Airbnb is known as the largest online service for booking short-term rentals, but in 2016, the company expanded its offerings by launching a platform called Airbnb Experiences. It offers travelers a way to immerse themselves in a destination’s culture alongside a local expert. At the same time, the platform provides Airbnb hosts with an opportunity to earn extra money while sharing their hobbies, skills, or expertise with the community.
In this blog, we take a closer look at what Airbnb Experiences are and how they work. Keep reading to discover how you can offer an experience to Airbnb guests.
What Are Airbnb Experiences?
In 2023, Airbnb paused new submissions on its Experiences platform, and in May 2025, the company introduced completely reimagined Airbnb Experiences hosted by locals who know their city best. They also launched Airbnb Services, which are offered by vetted, experienced professionals—chefs, personal trainers, stylists, massage therapists, etc.
Airbnb Experiences are activities that travelers can book during their stay at a location. Categories include culture, food & drink, art, wellness, beauty, shopping & fashion, history, nature, etc. These activities offer guests an authentic way to connect with the place they’re in.
Airbnb Experiences are designed and led by knowledgeable local hosts to show off their cities, cultures, causes, or crafts. These unique activities go beyond the typical tour or class, allowing travelers to enjoy their hobbies and interests in a completely new way and within a new culture. Guests can
- Check out landmarks, hot spots, or live performances, and explore museums
- Take cooking classes, do a tasting, and enjoy dining experiences
- Try out art workshops, tour galleries, and architecture
- Join wildlife expeditions, water sports, or flying experiences
- Book workouts, wellness classes, beauty, and shopping experiences.
Airbnb Experiences are vetted for quality, with a focus on expertise, reputation, and authenticity, and are regularly reviewed to ensure they meet Airbnb’s standards. The vetting process also includes a review to determine whether the experience provides a connection to the city and local culture, and whether the venue is suitable for the activity.
In many cities, guests can also book Airbnb Originals. These are extraordinary experiences in amazing places hosted by the world’s most interesting people and designed exclusively for Airbnb.
You don’t need to rent out a property to offer an experience because it’s an entirely different service from Airbnb property hosting. But if you already list your rental property on Airbnb and are ready to show your expertise and help guests uncover the best parts of your city, you can apply to host an experience because it’s a great way to increase your income.
You don’t have to be famous to host an experience on the Airbnb platform, but you do need to be interesting and offer something unique, differentiated, and of high quality. You can host an experience as often as you like and adjust your dates and times until you find what works best for you.
You’ll be able to promote the Airbnb Experience on its own or to the guests who book a stay at your vacation rental property. If you let them know that you offer an Airbnb Experience in your messages, you can sell it as an upgrade to your property listing.
You’ll never forget to inform your guests about that if you use tools like Hospitable, which allows you to automate 90% of guest communication with the help of AI. Hospitable users can also utilize Suggest with AI and Improve with AI tools in their Inbox to draft and refine detailed, personalized responses when messaging guests manually.
Have conversations with your guests even when you sleep
Hosts participating in the Experiences program pay a commission fee of 20% of the final price to Airbnb. This fee is deducted when Airbnb processes the payment. Although this fee may seem high, it enables Airbnb to provide hosts with support and tools to manage their experiences effectively.
A portion of the fee is allocated to cover the cost of Airbnb insurance. Experience liability insurance, a part of AirCover for Hosts, provides hosts with $1 million in coverage if a guest gets hurt or their belongings are damaged or stolen during an Airbnb Experience. Airbnb also requires that all Experience Hosts maintain liability insurance that is appropriate for their business.
Keep in mind that the Experience fee and the regular Airbnb service fee are separate. So, if you own a vacation rental property and offer an experience, Airbnb will charge you separately for both.
Hosting an Experience
If you know your city deeply and have a great idea for a unique activity that’s not available anywhere else, you can apply to become an Experience host. Here’s a quick overview of how to get started.
First, you need to review the Airbnb Experiences standards and requirements. Ensure that your experience aligns with the platform’s criteria for expertise, insider access, and connections. Create an experience page. Here’s what you need to fill in the basic information, including
- A title for your experience (start with action verbs like “discover,” “explore,” or “taste”)
- A description that emphasizes the appeal of your offering and helps guests understand what awaits
- The location(s) of your experience
- At least five high-quality color photos of people engaging in your experience
- Itinerary—outline the experience’s different sequenced activities from start to finish, so guests know exactly what they’ll do.
You should also specify the minimum age of your guests, the skills required to participate, and the maximum group size. Please note that you should list your experience as an individual, not a business, and include a photo in your profile (not a company logo). You should also describe yourself in the “About Me” section of the Experience page.
Before you can start hosting, you’ll need to submit your experience for review and approval. You’ll increase your experience’s chances of being published on Airbnb if you offer access to something unique or otherwise inaccessible to the average visitor.
When submitting your experience, you should describe how you are uniquely qualified to run this experience.
After you complete the identity verification and submit your experience, it’s reviewed to ensure it meets Airbnb’s quality standards and requirements. This process may take several days, and then Airbnb will notify you of the outcome. If your experience submission is declined, Airbnb will notify you via email with a brief explanation of the reason.
In some cases, based on certain activities or the location where those activities take place, you may be required to provide proof of valid licenses and insurance. If your Experiences listing is approved, you can add hosting availability to your calendar and start accepting bookings.
When setting a price for your experience, Airbnb recommends starting at a lower price and increasing it after some practice and a few 5-star reviews. To remain an Experience host on the platform, it is essential to provide a pleasant guest experience and ensure positive feedback. It’s critical to avoid too many low review ratings (1-3 stars) from guests. If hosts have too many low ratings or guest-reported issues, Airbnb may suspend their listings or even remove them from the platform.
If you want to succeed, you may need to work even harder to earn stellar ratings, but it’s worth it. Hosting a unique, interactive experience can boost your booking rate on Airbnb and increase your revenue. Offering two different services involves more work, but you can streamline your short-term rental business operations with comprehensive software like Hospitable, freeing up some time. With Hospitable, you’ll be able to automate repetitive tasks and run your STR business on autopilot.
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Final Thought
Airbnb Experiences is a platform that offers unique and exclusive opportunities to travelers who want to “live like a local.” All experiences are vetted for quality, and hosts are assessed based on their reputation and level of knowledge and experience with the relevant activity.
If you’re renting out your property on Airbnb and have a creative passion or hobby, you can also apply to become an Experience host and lead people on activities you love to make their stays better. That will allow you to earn extra income and connect with people from all over the world.
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