Thousands book Airbnbs in Ukraine — not for vacations, but as donations

By Anjali Patel

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    ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) — People all over the world are booking Airbnbs in Ukraine right now. But they don’t actually plan to vacation there.

Essentially, people are donating the money they paid for the reservation to their Airbnb hosts who are caught in the middle of conflict in Ukraine.

A spokesperson for Airbnb said on March 2 and 3 alone, more than 61,000 nights were in booked in Ukraine, raising more than $2 million for hosts there. The vacation rental company has waived all guest and host fees in Ukraine temporarily.

Henderson County resident Missi Smith is one of thousands taking part in this growing phenomenon of booking stays in Ukraine — not for vacations, but as donations.

“It feels like a world way, but yet you’re all still in the same world. You know, we’re all human, we’re all crying for the Ukrainian people,” Smith said. “There’s just many things that were really tugging at me.”

Smith has a three-day, two-night getaway booked at an apartment in the heart of Kyiv this spring.

She said the Airbnbs she saw while searching were relatively inexpensive and a good way for her to know that money was going where it needed to go.

“The prices were $20 a night, $30 a night,” Smith said.

“I was so caught up in watching it and reading about it and I thought, ‘What’s a direct way that I can help directly?'” Smith said. “It’s a great way to make sure the money goes directly to a citizen of Kyiv that I know would need it.”

When she made the booking, she sent a message to the host, writing, “Thinking of you! Hang in there — the world is behind you. Peace and love — Missi Smith.”

The response she received brought her to tears.

“With everything going on, I could not believe they took the time to write me,” Smith said.

The host wrote:

Hi Missi! Thank you very much for your support! I am now with family and friends in my house near Kyiv, there is an attack on Kyiv, the Russian army surrounds the city, we are at the forefront, artillery is firing. Russian aviation flies and bombs our military. Nearby, fighting is going on with us, many houses have been destroyed. We have not had electricity for eight days, but we still have gasoline for the generator. We hope everything goes well. In Kyiv, everything is calm now, there is no panic. But the sirens went off and many people are hiding in basements. We believe in our victory and that everything will be fine. Thanks again for your support and come see me when this nightmare ends for free!”

Smith, too, hopes Ukraine will prevail and that someday she’ll be able to take up her host on that stay.

“I’m all for that. I think that would be wonderful. I would love it,” Smith said.

Smith encouraged others to do what they can to help Ukraine. She said this Airbnb method of donating is a good way to ensure hosts there have a continuous stream of money coming in, so long as their rentals are constantly booked. Smith also booked a bike excursion in Kyiv, another way of donating directly.

A spokesperson for Airbnb provided the following statement about the surge in support for Ukraine:

“We are so humbled by the inspiring generosity of our community during this moment of crisis. Airbnb is temporarily waiving guest and host fees on bookings in Ukraine at this time. We also encourage anyone interested in getting involved with Airbnb.org to go to airbnb.org/help-ukraine, and support Airbnb.org’s initiative to provide housing to refugees fleeing Ukraine, by becoming a host or donating. To date, we have seen an overwhelming response to this effort, with more than a million visitors to this page.”

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