New Oxford Economics report finds Airbnb supported almost 5,000 jobs across Ireland.
Accommodation rental giant Airbnb contributed €500m to the Irish economy in 2022, according to a new Oxford Economics report.
According to the report, Airbnb-linked spending represented over 10% of all international tourism spending in 2022.
“Our analysis highlights that Airbnb listings have a sizeable impact on the tourism economy in Ireland supporting nearly 5,000 jobs”
The report claims that travel on Airbnb in Ireland is vital to the country’s tourism economy, and provides a sizeable share of the country’s accommodation offering, accounting for 6% of all nights in paid accommodation in the country in 2022.
The typical Airbnb host in Ireland earned just over €5,600 a year last year, according to the report.
Airbnb-linked spending represented 10.5% of all international tourism-related spending, and the report values Airbnb’s total contribution to Ireland’s GDP at over €500 million in 2022 – with local businesses, shops and restaurants benefitting from community related spending.
Economic impact
“Our analysis highlights that Airbnb listings have a sizeable impact on the tourism economy in Ireland supporting nearly 5,000 jobs,” said David Goodger, managing director for Europe & the Middle East, Tourism Economics at Oxford Economics.
“In 2022, guests using the platform accounted for over €500m of tourism spending with much of it benefitting local tourism businesses, beyond the Hosts on Airbnb themselves. As modern travellers seek authentic and varied visitor experiences, Airbnb listings play an important role enabling visitors to experience Ireland’s tourism offering. They also help to disperse tourism expenditure and bring economic benefits to regional areas of the country which is particularly important for local economies.”
The report says that in 2022 as many nights were stayed in the South-West as in Dublin, and the West is similarly not far behind the capital. Airbnb-related economic activity in Dublin was valued at €152m, accounting for 30% of the total nationally, but this was closely followed by activity in South-West counties of Kerry and Cork which was valued at €107m.
The report found that employment linked to Airbnb activity accounted for around 5% of total tourism employment in 2022. In total, almost 5,000 jobs were supported by activity on Airbnb across Ireland last year, with the hospitality and tourism, food and beverage services, arts and entertainment, and transport sectors all benefiting from activity on the platform.
The West of Ireland saw the largest proportion of Airbnb-linked employment last year, with more than 1,200 jobs supported by activity on the platform. This is followed by the South-West with over 870 and the Border Region at over 850. In Dublin, more than 860 jobs were supported by Airbnb in 2022.
Private rooms on Airbnb offer guests authentic travel experiences and unique opportunities to interact with locals, but they also help generate positive economic impact for Irish communities.
In 2022, private room bookings accounted for 16% of all bookings on Airbnb in Ireland, representing over 700,000 guest nights across the country, and contributing over €80 million to the Irish economy. In Dublin specifically, 30% of guest nights stayed were in private rooms, generating €38 million in 2022 and making up over 25% of total Airbnb-linked spending in the county.
“Airbnb provides authentic and affordable stays for guests in Ireland and drives economic benefits for local Irish families and their communities by generating employment and dispersing tourism across the country,” said Derek Nolan, head of Public Policy at Airbnb Ireland.
“We want to play our part as a key pillar of the Irish tourism economy, and support the introduction of a Host register to protect Ireland’s tourism, unlock the benefits of hosting for Irish families, and help local authorities to clamp down on property speculators.”
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