Accordig to the Chicago Tribune the pandemic is killing the hotel industry and also wreaking havoc on Airbnb. Experts are weighing in on the future of short term rental industry. “I do think hotels may have a near-term advantage,” said Henry Harteveldt, a lodging industry analyst and the founder of Atmosphere Research Group. The tipping point may come down to hygiene and standardized social distancing policies. Airbnb's cancellation policies have also come under heavy fire.
The tidal wave of cancellations that came along with COVID-19 suddenly made travelers aware of the wide range of terms in bookings — from no-penalty, last-minute cancellations to full liability even months in advance of a trip. Most hotels have generous cancellation policies that allow travelers to make changes to their reservations without penalty 24 to 48 hours in advance of arrival.
The exception is for prepaid, nonrefundable hotel rates, which tend to be the lowest — a good deal unless you have to cancel. But even in those cases, most major hotel companies, including Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt, came through, offering refunds on nonrefundable rates in spring. Some extended the grace period to the end of June.
Given the public health and economic crises, “job No. 1 for travel brand managers is to be kind,” said Chekitan Dev, a marketing and management communication professor in the hotel school at Cornell University, who believes the industry’s recovery begins with being as lenient as possible with refunds and providing more incentives to book, such as adding upgrades.
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