Airbnb Bans Parties in Morocco Rentals, Caps Occupancy at 16 Amid COVID-19 Concerns

In a blog post, Airbnb specifies that this ban, which applies to all bookings made, came into effect on Friday, August 21, 2020, and will remain in effect until further notice. This measure is justified by the behavior of those who "have chosen to transfer what they were doing in bars and nightclubs into homes, sometimes rented through our platform" in these times of Covid-19, the group explains. "We believe such conduct is incredibly irresponsible - we don’t want to be involved, and anyone engaged in or enabling this behavior has no place on our platform," Airbnb insists.

This is not the first time the company has imposed restrictions on its customers. In 2019, it had limited unauthorized parties after a Halloween party that had turned into a tragedy. Houses presenting themselves as party venues had been banned. With the health crisis related to the coronavirus, the group had to take additional measures and show its commitment to respecting social distancing rules. As an example, it has removed from its filters the mention indicating that hosts accept the organization of events or asking guests to respect the rules in force locally.

"However, in many major jurisdictions, public health rules on gatherings have changed - and in some places have swung both ways in response to changing Covid case rates - as have regulations on bars, nightclubs and pubs," Airbnb points out. For the group, it is clear that "declaring a global ban on parties and events" in this context "is in the best interest of public health."