Cancellations at Cottages.com and Hoseasons provoke customer anger
UK: Multiple bookings made through Hoseasons and Cottages.com have been cancelled last minute, provoking anger from affected guests. The sites noted that a system overload led to a lack of booking confirmations and the resulting string of double bookings and cancellations. The most notable guest affected by these was former children’s poetry laureate Michael Rosen, […]
Airbnb to restrict under-25 rentals in UK, France and Spain
Europe: Airbnb has announced a trial that will restrict guests in the UK, France and Spain under the age of 25 from booking entire homes in an area close to where they live, in order to clamp down on antisocial behaviour and unauthorised rowdy parties in various neighbourhoods. Starting with immediate effect and lasting for […]
Airbnb files landmark lawsuit against unauthorised Sacramento host
US: Airbnb has announced landmark legal action against a Sacramento host who hosted an unauthorised party during which a gunman injured three people. This is the first time that Airbnb has ever brought legal action against one of its guests. The action alleges both negligence and violation of local health orders on the part of the […]
Sonder sued by New York developer Metro Loft for $103m
US: Hospitality startup Sonder is being sued by New York developer Metro Loft, which wants the company to leave the property at 20 Broad Street. This is Sonder’s second recent brush with a lawsuit, after it sued a San Francisco landlord for an early exit on a lease. The vertically integrated real estate development and management […]
Changes in family travel give rise to ‘flexcation’ trend
US: Research carried out by vacation rental online marketplace Vrbo has highlighted a new emerging travel trend, the ‘flexcation’, whereby families booking vacation rental trips outside of the peak holiday seasons consider staying longer to mix work and play, and, in some cases, get higher value in high-demand locations. Surveying 887 US travellers in July, Vrbo […]