• mercano@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    24
    ·
    5 months ago

    Air BnB is destroying the housing market in my area. That said, it’s exposing a demand for something that doesn’t otherwise exist. In addition to hotels, people also want to be able to rent larger spaces, with a kitchen so they don’t have to eat out every night, and multiple bedrooms so the adults don’t have to go to bed at the same time as the kids. Hotel developers should be taking notes.

    • fireweed@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      11
      ·
      5 months ago

      You’re completely correct on the exposed demand issue. I would also add that in most cities (in the United States anyway) hotels can only exist in very specific corners of the city due to zoning, often in just three places: downtown (expensive!), the suburbs (so not even in city limits), and “motel alley” (which is usually an old highway in askeevy part of town lined with mid-20th century fleabag accommodations that are slowly being abandoned/bulldozed). For some cities this isn’t an issue, but in others it’s a problem for accessing the tourist attractions, especially if the tourists in question don’t have a rental car. Then there are the non-tourist visitors to consider: if you’re in a city to visit family, you’re probably going to want to stay as close to them as possible. Same with a lot of business travelers. This is a bit of a conundrum when the nearest hotel (or affordable/decent hotel) is a 30 minute drive away.

    • frickineh@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      5 months ago

      I haven’t had any issue finding those amenities in hotels in Europe (at least in Berlin, Munich, Madrid, and Málaga, which is not an exhaustive study by any means). I’ve seen a few that look to be entire small apartment buildings converted into hotels, which isn’t great for the local housing market, but all the ones I’ve stayed at were clearly built for that purpose. So that’s the good news, I guess.

      • JJROKCZ@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        5 months ago

        When I vacation in Europe I stay in apart-hotels that have space, kitchenettes, etc. Just stayed in one in Munich a week or two ago even.

        They exist in Europe like most nice things that make sense do… not in the USA though. Our hotels suck, the only other option is airbnb of someone’s home which is often OVER equipped and sized for short stays.

        We need an in between but I don’t see it being made due to our awful zoning law issues and if they were to exist they’ll likely be overpriced