Airbnb has released a report highlighting that guests to London have spent £522 million in local restaurants since September 2016.

The report, Airbnb: Generating $6.5 billion for restaurants around the world, focuses on 44 cities, including London, and showcases the benefits guests bring when they stay in local neighbourhoods. 

The city’s eateries have benefited from a dramatic rise in guest spending, increasing by £79 million since the same time last year. 

Across the 10 European cities cited in the report, including (Paris, Berlin and Barcelona), guests have spent more than €2.5 billion - €700 million more than in 2016. 
Airbnb guests are spending more in local businesses than ever before. 

The average guest spends between $40-$100 per night in restaurants, and with almost three quarters of guests staying in neighbourhoods outside of the main hotel districts,
local cafes and family-run businesses are seeing this new type of customer. 

Almost half (43 per cent) of all guest spending occurs in the neighbourhood in which they are staying, and 56 per cent of guests who saved money by using Airbnb spent more on food and shopping. 

James McClure, Airbnb general manager for Northern Europe, said: “We’ve always known that guests using Airbnb to travel are not only looking to live like a local through the homes they stay in, but also in the things that they do and the places that they eat.

“Local businesses are getting a huge boost in guest spending whenever Airbnb guests are in town, with London in particular coming top in restaurant spending across all the European cities cited in this report.

“This is a testament to the popularity of the city, and of the restaurants in local communities, all of which are getting a much needed boost by welcoming travellers to their neighbourhoods.”

The report comes as Airbnb announces a partnership with restaurant booking-app Resy. 

Guests will now be able to book top restaurants directly through Airbnb’s app and website, continuing the platform’s expansion beyond accommodations to focus on the whole trip.

Airbnb restaurant reservations powered by Resy are now available in 16 of the top dining cities across America.

In our recently launched UK Insights Report, data showed that Airbnb hosts and guests had generated an estimated £3.46 billion for local communities in the UK since July 2016.

There were almost six million visitors to the UK in the last year, an increase of 81 per cent on the previous year.