Airbnb Bans Parties at Rentals Worldwide

The party’s over, but Airbnb’s decision to permanently ban large parties at rentals is actually good for most travelers.

The popular online vacation rental site enacted a temporary “party ban” in August 2020. Nearly two years later the company announced the ban is working.

Airbnb’s party ban began during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was marketed as a way to prevent the spread of the virus through social distancing.

In reality, Airbnb and other short-term rental sites have struggled with large parties, trashed houses, and neighborhood issues for years.

“When the pandemic hit, as many bars and clubs closed or restricted their occupancy, we began to see some people taking partying behavior to rented homes, including through Airbnb. This was concerning to us due to both the disruptive nature of unauthorized parties and the risk of such gatherings spreading the virus. As such, we announced the party ban to our community as being “in the best interest of public health,” Airbnb said on its website.

Many cities banned homeowners from listing properties on Airbnb and other similar sites because of the issues.

Safety Measures

Airbnb put steps in place in hopes of keeping renters, property owners, and neighborhoods safe.
In 2019, the company announced it planned to verify all of its listings.

It also said it would visit listings that are determined to be “high-risk.”
Airbnb also has a guest guarantee in place. It protects a renter in case the property doesn’t match the online description.
It also created a neighbor hotline that operates 24/7 and gives people living near Airbnb-listed properties a place to call if there is a problem.

“At Airbnb, we believe the neighborhoods and communities in which we operate are as important as the Hosts and guests who use our service. We know that the overwhelming majority of our Hosts share their homes responsibly, just as the overwhelming majority of guests are responsible and treat their listings and neighborhoods as if they were their own,” Airbnb said on its website.

Party Ban

The original “party ban” limited guests to 16.
Airbnb said the cap was placed to also prevent the spread of COVID-19 in 2020.

Airbnb said it is now doing away with the cap.

The change is due to the number of people vaccinated, and rentals that can sleep more than 16 guests.

Punishment

According to Airbnb, anyone reported breaking the party ban, or other policies, will face serious consequences. Those including being suspended or banned from the platform.
The company said it suspended more than 6,600 guests from Airbnb for violating its party ban last year alone.
Airbnb said the company is also working with Vrbo to share information on repeat “party house” offenders in the U.S.
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