of March but this year it’s a slow start and I only have 6 bookings for the summer. Hoping things pick up soon!
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We are in a small but hip country town in northern NSW Australia. We are busier than last year mainly because we now accept pets.
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It seems to me like things are booking a little slower this year than past years. At least, I’m hoping that is the case! I keep track of my neighborhood and how booked up they are for the rest of the year, and everyone seems to be behind where they were last year at this time.
Things were busy on Air in the winter but have already begun to drop. Trip Adisor is picking up the slack. I am likening then better than Air these days. At least I can set a super strict policy.
I am only in the 3rd month of my second year but it looks like it is going to be about 20% up this year. I am in Fremantle in Western Australia, a tourist town. The town is also popular with working holiday makers and overseas students. I run two rooms in my home and can house 5 people if full - I aim for the budget travellers staying for longer periods.
Our bookings are down a bit compared to the same time last year. We have much more competition and prices are down. I have to get off my duff and expand beyond Air.
Last year we averaged about four days open per month. This year we have about seven days open. We currently have a total of six unbooked days in March, but we could still book five of the six. We are 50% booked for April.
I vary my minimum day stay, so I don’t open to one day stays until a couple of weeks before. That seems to work pretty well, but it does invite more angst as the calendar is generally completely empty further out. Last year, this allowed us to have one guest for the month of July and I hardly knew what to do with myself.
I always think my listings are down at the beginning of the year (low season in Chicago) but ultimately by the end of the year, I seem to always make close to the same amount. I’ve raised my prices around 20% from a few years ago and I’ve noticed that I don’t get booked well in advance since the early bookers grab up the cheaper units. I thought March was going to be a loser this year and instead, i’ve made the exact same amount as last year, but the bookings came in 2 weeks in advance instead of 2 months.
I’m fine with having slightly higher prices and not being booked months in advance as it gives me more flexibility in letting my friends and family stay in the unit.
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I’m in the GTA too, in Scarborough, and though I only have last year to compare to, have noticed that bookings/requests have gone down too. They’re not as far in advance as they used to be, and I’d even shifted to instant book in December, which I think saved me for the winter.
Folks generally love my place, and I have great reviews, though my distance from downtown is not ideal for tourists, but that has always been the case, and majority of my bookings has always been longer short term stays
I think as others are saying the competition is increasing, and we’ve got to stay on top of it, airbnb shows me often now that a number of folks considered my listing and booked another place that was anywhere from $5 - 10 cheaper. I regularly will tweak my prices, and eventually get booked but would love to get those months in advance bookings back.
as airbnb is my first homesharing platform experience, i’m wondering what other platforms do folks use? I’ve seen vrbo mentioned quite a bit in other posts, is that the main one? or what else is good to use out there?