5 Airbnb Facts You Didn’t Know
Airbnb was founded in 2008 in San Francisco by co-founders Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia. What started as 3 inflated air beds turned into a global phenomenon in travel. Since its inception, Airbnb has been connecting property owners who have rooms or homes to rent with travellers looking for accommodation. Here are 5 interesting facts you didn't know about the world’s biggest accommodation platform.
A Global Mindset
It’s hard to fathom this but Airbnb is active in 97.95% of the world. This means that Airbnb can be found in every single country on Earth except for Iran, Sudan, Syria, and North Korea. It’s no wonder the company is worth about $30 billion.
It’s Not Just Rooms And Apartments
Airbnb offers extremely unique places available to rent if you’re in an adventurous mood. They have castles, beach huts, igloos, and more than two thousand tree houses currently available on the site. You can stay in any kind of place imaginable.
The majority of hosts are women
Did you know that a whopping 55% of Airbnb hosts are women? (That’s more than 2 million hosts!). According to the platform, during covid, more than 180,000 women around the world started their hosting journey with 1 listing each. These women have earned over $600 million since then. It’s safe to say Airbnb is truly championing female entrepreneurship.
A meaningful logo
Have you ever looked at the upside heart-shaped logo and wondered what it meant? The logo is a combination of four symbols: a head, a location icon, a heart and an ‘A’. This iconic logo, officially named the Bélo, stemming from the word ‘belong’, represents people, places, and love, aligning with the company’s vision of connecting people from around the world to create a global community.
Putting the “Air” in Airbnb
Airbnb was once known as Air Bed and Breakfast. The name was created based on the air mattress both founders ‘rented out’ in their apartments in order to make money during tough times. To this day, the site airbedandbreakfast.com is still working but it will redirect you to the current official website, www.airbnb.com.
