THE HOME-SHARING SERVICE Airbnb is contributing an estimated $8 million to Barbados per year, local advocates say.
Two officials of the Barbados Entrepreneurship and Tourism Association, formed to represent Airbnb hosts, said the service represented an economic opportunity that the country could not afford to stifle with new regulations and taxes.
Airbnb, which operates as a holiday letting website enabling people to rent their properties, has emerged as a fledgling competitor to the hotel sector. The Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association is among those calling for the service to be taxed and regulated.
But speaking to the DAILY NATION yesterday, Neeraj Vensimal, president of the Entrepreneurship and Tourism Association, and vice-president Donnya Piggott said that approach might be counter-productive as Airbnb was finally opening the island’s main economic driver to the everyday resident. (AD)Â
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