Amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine in late February 2022, people are finding creative ways to help Ukrainians trapped in the war. One method is through booking local Airbnbs in the country, while not actually going to stay there.
A Guardian report detailed how many residents of Ukraine are facing extreme financial hardship as a result of the war, resulting in the bookings across Airbnb. Airbnb also announced the company would be providing free short-term housing for 100,000 refugees fleeing the country.
A number of people shared their booking confirmations and encouraged others to do the same:
Some online called on Airbnb to waive booking fees in Ukraine so that the in-country hosts would receive all the proceeds. A company spokesperson confirmed that the company would be waiving fees in the country. “We appreciate the generosity of our community during this moment of crisis,” she said. “Airbnb is also waiving all guest and host fees on all bookings in Ukraine at this time.”
They responded to a number of Twitter users asking them about fees for guests and hosts, and confirmed that they would be waiving all of them for Ukraine:
Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said the company was reviewing whether to continue its operations in Russia. He also said they had provided free housing to around 54,000 refugees globally in the last decade, and most recently to Afghan refugees.
