Thibault Masson
We tested Airbnb’s new house rules checker. Here’s what it flags, and what it means for managers
“IT’S NOT ABOUT THE DAMN DISHES!” That was Ginger Harrelson, owner and corporate counsel at Beachball Properties on the Alabama ...
Airbnb weather protection: how its rain insurance works
TL;DR: Since October 8, guests who live in 10 European countries can add “weather protection” at Airbnb checkout. This so-called ...
Vrbo college football campaign: a coach for Premier Host
Vrbo has put its name on college football for years, and this season, for the first time, it is using ...
Europe’s short-term rental growth halved in 2026, and the data busts 4 myths
Exclusive Rental Scale-Up analysis of Eurostat’s short-term rental datasets for Airbnb, Booking.com and Expedia Group, country by country and region ...
AI in Vacation Rentals: Build YOUR AGENTS Yourself or Let Your Software PROVIDER Do It? PRICELABS’ Athena Shows the Trade-Off
As you may remember, throughout 2026, we have been talking here on Rental Scale-Up (RSU) about two approaches to AI: ...
Most VAcation rentaL managers are a 2 out of 4 on AI. Score yours with the VRMA 2026 scorecard
At VRMA International in Nashville, I designed and co-presented a session where a room of property managers scored their own ...
SCALE France turns five: three days that tell you where the French short-term rental market is heading
SCALE France turns five on November 25-26, 2026 at Les Salons de l'Aveyron in Paris, and the programme now stretches to three days. A French-language SCALE With AI opens on November 24, and a new small-group financing session, Money Talks by MPM, closes the second day. Read together, the three formats say the French market has stopped asking only how to grow and started asking how to fund and how to exit.
Céline Dion at Plenitude Arena and Pope Leo XIV in Paris: What the Airbnb Data Actually Shows
TL;DR: Céline Dion's residency at the Plenitude Arena in Nanterre (Paris La Défense Arena until this summer) overlaps with Pope Leo XIV's visit to Paris on 25 and 26 September. In the short-term rental data, her 30,000 a night leave the broad footprint, and his half a million leave one in a single town.
EU Affordable Housing Act: What the Leaked Draft Means for Short-Term Rental Managers
Key takeaways for property managers - Your rental rules do not change today. This is a draft, not an adopted law. It does not introduce an immediate Europe-wide rental limit or automatically cancel existing local restrictions. - Even an owner with just one rental could be affected. The key distinction is whether the property is the host’s main home or a separate rental property—not simply whether they employ a professional manager. - Authorities would need to explain and support their restrictions. That could give managers clearer grounds to challenge excessive rules. It could also help authorities defend restrictions that meet the proposed conditions.
Airbnb Experiences: Our Cross-Selling Screenshots Explain the Tripadvisor Viator Deal
On August 11, 2026, Airbnb and Tripadvisor announced that a “selection” of Viator’s tours and activities will become bookable on ...
Airbnb’s 15.5% Fee Is Really 18.4% to 19.1% for Most Small European Hosts: The VAT Math Nobody Explains
Airbnb’s new 15.5% fee excludes VAT. If you are registered for VAT, you can recover this tax. However, most small European hosts are unregistered, meaning they pay VAT out of pocket, pushing their true fee to between 18.4% and 19.1%. To maintain your previous payout, you must raise your prices by about 18.2% to 19%. Registering for VAT just to reclaim this fee usually costs you more than it saves.
How Airbnb Made Itself French: The Tour de France, 90 Years of Paid Vacations, and Zero Ads About Paris
France recently surpassed 1 million active short-term rentals. To navigate strict city regulations, Airbnb is pivoting its marketing away from Paris toward rural heritage. The Airbnb Tour de France sponsorship and "Il était une fois en France" campaign leverage the 90th anniversary of paid vacations to win over rural mayors and drive local demand. Bonus: The catchy song in the new TV ad is "Ciel bleu" by Bon Enfant.
We’ve Been Explaining MCP in Theory. PriceLabs’ New AI Connector Lets Us Show You in Practice.
On July 7, PriceLabs announced three product launches in one go: a mobile app, an MCP connector that plugs the ...
Airbnb’s 15.5% Host-Only Fee Is Coming for All Hosts: Which Case You’re In, What to Do, and the Right Math
Your Airbnb commission is about to jump from 3% to 15.5% because of Airbnb host fees. Your income does not ...
Beyond Scraping: The Technical Checklist for Vacation Rental Websites (AI Readiness, 2026)
Are you the business owner or CEO? This is the implementation companion to a piece written for you: AI Agents ...
Your Guests Now Ask ChatGPT AND CLAUDE First. Here’s How to Make Sure THEY Recommend You.
Are you the hands-on web or tech person? This article is written for the business owner. We wrote a companion ...
Tour de France 2026: Airbnb Revenue Up 430% on Alpe d’Huez, Barely Moving in Paris
There are no seats at the Tour de France 2026. No tickets, no gates, no barriers along most of the ...
July 4th, the World Cup, and America’s 250th Birthday: Airbnb Prices Up 84% in Philadelphia, Falling Behind in Atlanta and Seattle
President Trump, the French football team, FIFA, America’s 250th birthday, and your booking calendar: all of them land on the ...
Insurance, Airbnb Pay Later, Cancellation Fees: What Airbnb Now Earns on Top of Your STAY RateS
Airbnb has promised Wall Street that in 2026, it will earn more from every booking. Your host fee is not ...
Will AI Destroy the Revenue Manager? What I Heard at Scale UK 2026
TL;DR: At Scale UK 2026, a panel of industry experts managing thousands of listings concluded that while AI absorbs routine reporting, monitoring, and day-to-day pricing adjustments, human revenue managers remain vital. Because LLMs are non-deterministic, dynamic pricing decisions still require deterministic models. Crucial human judgment—specifically building owner trust, managing risk profiles, and navigating local market nuances—cannot be automated. Consequently, revenue managers are scaling up to handle significantly larger portfolios.
