News
Confusion over Airbnb, the world’s largest accommodation provider Legal or not, that is the question in Thailand ■ WITH as many as 43,000 properties for rent on its listings in Thailand, Airbnb has become a major competitor in this country’s hotel industry. Its phenomenal growth in only a few years has caught hoteliers by surprise. Understandably, they are not happy with this foreign interloper,
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TheBigChilli
despite the fact that Airbnb has only a tenth the number of rooms on its books compared to the Thai hotel industry. They point to the low rates Airbnb offers its customers – on average roughly 30 percent less than hotels, which face much higher operational costs and taxes. To back their case,
By Colin Hastings
they also claim Airbnb is undermining the local hotel industry because of its lack of regulation, health and safety standards. But it is not just hotels that object to Airbnb, now the world’s largest accommodation provider - even though it does not own a single property.