Originally launched in November 2016, Airbnb trips is a service that offers more than just rented stays. Through this platform, the company hopes to accomplish more than it has started out, and become a complete service travel company.
Now, Airbnb Trips has been launched in India, making it the fifth country in Asia to have this platform. Seoul, Tokyo, Singapore and Bangkok were the first to receive it in Asia, along with a few cities in the US, Europe and Africa. Airbnb will start offering this service with New Delhi, followed by other cities once it proves a success.
AirBnB Trips offers the travellers an option to explore the city through specific city guidebooks. The idea is to provide an end-to-end solution for the vacation. This way travellers and tourists can find local tours and spots on their own.
In Delhi for the launch, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said, “Trips is the most significant development in the history of Airbnb… I’m excited to launch India Trips today as we’ve handpicked unique experiences, designed and led by locals, to reflect the diversity and variety of the city.”
In the past, Airbnb has been seen to partner with the Gujarat Govt. to promote tourism and rental stays. Now, the hosts will also be able to provide local tours and key information to travellers so as to make their trip or vacation much smoother.
Airbnb has already added 15 ‘experiences’ for visitors to check out and plan their vacation. The company says that it will keep on adding such experiences and guides on the platform. There are handpicked options from things to do in New Delhi, making it equally attractive to visitors and locals.
This way, the company looks to be more than just a rental aggregator. It seeks to provide a holistic experience of a vacation by planning the trip for the travellers. A lot of such non-touristy things, that a visitor generally tends to miss, will also be included in Trips.
India will be the most important market in 10 years
At the launch in New Delhi, Brian Chesky sounded very optimistic about the growth of Airbnb in India. He said that in about 10 years of time, India will be one of the biggest markets in the world for the company.
Valued at $30 billion, Chesky says that the Indian market deserves a 5-star rating from Airbnb. It has grown leaps and bounds in the last one year, 350% from 2015 in the domestic travel market. All other segments also grew rapidly, making it the fastest growing market.
Airbnb Trips will add a nice flavour to the existing product. Anyone from South India looking to go around the capital of the country can now go through Trips platform, search for interesting spots and plan their trip accordingly.
Source: Mashable
