Marriott to Expand Its Home-Sharing Business in a Challenge to Airbnb
- World’s largest hotel company boosts bet on vacation rentals
- Airbnb is also growing into new parts of the lodging business
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Marriott International Inc. is expanding its home-sharing business to the U.S., becoming the latest hotel operator to challenge Airbnb at its own game and blurring the distinction between home-sharing and the traditional hospitality companies.
Marriott, the world’s largest hotel company, plans to expand the home-sharing pilot it launched in Europe last year to the U.S., adding 2,000 home rentals in vacation destinations such as Lake Tahoe and Bar Harbor, Maine. The initiative is small –- the company has 1.3 million hotel rooms around the world –- but important for Marriott, since the same people who stay at its hotels on business might want a rental house for a bachelor party or family vacation.