ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Airbnb announced Monday it'll continue to try and keep a lid on big house parties this summer despite more people becoming vaccinated against COVID-19.
The company says it's working to toe the line between public health and responsible travel.
President Joe Biden recently announced he sees the Fourth of July holiday weekend as the time to "begin to mark our independence from this virus." Americans, the president said, by that time can gather at least in small groups as more people will be vaccinated.
Airbnb, however, says while July 4 is being eyed as a "reopening" date in the U.S., public health experts continue to discourage big events. For that reason, guests who do not have a history of positive reviews on Airbnb will not be able to make one-night reservations on the platform during the Fourth of July weekend.
Guests who have a history of good reviews or have already booked a one-night reservation won't be subject to the new rules, Airbnb outlined on its "Summer of Responsible Travel" announcement.
It ties within the company's ban on parties, specifically no gatherings of 16 or more people and all "disruptive events."
"As the July 4 weekend approaches, we are deploying more stringent restrictions on one and two-night reservations that may pose heightened risk for parties," the company said. "For example, we will leverage our technology that restricts certain local and last-minute bookings by guests without a history of positive reviews on Airbnb and also block reservations within an expanded radius."
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New coronavirus cases have been on a steady rise recently across the U.S., most notably in Michigan, despite more shots going into arms, according to The New York Times' analysis of data. A slow rise in cases largely has been attributed to the B.1.1.7 variant that first was found in Britain and is considered to be more contagious.
Public health experts have pleaded with the public to consider getting vaccinated to slow the spread of the virus.
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