How the COVID-19 Pandemic Affected the Functioning of Tourist Short-Term Rental Platforms (Airbnb and Vrbo) in Polish Cities

Abstract

The article presents the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on urban tourism activity on short-term rental (STR) platforms in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). It offers empirical evidence of how Airbnb and HomeAway (Vrbo) changed in Polish cities during the COVID-19 pandemic. A case study of Polish cities was also used to investigate what pandemic-induced scenarios of that impact are presented in the literature. In particular, the study identifies “loser” cities, in which the pandemic consolidated and deepened the decline in active STR volume, and “winner” cities, in which the volume and dynamics of the active STRs increased during the pandemic.

The firm geography of Central and Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans

“…As a reference, the map also indicates some neighboring countries (East Germany, Austria, Moldova, the European part of Turkey, Greece), clearly demonstrating how service Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) emerged in Central and Southeastern Europe alongside industrial FDI [55,56], and to what extent this process was capital city-centric (Figure 1), excluding Poland [6]. This transition has led to profound changes in urban development, including the emergence of suburbanization in major metropolises such as Prague, Budapest, and Warsaw [57,58].…”