Airbnb Adoption among Students: Insights from Serbia

Abstract

This research was conducted to investigate the adoption rates and intents towards Airbnb platform among students in Serbia. A total of 201 students and millennials participated in the research. Findings show that only 59.6% used the services of this platform, mostly 1-2 times, predominantly for international travel. The main reasons include lower price. Respondents believed the accommodation's location and surroundings could threaten their safety, but not their hosts. Students mostly find using the platform fun and modern and are willing to recommend it further. In assessing students' future Airbnb involvement, we investigated how location, host, and accommodation safety, along with extra costs, lower quality, and complaints, influenced participation. Unexpectedly, location insecurity positively impacts future platform usage, while poor accommodation safety predictably diminishes it. Our findings highlight the growing popularity of Airbnb among Serbian students for international leisure travel, yet safety and privacy concerns remain. Despite this, most respondents enjoy using Airbnb and intend to continue.