Airbnb is testing a major new offering: taking care of booking your entire trip, so you can experience a new city with locals showing you around.
Over the weekend, Airbnb started sending beta invitations to some users who had searched for accommodation in San Francisco during December but hadn’t booked yet:
We’re reinventing travel—again—and we’d love you to be a part of history. During the first two weeks of December, we’re piloting a new Airbnb experience: handcrafted trips. We’re extending a limited number of invitations to friends of friends and travelers who are excited to explore the city of San Francisco in an entirely new way – with the locals who live here
It invited those users to test its new Journeys service which touts “handcrafted trips” to cities around the world, starting with San Francisco, offering adventures in the city organized by Airbnb for a flat fee.
For those who got the beta invite, Airbnb is offering 3 or 5 day excursions based on their interests.
Three options appeared during the pilot that focused on exploring San Francisco’s natural treasures (offering hiking and exploring the scenery), a foodie focused trip (including on the best restaurants and other eats) and a ‘Mission locals’ trip that promises a tour of the city’s hippest spots.
Each Journey offers ‘curated excursions’ such as hiking to Lands End in San Francisco, or a tour around the Mission district. On top of that, Airbnb pays for one meal a day while on your pre-organized adventure, a Lyft ride from the airport and Airbnb lodging picked out for you.
The experiences listings are created by hosts on Airbnb and picked by the company on your behalf.
According to a draft terms of service, they can include outdoor activities like hiking, biking, kayaking and sailing, foodie dinner parties at favorite local restaurants in San Francisco, tours of favorite craft cocktail bars, catered/take out lunches or picnics, wellness activities such as yoga, meditation and more.
read the full article at thenextweb.com
