After two years of abstinence due to the pandemic, the Greek short term rental market met again at the 4th Short Stay Conference (ex BnB Greece Conference), sending a clear message of restart and dynamic growth. On April 12, 2022, at the Divani Caravel Hotel , hundreds of Airbnb property owners and managers, as well as tourism professionals from all over Greece, enthusiastically participated in the conference proceedings.
The strong presence and interest of visitors confirmed the strong dynamics of an industry that continues to generate millions of euros in revenue for both the national economy and local communities, boosting tourism in every corner of the country.
During the conference, critical issues and new trends in the short-term rentals sector in Greece were presented, while speeches, discussions, presentations and networking sessions were held with the participation of distinguished industry executives from Greece and abroad.
At the same time, companies offering solutions, technological tools and support services made hundreds of business contacts, concluding contracts and partnerships that further strengthen the short-term rental ecosystem.
The Short Stay Conference (ex BnB Greece Conference), as the most recognized conference for the short-term rental market in Greece, has now established itself as an institution and benchmark for all industry professionals, consistently enhancing awareness, networking and professional development in the Airbnb and short-term rentals market.
The main conclusions
Trends, data, conclusions and interesting news were heard at the 4th Short Stay Conference (ex BnB Greece Conference).
The main conclusion was that 2022 is expected to be an excellent year for short term rentals in Greece.
Greece is recording a 232% increase in demand compared to 2021, according to data presented by Martha Wilson from AirDNA, a booking data logger for Airbnb and Vrbo platforms. In fact, in the period from October 2021 to February 2002, demand for Greece was up an average of 11.7% compared to the same period in 2019, pre-pandemic. At the same time, Europe averaged an increase of 2.6%.
Specifically for the summer quarter from June to August, demand is more than double that of last year. The biggest increase in summer demand is in Crete (306%) and the Dodecanese (302%), followed by Athens with an increase of 248%, the Cyclades with an increase of 233% and the Ionian Sea with 230%. Thrace (+216%), the Sporades (215%), the Northeast Aegean islands (188%), Epirus 157%, Thessaly 153%, Peloponnese 135%, Macedonia 132% and Central Greece 109% also perform very well.
Moreover, last year, short-term rentals in Greece managed to recover 94.4% of 2019 revenues.
Much increased demand for Greece
The very high demand for Greece was also confirmed by Simon Lehmann, of short term rental consultancy AJL Atelier. He pointed out that in the two years (2020 – 2021) of the pandemic, the number of people who booked short-term rental accommodation more than doubled.
He pointed out that short-term rental property managers need to increase their professionalism in order to meet the increased demands of travellers and ensure sustainable growth.
More than quadrupling of government revenue from short-term rental
One of the most interesting presentations at the conference was that of the representatives of the AADE. Mr. Apostolos Boutos, Advisor to the Governor of the AADE and Mr. Angelos Kouros, Head of the Independent Department for Coordination of Reforms and Communication of the Independent Authority, answered crucial questions concerning the short-term rental sector.
As they said, in 2018, the first year the Real Estate Registry was implemented, state revenues more than quadrupled compared to the previous two years, demonstrating both the dynamism of the industry and the compliance of the managers themselves with the state regulation.
Following the signing of a memorandum of understanding with all the major platforms, which provide data on both registrations and bookings, data cross-checking is being completed. In early summer, an update will be sent to the platforms on which registrations have no or wrong Property Registration Number (PRN).
The platforms will then ask the administrators to make the necessary corrections.
Those who do not comply will be informed that their entries will be removed.
Short-term rentals are attracting the interest of travellers
During the 4th Short Stay Conference (ex BnB Greece Conference), which has become a benchmark for the short stay rental market in Greece, extremely interesting data on the behaviour of travellers after the pandemic were presented.
Enrique Planas from Holidu, one of the leading short-term rental accommodation search platforms, revealed that in 2021, 43% of travellers worldwide chose to stay in short-term rental accommodation for the first time. Of these, three quarters said they plan to continue to choose them for at least 50% of their future trips, confirming the shift by travellers towards the more personalised, flexible and experiential form of accommodation offered by Airbnb-style accommodation.
Specific to the Greek short-term rental market, Planas said that the average length of stay is 9 nights, reflecting the importance of Greece as a destination for extended holidays and quality hospitality. The average number of travellers per booking is 4 persons, while the average total expenditure per trip reaches 1878 euros, which underlines the strong contribution of the sector to the country’s tourism economy. These figures demonstrate the growing confidence of travellers in short-term rental accommodation in Greece, as well as the potential of the sector in both tourism and business terms.
The needs of modern travellers
Expedia Group’s Senior Director for EMEA, James Cassidy, focused on the needs of modern travellers.
As he mentioned at the 4th Short Stay Conference (ex BnB Greece Conference), 75% of visitors to the Group’s Vrbo platform travel with their family or in groups of three or more. Modern travellers want to stay longer in the destination, want to feel at home and want to have active communication with the host.
These are needs that a short-term rental accommodation can satisfy.
The 10 main markets in Greece for Vrbo are , in order.
The main source markets for tourists are Germany (25%), the UK (24%), the USA (19%), France (12%) and the Netherlands (3%).
Investment and technology
Increased investor interest in buying real estate
Our country has a particular investment interest in the real estate sector, with foreign direct investment reaching 1.2 billion in inflows for the purchase of real estate and an additional 700-800 million for property management, according to Theodoros Mitrakos, director-consultant and former deputy director of the Bank of Greece.
He said the corresponding inflows for property purchase in 2020 were around 840 million. “It was a remarkable increase. There is particular interest from Israel for residential and also for hotels, there is also interest from the northern countries but mainly the interest comes from funds,” he added.
But short-term leasing has also led to the upgrading of the existing building stock with the renovations that are taking place.
In addition, the energy shielding of the buildings is being enhanced. Lambros Palatzas, CEO of HomePlus, emphasized on the careful planning of an upgrade/renovation of a short term rental property in order to add value to the owner and meet the modern needs of tenants.
The upgrades should be done in such a way that the accommodation should have well-designed interiors, create energy-saving, energy-shielded homes and have all the latest technologies, Palatzas said.
Technology is the future
This session started with Cypriot host Christina Stylianou, who presented how she used technology. Then Alexandros Karavitis of Hosthub, Konstantinos Kiamos of Upstreet and Elena Varela of Smartbnb analysed the pros and cons of direct bookings.
Joan Cortes of Hostify, Fausto Vieira Sa Silva of PriceLabs and Alistair Toffoli of Bookiply presented their own technological solutions, while Alexandros Toulias of Greek strartup RevApp spoke about the benefits of dynamic pricing.
Nea Mesa ‘s Cyrus Asfi analysed how managers can attract good reviews but also manage bad ones. Fani Efthymiadou, PhD candidate at the Cyprus University of Technology presented the findings of her study on women in short-term rental.
The new era of travel
The pandemic has highlighted new needs but also new opportunities. Specialised speakers analysed a number of topical issues at the 4th BnB Greece Conference. Steven Hughes of Superhog spoke about securing bookings and accommodation and protecting the host from fraud and damage caused by guests.
Michael Atzarakis, insurance consultant, partner at Cromar Lloyd’s, presented solutions for insuring short-term rental accommodation. Kostas Sotiriou of Holidays Protection referred to the increased travel coverage offered to travellers. Athanasios Pilionis of Radefy spoke about electronic locks while Panagiotis Kambisioulis of Sigma Security presented how someone can protect their property.
Lambros Palatzas of HomePlus gave special emphasis on the importance of cleanliness, which is now an even greater requirement. For his part, George Bothos of pennie referred to the importance of the right choice of linen. And Anestis Papadopoulos of Heron presented in detail the program “Heron EN.A” that offers to every consumer (private and business) the benefits of a photovoltaic, without the need for installation.
Digital nomads, this new generation of travellers, were the subject of a discussion between Rafael Koudounis and Manos Technitis, president and head of research of the Digital Nomads Observatory respectively, and Korina Saia of the co-working space Vios in Athens.
Conference Closure
Finally, the 4th Short Stay Conference (ex BnB Greece Conference) was closed by the hosts themselves!
Vassilis Velonis, Dina Kafousi, Christos Ladas, Charis Louvedis and Froso Tsakiri talked to the president of SODIA Dora Dimas about the challenges and needs of the individual host.
