By Jamie Barrie T here is more on the line than Olympic gold when it comes to the winter games. With South Korea hosting the 2018 Winter Olympics, Airbnb expects to house more that 9,000 travelers from mostly South Korea, the US, Canada, China and Japan during the games, with the vacation-rental firm stating that hosts in South Korea’s Gangwon province were set to earn more than $2 million from renting out their homes to visitors during the Winter Olympics. According to Airbnb there were about 4,000 short-term rental listings during the games. With the average accommo- dation being booked for three nights at $170.00 per night, but some listings are as high as $400 for a one-night stay in Gangwon province.
Airbnb predicts the median income for residents from renting out their homes during the games would be about $260, so hosts in Gangwon were set to earn about $2.1 million.
During major sporting events like the Olympics, accommodations are usually a scarce commodity. Because of the exces- sive, temporary influx of visitors to host cities, hotels are able to charge a higher rate than usual. But the prevalence of vacation rental sites like Airbnb has widened the selection of accommodation options available to visitors. However, this was not the case with the Pyeongchang Olympics as the South Korean government cracked down on hotels attempting to charge travelers excessively in an attempt to promote the Winter Games and increase attendance for all events.
It is easy to see that big events are big business for Airbnb and its hosts, who make millions of dollars by renting out their homes to visitors during these special events.
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • FEBRUARY 2018
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