Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs removed in response to new home-share law

Re:Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs removed in response to new ... by Fede_V on Friday June 08, 2018 @01:06PM (#17267462)

Let me flesh out a few very simple proposals: a complaint that a lot of city residents have is that tourists that arrive in a city don't spend a lot of money there because they pack their own lunches/avoid museums, etc.

How about charging a very high tax (in the form of a voucher) for hotel/AirBnB stays, but make that voucher spendable in local restaurants/museums? This would have the bonus that you'd also kill the local black market economy, as tourists would insist on being able to pay for goods using their voucher.

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Re:Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs removed in response to new ... by gojomo on Friday June 08, 2018 @01:48PM (#17267919)

This is the 1st time I've heard the complaint that tourists don't spend money. Where is that a oft-expressed concern?

I suspect any voucher system like you propose would just create a secondary gray market in slightly-discounted vouchers.

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Re:Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs removed in response to new ... by Symbiote on Friday June 08, 2018 @06:32PM (#17270269)

1. Anywhere where cruise ships are regular visitors. There are often free meals on the ship, and obviously no overnight stays in hotels.

2. Anywhere popular with young tourists (Amsterdam, Berlin etc). This might be limited to Europe, with a €20 flight (or bus) to the city, a bed in a cheap hostel, a visit to all the free things etc. This isn't new, but Couchsurfing and cheap transport have probably increased it.

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Re:Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs removed in response to new ... by gojomo on Friday June 08, 2018 @07:06PM (#17270446)

Interesting! But, those types of tourists don't seem to overlap with AirBnB-type tourists, against whom the upthread complaints & proposals are directed.

So while I'm interested to hear of those cases, this "they don't spend" concern still seems out-of-place if directed against AirBnBers.

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Re:Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs removed in response to new ... by newfoundglory on Saturday June 09, 2018 @05:48AM (#17272258)

Airbnb is definitely among the "cheap hostel" options available today. Get a 2 bedroom apartment, put a couple bunk beds in each room, voila.

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Re:Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs removed in response to new ... by Symbiote on Sunday June 10, 2018 @05:36AM (#17277346)

I agree, especially as part of the appeal of Airbnb is the kitchen and that you can sneak extra people into the building very easily.

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