Since Russia invaded the country at the end of last month, people from around the world have booked more than 60,000 nights at Airbnb in Ukraine.
At first glance, it seems crazy that anyone would want to go to a place that is suffering heavy bombing while on vacation.
People booking rooms on the platform have no intention of going to Ukraine. It's a way of giving financial support to some of the nation's citizens who are currently seeing their homeland torn apart by a needless conflict.
Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb, commented on the unexpected trend of people booking rooms in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine, saying it was an example of the incredible kindness that is being demonstrated around the world.
It was important for anyone booking rooms in Ukraine to be absolutely certain that the host is genuine, an important point also made by U.K.-based travel expert Simon Calder.
Lots of talk about booking random Airbnbs in Ukraine and paying for them with no intention of staying, to transfer cash to the country.
Warning: were I a Russian scammer, I would be setting up fake Airbnbs in Kiev and Odessa as fast as I could to cash in on those noble intentions
— Simon Calder (@SimonCalder) March 4, 2022
Chesky said that a guaranteed way to assist Ukrainians is to make a cash donation via its airbnb.org, with funds going toward providing emergency housing for those in need. Hosts are being encouraged to open their homes to refugees, with the site offering an easy way to add their accommodation to the list.
Following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, many major companies around the world have stopped operations in Russia and other countries that have allowed Russia to use their land for troop deployment.
We know a lot of incredible community members in these countries and so these decisions are always difficult.
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