Back in August, Airbnb announced a global ban on all parties and events at Airbnb listings, while also limiting occupancy in its vacation rental homes to 16 people. The party ban is still in effect on all Airbnb bookings going forward, and will remain in effect until further notice.
Guests under the age of 25 without a history of positive reviews will be restricted from booking an entire home listing as well.
To ward off any potential Halloween parties, Airbnb announced today that it will prohibit one-night reservations over the Halloween weekend in entire home listings in the United States or Canada. That means no one-night bookings of entire homes on Friday, October 30, or Saturday, October 31—at all. Airbnb will cancel and reimburse guests with prior bookings, as well as cover host costs.
Airbnb has always prohibited unauthorized parties, but hosts who chose to allow smaller parties could do so if they felt it was appropriate for their home and their neighborhood.
Last year, the company instituted a global ban on “party houses,” listings that were receiving continued complaints for parties. The company also launched a neighborhood support hotline in the U.S. and Canada so that neighbors could call in and help Airbnb enforce the party house ban.
Following the onset of the global coronavirus pandemic, Airbnb removed both the “event-friendly” search filter from its platform as well as the “parties and events allowed” option within the house rules section. All hosts and guests are required to adhere to local public health mandates, and many local governments have imposed limits on larger gatherings in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19.
According to Airbnb, with many jurisdictions having placed restrictions on bars and nightclubs, “some have chosen to take bar and club behavior to homes, sometimes rented through our platform. We think such conduct is incredibly irresponsible—we do not want that type of business, and anyone engaged in or allowing that behavior does not belong on our platform,” the company said in a statement about its new global party ban.
Guests will be informed about Airbnb’s party rules when they book, and Airbnb will also let guests know that there could be legal repercussions if they violate the policy. Violators could also be banned from the platform.
“We acknowledge that there will always be those who attempt to break the rules. This is why we’ve implemented steep consequences for hosts or guests who try to skirt them,” stated Airbnb.
This article was originally published on August 21, 2020. It has been updated with new information.
>> Next: Tips and Rules for Booking Safe Vacation Rental Stays During Coronavirus
