Paris is the ultimate destination for an Airbnb user. There are 50,000 rentals available in the capital alone. A stay in Paris is now affordable and comfortable for travelers who are not of the luxury variety.
Airbnb is known in most markets as a budget alternative to over-priced hotel chains. This definition of Airbnb’s market is over-simplified and does not consider many of the service’s value propositions. Until now, the luxury hotel market has disregarded the potential of Airbnb to eat away at its profits
Airbnb provides a unique service to its customers. It offers more than a chance to escape the cramped, stuffy hotel rooms of Western Europe. Many Airbnb rentals offer a personal service in a unique location. With offerings that range from a night in a Boeing airplane lodged in a tree to the rental of an entire island, Airbnb offers a new kind of travel to those who want more than bewildering hotel room art.
Airbnb users can rent luxury apartments in the most desirable areas of the City of Light for a fraction of the price of the peak prices at many of the city’s luxury palace hotels. Combined with the effects of a weak Euro, the luxury establishments have started to suffer.
Airbnb is one of the founders of the sharing economy. Along with Uber, Airbnb has revolutionized the way people travel. It should be noted that Paris does not have a fond relationship with the private taxi service either.
Airbnb is one of today’s most disruptive tech companies. It lives up to its disruptive nature as some of Paris’s most established hotels, like The Bristol, have seen their revenue drop 20% this year.
While Airbnb offers more value than the hotel industry initially realized, this does not mean that the company will cause the most luxurious hotels in the world to shut their doors.
On the contrary, luxury hotels can take this challenge as an opportunity to refine their services. These hotels need to prepare for a new generation of travelers with different needs. If the French can accept that times have changed, the palatial hotels of Paris can continuing attracting affluent travelers well into the future.
