Foliage and football destinations top Labor Day Weekend and fall travel in the US

Key Takeaways

• US Hosts collectively earned more than $300 million last Labor Day Weekend, with Hosts taking in an average of nearly $750 during the holiday.
• More travelers are using the long holiday weekend as an opportunity to go it alone, with solo travel on the rise.
• Airbnb Categories continue to inspire travel, with Amazing Pools and Beach the top two most booked Categories this summer and leading into the fall and winter months.

Labor Day Weekend: A big travel moment for Hosts & Guests

Labor Day marks the transition to the beginning of fall, with many using the long weekend to travel and squeeze in some final summer memories. For some guests, this Labor Day is an opportunity for a final summer solo adventure, with single trip bookings for the holiday weekend increasing by more than 20 percent compared to 2021¹.

Labor Day is also an excellent time to Host and earn money since so many guests travel for the holiday. In fact, in 2021, September 4th was the date with the largest number of check-ins at US destinations². Additionally, 41 percent of Hosts in the US report that one of the reasons they host is to earn money to help navigate rising prices – as the cost of living increases, the holiday is another opportunity to earn from sharing your home with families to fans³. Last year during Labor Day weekend, Airbnb US Hosts made more than $300 million combined, with a median Host payout of nearly $750 in extra income from the weekend’s stays⁴.

Heading into Labor Day, here are this year’s top trending US cities for travelers, based on most nights booked for the long weekend⁵:

• Columbus, OH
• Raleigh, NC
• Tampa, FL
• North Kingstown, RI
• Jacksonville, FL
• Cambridge, MA
• San Francisco, CA
• Reno, NV
• Saint Petersburg, FL
• North Charleston, SC

Fall travel: Last minute beach stays and college town getaways

You’re in good company if you’re considering one last trip to the beach or traveling to cheer on your favorite sports team in person this fall. As the leaves begin to change, these cities are the top trending destinations in the US for upcoming fall travel, based on nights booked⁶:

• Ocean City, NJ
• Bella Vista, AR
• Oxford, MS
• Santa Ana, CA
• La Mesa, CA
• Baton Rouge, LA
• Ann Arbor, MI
• Lubbock, TX
• Lexington, KY
• Wheat Ridge, CO

To help inspire your own autumn adventures, below are five of the most wishlisted stays across the US between April 1, 2022 through June 30, 2022⁷. Beach or forest for your next destination? We’ll let you decide for yourself!

Trending categories: Amazing Pools and Beach are most booked for fall and winter

In May, Airbnb introduced a new way to search designed around Airbnb Categories, making it easy to discover millions of unique homes guests never knew existed.

Since launch, travelers have been struck by wanderlust, eyeing rustic and outdoors stays as well as waterfront escapes, with Lakefront, Design, Cabins, Amazing Pools and Beach the top five most clicked Categories.⁸

As summer transitions to fall – and even looking ahead to winter – Amazing Pools and Beach remain the top two most booked Categories¹⁰ through to the end of the year, as guests hope to either make the most of second summer or escape the coming cold. However, not everyone is fleeing the chilly weather: Many will embrace stays to enjoy the changing leaves or falling snow, with National Parks, Countryside and Cabins rounding out the top five most booked Categories through December.

With leaf-peeping season approaching, there’s no better time to get outside to enjoy the foliage and changing colors. For the hard core leaf lookers, here are some of our most wish listed homes from the Amazing Views Category¹¹:

¹ Labor Day weekend data in this post is using reservations made by US travelers from January 1, 2022 up to June 30, 2022 for September 2-5, 2022 check ins. Comparison to 2021 is using reservations made by US travelers from January 1, 2021 up to June 30, 2021 for September 3-6, 2021 check ins.
² According to internal Airbnb data analyzing 2021 US check-in’s and host payouts.
³ Based on a survey of 1151 Hosts and 685 Airbnb guests booked between June 1, 2021 and Dec. 31, 2021 and surveyed between February 17, 2022 and March 31, 2022. Margin of error under 2%.
⁴ According to internal Airbnb data analyzing Host Earnings for Sept. 3- 6, 2021.
⁵ According to internal Airbnb data analyzing top trending US cities for travelers, based on nights booked for Sept. 2-5, 2022.
⁶ According to internal Airbnb data analyzing top trending US cities for fall travel, based on nights booked in H1 of 2022.
⁷ Most wishlisted Airbnb listings in the United States from April 1, 2022 through June 30, 2022.
⁸ The most clicked-on Categories from May 11, 2022 through June 30, 2022.
⁹ The most wishlisted Categories from May 11, 2022 through June 30, 2022.
¹⁰ Most booked Categories from May 11, 2022 through June 30, 2022 for travel September 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022.
¹¹ Most wishlisted Airbnb listings in the United States from the Amazing Views Category as of June 30, 2022.

About Airbnb

Airbnb was born in 2007 when two Hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to over 4 million Hosts who have welcomed more than 1 billion guest arrivals across over 220 countries and regions. Travel on Airbnb keeps more of the financial benefits of tourism with the people and places that make it happen. Airbnb has generated billions of dollars in earnings for Hosts, most of whom are individuals listing the homes in which they live. Among Hosts who report their gender, more than half are women, and one in five employed Hosts are either teachers or healthcare workers. Travel on Airbnb also has generated more than $4 billion in tax revenue around the world. Airbnb has helped advance more than 1,000 regulatory frameworks for short-term rentals, including in 80% of our top 200 geographies. In late 2020, to support our continued expansion and diversification, we launched the City Portal to provide governments with a one-stop shop that supports data sharing and compliance with local registration rules. We continue to invest in innovations and tools to support our ongoing work with governments around the world to advance travel that best serves communities.

About Airbnb.org

Airbnb.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating temporary stays for people in times of crisis around the world. Airbnb.org operates independently and leverages Airbnb, Inc.”s technology, services, and other resources at no charge to carry out Airbnb.org”s charitable purpose. The inspiration for Airbnb.org began in 2012 with a single host named Shell who opened up her home to people impacted by Hurricane Sandy. This sparked a movement and marked the beginning of a program that allows Hosts on Airbnb to provide stays for people in times of need. Since then, the program has evolved to focus on emergency response and to help provide stays to evacuees, relief workers, refugees, asylum seekers, and frontline workers fighting the spread of COVID-19. Since then, Hosts have offered to open up their homes and helped provide accommodations to 100,000 people in times of need. Airbnb.org is a separate and independent entity from Airbnb, Inc. Airbnb, Inc. does not charge service fees for Airbnb.org supported stays on its platform.

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