Bookings for short-term rentals in Paris fell after riots and looting last month, with operators saying continued violence has prompted some visitors to avoid the French capital.
Agence Butler, which manages up to 150 rental properties a month, recorded a 50% drop in new bookings after the unrest on October 17, marketing director Louis Carrel-Billiard told Bloomberg. Last-minute reservations fell 75%, he said.
Across Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, Paris bookings were down 18% in the week after October 17 compared with the same period a year earlier, according to Jamie Lane, chief economist at short-term rental data firm AirDNA. A similar decline followed the next week, while nearly one-third of stays scheduled for the seven-day period beginning October 19 were canceled, Lane said.
The protests began in September, with students and public-sector workers calling for more resources and expressing dissatisfaction with the cost of living. In mid-October, demonstrations escalated into vandalism: violent protesters attacked and set fire to public buildings, while others looted stores in several parts of France, including central Paris.
Rental rates have also fallen, Carrel-Billiard said. Agence Butler, which generates 75% of its sales through Airbnb, recorded seven guest no-shows after the unrest. Those customers did not request refunds.
“The main problem, more than cancellations, continues to be the lack of new bookings,” Carrel-Billiard said. If the current trend continues, occupancy in November could reach just 35%, nearly half the level recorded in the same month last year, he added.
Protests on October 24 were generally calmer in Paris and elsewhere in France, but police ordered tourist attractions including the Louvre to close that day, disrupting visitors’ plans. More protests were called for November 5 nationwide. Storefronts have since been boarded up in some areas, and many businesses remain under heavy police protection even as they stay open.
Get a Key, a property-management company that works exclusively with Airbnb listings, has also seen volatile bookings, its founder and CEO Leonard de Taillandier said. The company cut nightly rates by as much as 50% in some cases this month to attract guests.
Luxury hotels have faced cancellations as well. They recorded a 20% cancellation rate in the final week of October, according to Christophe Laure, who heads the luxury-hospitality employers’ association UMIH Prestige. Last-minute bookings were down 60% from usual levels, and November and December looked “very weak,” he said.
Sources: Folha Mercado.