tourism
Airbnb and Co should share more data with authorities
Tourists at St. Mark’s Square in Venice. photo
© Felix Hörhager/dpa
How can popular travel destinations better prepare for the onslaught of tourists? The EU Commission sees an approach to the booking data from accommodation brokers such as Airbnb.
According to a draft law by the EU Commission, cities and municipalities should receive more data from Airbnb and other providers in order to be better prepared for crowds of tourists.
Short-term rentals accounted for a quarter of all tourist accommodation, an EU official said in Brussels on Monday. However, rentals through platforms such as Airbnb or Booking.com made it very difficult to predict how many tourists would arrive. There are some complaints from local authorities about too much tourism, according to the EU Commission.
In individual cases, European cities had already taken action. In Amsterdam, for example, a registration requirement for Airbnb came into force last year to curb mass tourism. In a statement, Airbnb welcomed the plan to standardize corresponding rules across the EU.
Length of stay and number of guests
The innovations are intended to enable cities and municipalities to better prepare themselves in the future. In concrete terms, this should be achieved by communicating how many guests are staying and for how long. With the new data, for example, offers such as waste disposal, but also opening times of tourist information or timing of waste disposal can be better regulated.
In addition, hosts must register their accommodations with the authorities, which should also contribute to safety for consumers. The EU Commission does not expect any additional costs for guests.
Penalties could threaten
Not only online giants like Airbnb or Booking.com, but also smaller platforms should be affected by the new rules. Providers with fewer than 2,500 hosts per month on average may fall under relaxed rules. Those who do not comply with the planned requirements should be able to be penalized by national authorities. Whether these are fines or other measures is at the discretion of the respective EU states. The new elements should also lead to more sustainable tourism.
Now the EU states and the EU Parliament must discuss the proposals. Only when both institutions agree can the project become law in the EU. In addition, a transitional period of two years is planned in order to establish ways of exchanging data.