With rainforests, golden beaches and volcanoes, it’s easy to see why Southeast Asia is a popular backpacking destination.
But it could soon be a lot harder to find short-term accommodation in the The Malaysian island of Penang.
This is because the traveller hotspot has become the latest tourism destination to introduce curbs on short-term holidays rentals, such as Airbnb properties.
Talks for this ban have been place for more than a year and it comes from Penang’s local government, following a response to complaints of bad behavior from tourists – which has been affecting local residents.
But it’s not just Airbnbs, it’s all short-term lets.
Only commercial properties – like serviced apartments – will be able to continue to host guests. However, this is also subject to registration, annual fees and approval from 75% of the other residents in their building.
Also, guests will only be allowed to stay in these approved places for up to three days.
And this seems to be a growing trend within the travel world, with the Italian city of Florence recently banning new Airbnbs from its city centre, alongside New York City taking similar measures.
In response to this move, Airbnb stressed in a statement the importance of short-term rental accommodation ‘for the growth of state-level and national tourism’. It also referred to a study that found 74% of Penang residents believe that ‘renting out homes through Airbnb has a positive impact on their community and its residents.’
It’s also worth pointing out that state of Penang covers more than just the main island, but the ban on short-term rentals only covers the island – so other mainland tourist spots, like the city of Seberang Perai, won’t be affected.
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