This year 288,115 tourists chose not to stay in hotels

During the period January-September of this year, 288,115 tourists chose to stay in accommodation other than hotels, as stated in the “Tourism Flow Report” of the Central Bank (BCRD).

According to the report, 6% of tourists who visited the country in the first nine months of this 2019 preferred “other” accommodations, a segment that registered a growth rate of 10.6% in the period analyzed. These data highlight the boom in the Dominican Republic in the use of digital platforms for booking accommodations and other tourist services such as Airbnb, which is estimated to already register more than 17,000 properties in the country.

Only in La Altagracia, the province where Punta Cana, the central tourist hub of the Dominican Republic, is the platform records 3,382 active rental accommodations with an average occupancy rate of 33%.

The average price in the province is US $ 128 per day, and the rent has a quarterly growth of 3%, according to data from AirDNA, a market research firm specializing in Airbnb.

Other cities

In Santo Domingo, AirDNA records 2,435 active accommodations with an average daily price of US $ 66, an occupancy rate of 57% and a quarterly growth of 6%.

In Puerto Plata, there are 3,589 accommodations with an average price per day of US $ 132, with an occupancy of 33%, and quarterly growth of 2%.

In La Vega, there are 497 accommodations, mainly concentrated in Jarabacoa, with an average price of US $ 175, an occupancy rate of 21%, and a 5% growth.

features

Many accommodations available in the country have multiple amenities.

They have a pool, parking, internet, kitchen, washer, dryer, air conditioning.

Most have between two and three rooms.

The accommodations achieve an average rating score of 4.5, where five is the maximum.

Miguel Antonio Franjul, who had registered in Airbnb about five years ago, points out that in the country there are accommodations of the highest level, almost like a hotel, that falls into the category of Airbnb Plus.

Airbnb states that these accommodations are “a selection that only includes the highest quality accommodations. Hosts stand out for their excellent evaluations and pay attention to every detail” and indicate that each accommodation is verified through a quality inspection visit to ensure its quality and design.

Franjul estimates that there are only around 100 certified villas in the country, including one of them located in Jarabacoa.

Taxes

It is before the rise of platforms such as Airbnb that the Dominican Government has contemplated in the Draft Budget Law 2020 to apply a tax rate to this and other online subscription platforms such as Netflix, Spotify, among others.

On the  platform

Start

This platform started in 2018, and today, millions of hosts and travelers use it in more than 190 countries.

Expenses

Travelers staying on Airbnb last longer and spend more in different city neighborhoods.

Security

To belong to Airbnb, the hosts go through a verification process, and the platform gives them a guarantee of US $ 1 million for any eventuality with the guests.