LOS ANGELES — If you’re looking for a room or place to celebrate the ringing of the new year, you may need to book a hotel.
Earlier this month, Airbnb announced that it would crack down on unauthorized house parties in Los Angeles, Southern California and across the country over New Year’s Eve as a preventive measure to curb rowdy — and maybe violent — celebrations.
Officials from the vacation rental platform said it would restrict certain types of bookings over New Year’s Eve and New Year’s holiday weekend.
New account users and those with a negative or little history on the vacation rental platform are prohibited from renting out one-night bookings of entire homes on New Year’s Eve, officials said. Only guests with positive account history are allowed to book.
Airbnb officials also tightened rules for certain guests who attempt to book two- and three-night reservations during the New Year’s weekend.
“These proactive defenses will help to promote responsible travel and help to prevent rare instances of unwelcome behavior, and enable hosts, guests and communities to enjoy their end of year celebrations with added reassurance,” said Naba Banerjee, director of Trust Product and Operations at Airbnb in a news release.
After years of complaints from homeowners and city officials, Airbnb tightened its measures to prohibit open-invite parties, such as those advertised on social media and chronic party houses, in 2019 and furthered their defensive approach the following year with more anti-party measures.
The coronavirus pandemic and pandemic-related restrictions fueled even more complaints from neighborhoods since many people rented Airbnb homes to party instead of going to bars and clubs.
While celebrations and parties can occur in a hotel room, house or elsewhere, some people have specifically booked an Airbnb or a vacation rental to host them. And those parties sometimes can get hectic and lead to violence.
Airbnb has spent millions implementing preventive measures to curb excessive unauthorized parties, especially during holidays such as Halloween and others.
Airbnb officials said that since rolling out the measures, party incidents over the New Year’s Eve holiday have contributed to a 56% year-over-year global drop in incidents.
Officials said in Los Angeles, more than 2,900 people were deterred by Airbnb’s anti-party defenses from booking entire home listings on New Year’s Eve 2021.
Officials said the restrictions would be in effect over the New Year’s Eve weekend in 11 countries, including the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, France, Spain, the UK, Ireland, Portugal and the Netherlands.