Columbia Airbnb Hosts Earned Record $144,000 During USC Commencement
Staff Report From Columbia CEO
Friday, May 17th, 2019
Airbnb, the world’s leading community-driven hospitality company, announced that Columbia hosts earned over $144,000 in income while welcoming an additional 1,200 guests to the city last weekend during the University of South Carolina commencement (May 10-11).
This represented by far the largest surge of guests to Columbia in the history of Airbnb’s platform, behind only a couple football weekends from 2018.
Major events associated with USC have long been known to fill Columbia hotels to peak occupancy, even with higher rates. Home sharing and vacation rentals have allowed cities like Columbia to utilize pre-existing resources - people’s homes - to expand lodging capacity and retain as many visitors as possible.
Airbnb previously announced that Richland County hosts earned $3 million in supplemental income in 2018 while welcoming 2,600 guest arrivals.