Airbnb notes a jump on its platform of searches of the French, encouraged by the government to book their holidays in the country in July and August, but that does not yet translate into firm reservations.
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From April 15 to May 15, French users carried out 21.2 million searches for tourist rentals and " 85% of the latest searches relate to places to stay in France, " said in an Airbnb press release, whose activity is the shutdown, like the whole tourism sector, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In the “ context of progressive deconfinement ” of the country since May 11, the French are looking for “ stays in the great outdoors with family or friends, near their home ”. Over the past 10 days, more than a third (35%) of searches have focused on " destinations located less than 80 km from home ", local searches " more than three times higher than in the same period last year ", notes the platform, present in 28,000 municipalities in France.
However, this research is not yet translated into reservations, said a spokeswoman for AFP, the French notably waiting to find out at the end of May, the departments classified as " green " - the risk of contagion being supposed to be lower there - where cafes, bars and restaurants will reopen on June 2.
Especially since at the moment, " travelers will not be reimbursed if they have to cancel a reservation made after March 14 due to the Covid-19 ", specifies the site.
Tourism professionals have made an oral " commitment " to " guarantee a full refund in the event of cancellation " linked to the pandemic, announced last Thursday Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, inviting the French to go to France " in July and in August ”at the end of an interministerial committee dedicated to the sector. The website oui.sncf saw its attendance jump by 120% the next day.
On Airbnb, for which France is the second country of activity after the United States, seaside destinations are the most sought after (43%) by French users, followed by the countryside (16%) and the mountains (7% ), lately. As of May 14, rentals with a pool (48.8%) were particularly popular.
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The platform recommends that rental companies follow a list of cleaning and disinfection instructions to give tenants " the confidence they need to maintain their reservation ".