Historically, Travel & Tourism has been one of the most dynamic economic sectors in the world, representing 10%+ of global GDP, 1 in 10 jobs on the planet (330 million) and close to 7% of global exports in 2019.

What’s more, between 1950 and 2019, international travel grew by 5,900% to reach 1.5 billion international arrivals.

While COVID-19 has impacted the breadth of Travel & Tourism, it has not hindered people’s desire to travel.

Given its ability to drive job creation, stimulate the economy, foster regional integration and connect people across the world, Travel & Tourism is in a unique position to make a difference for emerging nations.

The sector’s ability to welcome travellers has been further expanded through the rise of short-term rentals (STR). Empowering people to use their homes to earn extra income, short-term rentals have expanded participation in tourism, increased the quantity and distribution of available accommodation, and offered a new and different value proposition to travellers.

As the world looks to recover from the pandemic, best practices on how to manage the STR sector can help governments adopt smart policies and regulations that both promote tourism and support the local community.

This report, developed by the World Travel & Tourism Council with the support of Airbnb, a leading global platform for short-term rentals in more than 220 countries and regions and 100,000 cities and towns around the world, highlights a variety of practical, easy-toimplement best practices in STR regulation.

In it, you will find various case studies on how jurisdictions including Cape Town, South Africa; Seattle, US; and Sydney, Australia have used data sharing, registration, smart taxation, and other long-term community investment approaches to manage and leverage tourism and STR to benefit all stakeholders. We hope you find the report useful in developing your own strategies to best support the communities you serve.

DIGITAL REGISTRATION

Many governments have developed registration processes in partnership with STR platforms like Airbnb that require operators to register their accommodation with the city.

A simple digital registration requirement collecting information such as address, name and contact of the owner/operator and STR address encourages compliance by STR operators.

It also provides governments with the necessary oversight of activity, helping them make decisions about how to grow or manage the industry. Airbnb has developed a series of tools including a streamlined online registration system to further support compliance with local regulations.

As with all digital engagements, data protection and cyber security remain a key part of the development and use of digital tools.

Read the full article here