Hotel room rates remain stagnant whilst Airbnb continues to grow in Thailand

PHOTO: Airbnb

As the head-scratching continues as to why traveller aren’t drinking expensive beers in girlie bars and avoiding ‘traditional’ tourist haunts, Airbnb has a record year in Thailand, signaling more problems for the hotel business as tourists seek alternative holiday experiences.

As the number of guests continues to trend upwards with more than 1.65 million inbound Airbnb guests to Thailand the past year, the accommodation-share platform sees more locals wanting to be a part of the sharing economy.

TravelWireAsia.com is reporting that locals are starting to see the benefit that hosting brings thanks to international tourists who are now conscious of traveling in a more healthy and sustainable way.

According to an Airbnb research, 84 percent of guests decided to use Airbnb because they want to live like a local while 44 percent of Airbnb guest spending is in the neighborhoods where they stay.

In Thailand, this trend to explore local neighborhoods stays hugely popular.

The Airbnb Bangkok Healthy Travel report found that 88 percent of Airbnb guests stay outside traditional areas with THB1.7 billion (US$52 million) spent in local restaurants, THB1.5 billion (US$52 million) on leisure and cultural activities, and THB800 million (US$24 million) on groceries, helping promote economic empowerment.

Read more about the Airbnb growth with TravelWireAsia HERE.