Airbnb is already known for helping millions of people across the world travel in style. However, now, it’s taking its rentals to even more of an iconic level. On May 1, 2024, for its 2024 Summer Release , Airbnb unveiled “Icons,” a new category that transports travelers to exclusive experiences across the world that they haven’t had access to before, according to a press release shared with AFROTECH™. During the Summer Release presentation in Los Angeles, CA, Airbnb Co-Founder and CEO Brian Chesky shared that the offering has been about a decade in the making from the inception of the innovative idea to its release. Previously, Airbnb has been behind experiences such as allowing guests to lodge in the last Blockbuster store, located in Bend, OR — the only Blockbuster still open in the world — in 2020. Chesky and his team have expanded on such an inventive idea to create even more adventures and inspire people to dream. Composed of first-of-its-kind experiences that feature some of...

A property manager is putting people on game of how to stack money with Airbnb.

This couple no longer wants to depend on a company to thrive in the vacation and home rental space.

Following her being a temporary Airbnb host through Valentine’s Day weekend, according to our sister site Travel Noire, Issa Rae has joined the company for a new initiative to support South LA. According to a press release, the Inglewood native has partnered with Airbnb, along with Nasdaq, to announce a $100,000 donation to LeadersUp, a nonprofit organization that works to help create an inclusive, antiracist economy — per its website. The press release shares that the new donation will go toward creating an impact fund for South LA residents to be provided access to educational, mental health and wellness, and technological resources. The collaborative effort to support underrepresented communities is also financially assisting LA-based organizations Central Neighborhood Health Foundation and Brotherhood Crusade.

As countries begin to vaccinate their populations, businesses will begin to reopen. With those re-openings, and the jobs that will be restored in their wake, the economy will gradually begin to make up lost ground. As workers are rehired and incomes begin to grow, so too will consumer confidence. And both mass vaccinations and rising consumer confidence will also allow us to begin to venture out again and be social once again, which ill provided ballast to the ailing hospitality, outdoor recreation, travel, and restaurant sectors. Some businesses are better positioned to take advantage of these expected developments than others. If you’re looking to invest in stocks sure to surge when the economy reopens, look no further than these five stocks. Expedia The biggest company in travel-related search and bookings, Expedia’s stock should grow nicely as consumers begin to travel more frequently. The company owns large players in the online booking space like Orbitz, Travelocity, and...

The Coronavirus has caused many companies and major organizations to cancel events and shut down operations in efforts to contain the outbreak. As many decide to self-quarantine and avoid travel, Airbnb and its hosts are feeling the effects in the form of decreased booking. According to CNN , the short-term booking company is now expanding its extenuating circumstances policy and offering customers a penalty-free cancellation option for those who choose to cancel their stay. The penalty-free cancelation policy guarantees a refund on canceled bookings. Airbnb gives its hosts the ability to choose one of six cancellation policies. However, the company holds veto power via its extenuating circumstances policy, which now includes COVID-19 related cancellations. Under these new guidelines, customers may cancel their booking and request a refund within 14 days of the cancellation. Hosts and guests have the option to cancel without facing a penalty for bookings made before March 14 that...

In response to a data leak that revealed the identities and messaging history of white supremacists, Airbnb has decided to ban such users from its site. Airbnb’s security systems recently identified 60-plus account holders from Iron March , a far-right, white supremacist site. Their accounts were deleted in accordance with Airbnb’s zero-tolerance policy. A spokesperson for the short-term rental giant labeled the step a “no-brainer,” reiterating Airbnb’s commitment to “ continuously seeking to proactively identify those who could put our hosts and guests at risk .” Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky has previously stood in staunch opposition to white supremacy. “The violence, racism and hatred demonstrated by neo-Nazis, the alt-right, and white supremacists should have no place in this world,” Chesky said in a statement according to The Verge in 2017. Airbnb’s Community Commitment — a nondiscrimination policy that promotes for inclusiveness — was updated in 2016 to ensure fairness to all users.

Airbnb recently announced that it has hired industry veteran Melissa C. Thomas-Hunt as its Head of Global Diversity and Belonging. Thomas-Hunt spent years in higher education at Vanderbilt University and the U niversity of Virginia, helping both institution build out diversity programs. She served as the Chief Diversity Officer at UVA’s Darden School of Business and served a s the Vice Provost of Inclusive Excellence at Vanderbilt where she led diversity initiatives and helped to advance equity, diversity and inclusion throughout the university. The tech scene may be new territory for Thomas-Hunt, but the scope of solving the company’s diversity issue is one she knows how to tackle well. She will oversee internal diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging programs for Airbnb’s 5000 employees. Airbnb’s latest diversity report shows that the company has had slight increases in the number of women working at the company. Airbnb’s U.S. workforce was comprised of 44 percent women in...