Short-term rentals are on the rise in Italy, with the majority of Italians needing to make bookings for medium to long periods in 2025, which exceeded the duration of typical vacations, according to a pan-European survey commissioned by the Airbnb accommodation platform.
Overall, according to the latest data, more than 114 million guests stayed in accommodations on the Airbnb platform in the European Union in 2025. This represents a contribution of over 53.2 billion euros to the EU’s GDP, supporting over 904,000 jobs.
Short-term rentals are on the rise in Italy
84% of respondents in Airbnb’s Italy survey said they needed a temporary housing solution at least once in 2025, compared to the European average of 81%.
According to the latest data from the Italian Association of Short-term Rental Managers (AIGAB), the number of homes available for short-term rentals has increased compared to previous years. They now account for approximately 1.4% of the national housing stock, which is a little over 500,000 units out of approximately 35 million homes.
The phenomenon is particularly pronounced in tourist cities, where the discussion has intensified in recent years due to the impact on the supply of housing available to residents.
Solution for studies and transitional periods
According to the research, short-term rentals are used during transitional periods when a permanent housing solution is not yet available.
The main reasons cited by respondents include seeking long-term housing (27%), studying or education (24%), work (24%), medical care (23%), and vocational training (21%).
“The European discussion on housing often overlooks the needs of those who are neither tourists nor permanent residents,” said Giorgos Mavros, Airbnb’s head of government affairs for the European Union, noting that for millions of people, temporary housing is “a necessity, not a luxury.”
From student mobility to medical care
Short-term rentals are also used to meet specific needs, such as student mobility or healthcare-related accommodation. More and more students are using the platform to find transitional solutions.
In Italy, according to researchers, about one million patients every year, or 8.8% of the total number of hospitalized patients, need treatment outside their area of residence.
In Europe, this is also reflected in accommodation bookings near large hospitals. For example, near the La Pitié-Salpêtrière and Necker Enfants facilities in Paris, more than 2,200 accommodations within a one-kilometer radius hosted approximately 25,000 people in 2025.
According to the study, short-term rentals are also used to temporarily increase a city’s accommodation capacity during major international events, avoiding investments in permanent infrastructure.
This happened, for example, during the Paris Olympics and Paralympics, which represented the largest hosting event in Airbnb’s history with nearly 700,000 visitors from 160 countries, and more recently during the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina.
The European discussion on short-term rentals
The issue of short-term rentals has become increasingly important in European-level political discussions.
The growing number of temporary shelters is often linked to the increasing difficulty of accessing housing in major cities on the continent.
According to data published by Eurostat, more than 854 million overnight stays were made in the EU in 2024 through online short-term rental platforms, including Airbnb and Booking.com. This is significantly higher than the rate recorded before the pandemic and about 19% higher than in 2023.
The increase in tourist demand and the spread of short-term rentals have prompted several European cities, such as Barcelona, Venice, Lisbon, and Amsterdam, to adopt new regulatory measures.
These include licensing systems, licensing limits, or specific restrictions to mitigate the impact on the local real estate market.
In some cases, they have gone as far as discussing measures to gradually reduce tourist rentals, opening a discussion among local governments, tourism organizations, and digital platforms about the delicate balance between economic development and the protection of the right to housing.
The European plan for accessible housing
The issue has also gradually entered the agenda of EU institutions. The European Commission is working on the first Action Plan for Affordable Housing in collaboration with various mayors of European capitals.
The goal of the plan is to address the shortage of affordable housing and rising prices in European urban areas.
The EU estimates that to meet demand, 2.25 million homes will need to be built in the EU each year in the coming years, 650,000 more than are currently being built.
The program anticipates a total investment of 43 billion euros by 2027, with the goal of mobilizing up to 375 billion euros from the private sector by 2029.
The initiatives being considered include boosting investment in social housing and new measures to improve the transparency of the short-term rental market, particularly in cities where housing pressure is higher.
