It’s more fun in the Philippines with Airbnb

By http://e27.cohttp://e27.sg/2012/12/26/its-more-fun-in-the-philippines-with-airbnb/ | Dec 26, 2012 | News

Airbnb is focusing its efforts in Southeast Asia, with expansion into the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

It’s more fun in the Philippines, as the country’s latest tourism campaign goes. Whether you’re visiting remote tropical islands, checking out the party scene at clubs, or going to historical places, it’s a great place to visit, especially with warm locals and reasonable prices. But sometimes the prices of accommodation might not be that friendly, especially if you’re going for high-end hotels and resorts.

Airbnb aims to solve this problem by letting property owners rent out just about anything. While Airbnb does service Filipino users and other users from within the country, the service has now launched a more focused effort the Philippines.

“Manila is a growing travel destination, and people from the Philippines are traveling abroad at increasing rates, so we believe it will be a crucial market for us as we continue to grow,” says Airbnb co-founder and CTO Nathan Blecharczyk, highlighting the rise in demand for short-term rentals in the country.

In fact, Airbnb says the country saw a 345% increase in year-on-year growth as of end 2012. A few statistics:

  • Guests have come from 67 different countries around the world to travel in the Philippines on Airbnb.
  • The number of guest nights booked on Airbnb in the Philippines has increased 345% in 2012 alone.
  • The number of Airbnb guest nights booked by people from the Philippines traveling elsewhere has increased 263% in 2012, with the most popular destinations being Hong Kong, New York, Paris, Singapore, Manila, Rome, Seoul, Barcelona, Florence, and London.
  • Airbnb has over 975 listings in the Philippines, including 530 in Manila.

Airbnb is actually targeting three Southeast Asian countries, and has earlier focused on Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. The company has appointed Ole Ruch as its new head of Southeast Asia operations.

Airbnb offers rentals for just about anything — villas, homes, castles, apartments — from a computer or even a mobile device. The startups services 30,000 cities in 192 countries, and is lauded as an easy way for property owners to monetize their extra space and showcase these properties to a worldwide audience.