We previously talked about Airbnb going all in on hotels, and last month, Airbnb announced an interesting move: guests who book select hotels can receive up to 15% back in Airbnb credit, along with a price match guarantee if they find a lower rate elsewhere.
The credit expires after one year and can be used toward future Airbnb stays, experiences, and services. In other words, Airbnb may have created the closest thing it has ever had to a loyalty program.
Naturally, I had to test drive the hotel path, or lack thereof.
When I searched Oʻahu, Airbnb served up a promotion pop-up offering 15% back on featured hotels, with a button to click for hotel search. Searching New York showed hotels mixed directly into the results alongside vacation rentals. Searching Maui and Los Angeles? Nothing. No hotel prompt, no obvious hotel path, and very little indication that hotels were part of the experience at all.
My guess is that inventory (not enough of it) may be part of the issue, but after playing around with a few destinations, I couldn’t quite figure out the strategy. It feels like Airbnb is testing multiple approaches at once. Sometimes hotels are front and center. Sometimes they’re hiding behind a pop-up. Sometimes they barely appear.
For a company trying to become a meaningful hotel distribution channel, the experience still feels surprisingly confusing. Airbnb may have figured out the rewards program before it figured out hotel search.
