Homestay booming in China, abroad: report
China’s Airbnb-like accommodation sector surged in the first half on a growing acceptance of the sharing economy and more customized offerings such as catering to children and allowing pets, China’s leading homestay booking service Tujia said in a report yesterday.
Tujia’s first half sales jumped almost sixfold year on year in the domestic market and more than tenfold overseas. Tujia gave no detailed figures, but said it expected its full-year sales to surpass 30 million room nights.
By June, Tujia had 1.2 million rooms globally, 800,000 in China.
Analysts say consumers are growing more comfortable with the sharing economy concept and find services such as those offered by Tujia are more suitable, especially if they are travelling with children or pets.
Chengdu, Beijing, Shanghai were the op three domestic destinations. Users usually stayed for three to six nights, paying an average 390 yuan (US$57.3) each night.
Tujia's services are available on Ctrip, eLong, Qunar, Tencent and Alibaba’s service platforms, making it one of the top shared accommodation providers in China.
About two-thirds of families want to travel with pets and now 15 percent of Tujia’s house owners allow pets.
Top overseas destinations were Cambodia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand and South Korea.
