Accommodation bookings in Paris on Airbnb and other lodging services have fallen sharply following last month's riots and looting, while ongoing unrest is prompting some visitors to avoid the French capital. Bloomberg reports, UNN writes.
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Butler, an agency that manages up to 150 rental properties each month, has seen new bookings halve since the October 17 riots, Chief Marketing Officer Louis Carrel-Billard said in an interview. He added that last-minute bookings had declined by three-quarters.
Meanwhile, according to Jamie Lane, chief economist at short-term rental analytics firm AirDNA, accommodation bookings in Paris on platforms such as Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo fell 18% year-on-year in the week after October 17. A similar decline was observed the following week, while nearly a third of bookings for a seven-day period beginning October 19 were canceled, Lane said.
According to Carrel-Billard, rental rates have also declined. Butler, which generates 75% of its sales through Airbnb, had seven no-shows after the riots, with clients not requesting refunds.
"More than cancellations, the main problem remains the lack of new bookings," he said. If current booking trends continue, occupancy in November will be only 35%, nearly half the level of last year, Carrel-Billard said.
Although the protests held on October 24 were generally quieter in Paris and the rest of France, tourist attractions such as the Louvre Museum were forced to close that day on police orders, derailing tourists' long-planned schedules at the last minute. New protests were announced across the country.
After the riots, shop windows were boarded up, and many remained under heightened security while staying open for business, creating an eerie impression in usually aesthetically pleasing shopping districts, the publication notes.
Paris is one of Airbnb's most important cities in the world. In 2024, it was the company's largest city by the number of nights and listings, Chief Financial Officer Ellie Mertz said shortly after the Olympic Games.
Airbnb did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Other European cities have also faced riots and looting in recent days, including Milan in Italy and Frankfurt and Cologne in Germany.
Leonard de Taillandier, founder and chief executive officer of Get a Key, another real estate concierge service, said bookings remain volatile. "This activity is like a roller coaster," he said. "At any moment, demand surges, as we saw in September with Celine Dion's concerts and the Pope's visit. But then episodes of rioting occur," which can reduce demand.
According to him, Get a Key, which works exclusively with Airbnb properties, cut nightly rates by 50% in some cases this month to lure guests.
Airbnb hosts are not the only ones under pressure. According to Christophe Lohr, who heads the UMIH Prestige hospitality lobbying group, luxury hotels had a 20% cancellation rate during the last week of October.
According to him, the number of last-minute bookings fell by 60% compared with normal levels, adding that November and December look "very quiet."
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