Airbnb hosts create enhanced social, economic, cultural value for communities

In addition, during the first wave of COVID-19, Chinese hosts actively sought innovative ways to overcome pandemic-related challenges.

That's not all. They capitalized on new travel trends like mid-and long-term rentals, upgrading listings, providing experiences and innovating new listing products.

About 90 percent of surveyed hosts are highly or very willing to continue as hosts on Airbnb this year, and will keep improving listing quality and operations, the vacation rental website app said.

Some 550 hosts were interviewed in November 2020, including amateurs and professionals with a minimum experience of six months on Airbnb.

Chris Zhang, Airbnb China supply lead, said the company will continue to actively empower the host community with its global network, technologies and products, so that they can create a sense of belonging among travelers, and generate greater social and economic value for the local community.

China's short-term vacation rental sector has seen a steady recovery from the impact of the pandemic. Travels to nearby destinations and rural areas, countryside homestays, and clean and high-quality accommodations have become popular.

Short-haul trips will likely become the norm in the short term, while rural tours may become an increasingly popular choice, said Peng Tao, president of Airbnb China, in an earlier interview before the resurgence of the novel coronavirus in some parts of the country.

Cleanliness and hygiene at accommodations will be a top priority for Chinese tourists, he had said.

According to a report from the Sharing Economy Research Center, which is part of the State Information Center, the revenue of the country's homestay services sector reached 22.5 billion yuan ($3.5 billion) in 2019, up 36.4 percent year-on-year.

Lai Zhen, an analyst at market consultancy iResearch, said short-term home rentals and homestay services are wide-ranging to satisfy the needs of various kinds of tourists.

"Typically, customers hire such services for get-togethers, reunions, team-building activities and to improve parent-child bonding and communication," Lai said.