At Roomonior, we are always looking for better ways to serve short-term rental hosts and their communities. That’s why we’re delighted to share the news about our recent partnership with Airbnb: A noise monitoring pilot program in Lisbon.
This pilot will help promote sustainable and responsible short term rental guest experiences. Roomonitor will allow Lisbon hosts to monitor noise levels at all times to ensure their guests are not disturbing neighbors. Our data has shown that this is very effective in reducing neighbor complaints against the short-term rentals community.
We are pleased to share the official press release from Airbnb:
Airbnb Fosters Responsible Travel In Portugal with a New Neighbourhood Support Line and Noise Detector Program in Lisbon
- Tech startup Roomonitor and Airbnb, will pilot a noise measuring program for hosts in Lisbon
- Airbnb will activate in Portugal its Neighbourhood Support Line, a direct line of communication to Airbnb to report urgent concerns about a listing or guest behaviour
Airbnb today launched a programme to promote responsible hosting and, in partnership with Roomonitor will give away noise detectors in Lisbon. Airbnb has also activated in Portugal its Neighbourhood Support Line, offering neighbours a direct line of communication to Airbnb to report urgent concerns about a listing or guest behaviour in their local community. These initiatives are part of Airbnb’s commitment to promote responsible behaviour between Hosts and guests and to promote healthy co-existence with the neighbourhood.
Through the noise detector program , a group of entire home Hosts in Lisbon will be able to subscribe for free for 12 months to Roomonitor’s noise monitoring system**. Although the simple presence of these devices can already serve as a dissuasor, if noise levels exceed the limit set by the Host, they can receive a call and an alert on their mobile phone. This way, the devices help to prevent, monitor and solve noise problems, and facilitate an initial mediation with guests, all while respecting privacy as the devices do not record or transmit anything other than noise levels. Though this technology is privacy-oriented, we still require Hosts to disclose the presence of these devices on their listing pages in advance of reservations.
“Roomonitor is the solution to monitor and control noise that can disturb neighbors, helping to improve coexistence. Roomonitor’s collaboration with Airbnb is another commitment to hosts, who have a keen interest in complying with local regulations, being sustainable, and providing quality accommodation.” says Nacho Suarez, CEO of Roomonitor
In addition to the noise control pilot, Airbnb is also launching its Neighbourhood Support Line in Portuguese, offering neighbours a direct line of communication to Airbnb to report urgent concerns about a listing or guest behaviour in their local community. Neighbours can request a call from a specialised support agent, who will aim to give them a call back within ten minutes.
While the overwhelming majority of stays take place with no issues – and emergencies and safety incidents should be reported to local authorities – the Neighbourhood Support Line aims to address both immediate disturbances, such as an unauthorised party in progress, as well as possible long-term or recurring issues within the community. The service is operated by Airbnb, and builds on the company’s existing Neighbourhood Tool, which allows neighbours to submit complaints about a listing via an online form. Airbnb investigates reports received through these channels. The Neighbourhood Support Line is already live in 30countries and territories globally, including France, Spain, Italy, the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Czech Republic and the Netherlands, among others.
Airbnb wants to be a good partner to cities and local communities and to support the recovery of responsible tourism in Portugal after the pandemic. With the noise control program and the Neighbourhood Support Line, Airbnb meets all the commitments of the healthy tourism recovery pledge for Portugal – a series of voluntary Airbnb initiatives to support travel recovery and bring more sustainable tourism – announced in November. The pledge included also the launch of the City Portal in Lisbon, an industry-first tool that will support the City’s tourism authorities with neighborhood-level data, and the roll out of High Risk Reservation Technology to help combat disruptive parties and other neighbourhood disturbances.
“Tourism is one of Europe’s greatest natural resources and Airbnb helps local families, communities and authorities keep the economics that generates for themselves. Our collaborations in Europe have already automated the collecting and remitting of over €315 million in EU tourist tax revenues. As the travel revolution on Airbnb helps disperse the benefits of travel to more people than ever before, we are proud of the progress we are making, in collaboration with communities across Europe. While the overwhelming majority of Hosts and guests on Airbnb are respectful neighbours and travellers, this collaboration is another step in our work to promote responsible behaviour and we hope more and more Hosts will join this kind of solutions”, says Mónica Casañas, General Manager of Airbnb Marketing Services, SL.
Good Neighbour Guide
To help guests experience the best that Lisbon has to offer while respecting the local community, Airbnb will provide Hosts in Lisbon with a ‘Good Neighbour Guide’ that Hosts can share with their guests. The Guide , includes helpful tips and guidance on a range of topics, such as being aware of noise and information about rubbish collection days, as well as reminders about individual house rules set by the Hosts.
* The program will provide 100 free devices and twelve months subscription service to Roomonitor in Lisbon (first in, first served basis).
** These devices measure noise levels using algorithms that analyse sound patterns, allowing you to track noise activity and take action if necessary without the need to record audio indoors.
About Roomonitor
Roomonitor is the global solution for noise control. Roomonitor NoiseAlarm monitors noise in real time. It does not record audio, privacy is 100% guaranteed. The device allows you to know the noise levels, thus avoiding any conflict with neighbours and guests. With over 5 years in the market, it is present in 27 countries and 94 cities, with a wide international projection at the moment.
About Airbnb Airbnb was born in 2007 when two Hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to 4 million Hosts who have welcomed more than 900 million guest arrivals across over 220 countries and regions. Travel on Airbnb keeps more of the financial benefits of tourism with the people and places that make it happen. Airbnb has generated billions of dollars in earnings for Hosts, 90 percent of whom are individuals listing their own homes, more than half of whom are women, and one in five employed Hosts are either teachers or healthcare workers. In 2019, Airbnb directly supported 300,000 jobs in just 30 destinations, averaging nine jobs for every 1,000 guest arrivals. Travel on Airbnb also has generated more than $3.4 billion in tax revenue for 29,000 jurisdictions around the world. Airbnb has helped advance more than 1,000 regulatory frameworks for short-term rentals, including in 70% of our top 200 geographies (pre-pandemic). In late 2020, to support our continued expansion and diversification, we launched the City Portal to provide governments with an automated one-stop shop that supports tax collection, data sharing and compliance with local registration rules. We continue to invest in innovations and tools to support our ongoing work with governments around the world to advance travel that best serves communities.