Short-term holiday lets boom in Europe to rise above pre-pandemic levels

Under new legislation proposed by the Government late last year, a new short-term tourist letting register will be created which will see anyone offering accommodation for periods up to and including 21 nights needing to be registered with Fáilte Ireland. File picture

There were more than four million guest nights in short-term rental accommodation, such as Airbnb, in the first nine months of last year. 

Bookings for short-term home rentals across Europe, away from traditional hotels and other forms of accommodation, are experiencing a post-pandemic boom, according to the European data collection agency, Eurostat. In the third quarter of 2022, the traditional holiday months of July and August, bookings were up by 25% compared to 2021, and up 9% on the pre-pandemic period of 2019.

The most popular region in Europe for bookings was Andalucia in Spain, with 6.5 million guest nights, Eurostat said, followed by Jadranska Hrvatska in Croatia with 5.5 million and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in France with 5.2 million.

In some countries, the rebound was more pronounced, with short-term lets in France already up 30% on 2019 levels. The data provided to Eurostat comes directly from Airbnb, Booking.com, the Expedia Group, and Tripadvisor following a data-sharing agreement reached in 2020.

The Business Post reported on Sunday that not one homeowner in Dublin, renting out on Airbnb or similar sites, complied with the obligation to provide Dublin City Council with details on how many nights they rented out their properties last year.

💻☀️In Q2 2022 in the EU, coastal holiday destinations recorded the most guest nights booked via online platforms. Most popular regions:
🇪🇸Andalucia (6.5 million guest nights)
🇭🇷Jadranska Hrvatska (5.5 million)
🇫🇷Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (5.2 million)
👉https://t.co/w9Ph8J20BF pic.twitter.com/YpRVKlezSe

— EU_Eurostat (@EU_Eurostat) January 9, 2023

The issue of Airbnbs representing a large chunk of stock that could help ease the current housing crisis has been a source of contention for several years. Currently, property owners are required to have planning permission to use a home for tourism and short-term letting purposes, if the property is in a rent pressure zone.

Under new legislation proposed by the Government late last year, a new short-term tourist letting register will be created which will see anyone offering accommodation for periods up to and including 21 nights needing to be registered with Fáilte Ireland. 

Fines could be levied against both homeowners and platforms that advertise properties without a valid registration. It is hoped such legislation will help bring short-term lets operating in breach of regulations back into the general housing stock.

Critics, however, have said the Government’s new plans must include proper enforcement to ensure they are effective.