Latest / STR Unpacked / Eurostat just published a stat that nobody's talking about.
Transcript
- Ben: Morning, welcome to your short-term rental bulletin on the 15th of May. So I've got a quick question for you. Where in Europe do you think 95 % of short-term rental guests come from abroad? So you might think Spain, France, Italy, but none of those places. It's Liechtenstein, Iceland and Malta. So according to Eurostat's latest data, these three countries top the entire continent for international guest share. In all three, more than 95 % of every guest night booked through Airbnb, booking.com or Expedia is a foreign visitor. And here's why I think that matters for operators. The EU's 950 million guest nights in 2025 are heavily concentrated on the big five. So Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Portugal. Everybody's underwriting the same markets, fighting over the same regulatory headlines, racing. to the same May 20th deadline in just five days. Meanwhile, Malta just posted plus 37.5 guest nights growth in Q4 2025. That is the sharpest jump in the EU. Iceland is rolling out its own platform data agreement and Liechtenstein sits outside of the EU framework entirely. So if you're thinking about diversification, This is your signal that the smaller European markets are where international demand is most concentrated, fastest growing and least crowded with operators. The big five are not the only story. Have a think about where your next unit goes and maybe think a little bit outside the box. That's your short-term rental update. I'll see you next week. Thank you for watching.