From modern treehouses and glamping tents to houseboats and tiny homes, Airbnb has a gaggle of unique stays for your honeymoon or anniversary trip starting at $85 per night! In 2022, the “style” of your stay can impact the vacation experience just as much as the actual destination. Inspired by the “cool” Airbnb movement, Shane Co. analyzed the number and average price level of unique Airbnb rentals in 100 destination cities across America in order to find the best U.S. cities for unique Airbnb stays.
Read on to see if your city made the list!
The Top U.S. Cities for Unique Airbnb Stays
At the top of our list is Austin, Texas, with a whopping 306 unique stays! From a luxury treehouse to a spa-like marine getaway, the Lone Star State capital offers a slew of unique Airbnb stays. In addition to the 15 treehouses and four houseboat rentals, Austin offers 14 barns, 93 farm stays, 82 campers/RVs, 72 tiny homes, 14 tipis, and 12 yurts (a circular structure similar to a tent).
Other destination cities to consider for unique stays include Portland, Oregon (184); Asheville, North Carolina (183); Chattanooga, Tennessee (164); and Palm Springs, California (147). With more than 100 unique rental options in each city, there is no shortage of exciting vacations just a click away.
It’s no surprise that Florida is a goldmine when it comes to vacation destinations, with four cities in the top 20. Tied at sixth, New Braunfels, Texas, and Tampa, Florida, both list 140 unique stays apiece. The 12th-ranked spot is also a tie — Orlando, Florida, and Atlanta, Georgia, both list 107 rentals. Miami Beach, Florida (91), and St. Augustine, Florida (81), also landed in the top cities for unique Airbnb stays.
The Top U.S. Cities for Unique Airbnb Stays Per Capita
The more populous cities in the U.S. are bound to have more vacation rentals, so we wanted to analyze the data per 100,000 people in each city to determine a per-capita ranking as well, for those with the desire to visit a smaller destination. While the city ranked 19th overall, St. Augustine, Florida, is at the top of this list with 1,191 unique stays per 100,000 people.
Sitting in the number two spot is Fredericksburg, Texas, the “epicenter of Texas Wine Country.” When you’re not relaxing in your tiny home or other unique rental, you can visit one of more than 50 wineries, vineyards, and wine-tasting rooms the city has to offer. Also in the top five are Malibu, California (1,042); Moab, Utah (913); and Sedona, Arizona (826).
Cities With the Most and Least Expensive Unique Airbnb Stays
When it comes to deciding on a unique Airbnb experience, inevitably price is going to factor into your booking. This is why we ranked our cities from most to least expensive based on the average nightly price to help you find the best city for your next trip. Topping off the list with the highest price tag is Malibu, California, at $392 a night, followed by Key West, Florida ($308), and Southampton, New York ($300).
On the other end, we have some unique stays with an average price below $100 a night! If you’re looking to make the most of a vacation on a budget, check out the first- and second-cheapest cities on our list — Salt Lake City, Utah, and Cincinnati, Ohio — which list their rentals for an average of $69 and $79 per night, respectively. Or maybe you’re daydreaming about beaches and amusement parks, and want to head down south to the sixth-cheapest city, Tampa, Florida, with an average nightly price of $89.
Cities With the Most of Each Unique Airbnb Type
Looking for a getaway on the water? Portland, Oregon, has the most houseboat rentals — 14 to be exact, nestled on the Columbia and Willamette rivers. Or maybe you want to be a little more in touch with nature? Then Asheville, North Carolina, is the city for you with 36 treehouses ready to rent!
Asheville is actually a unique stay hotspot, leading the way with the most yurts (17) and tipis (14), in addition to the treehouses. Austin is another leader on this 5-star listing, as the city offers nearly 100 farm stays and more than 80 tiny homes.
Closing Thoughts
Whether you’re planning a vacation this summer or just daydreaming about one, we hope it is one full of memories that will last you a lifetime! And if you’re popping the question this vacation season, Shane Co. has diamond engagement rings that are just as unique as the stays you’ll find on Airbnb!
Methodology
The 100 cities analyzed in this study had population sizes between 5,000 and 1,000,000 people. The city listing was pulled from PureWow’s “Top Vacation Spot in Every U.S. State” and Travel Pulse’s “Every State’s Best Travel Destination.” Using Airbnb’s platform, we scraped the number of unique Airbnb listings (overall and per 100,000 people) as well as the average price level of those listings in each city. In the context of the study, “unique” Airbnb rentals include barns, farm stays, treehouses, campers, RVs, tiny houses, houseboats, tipis, and yurts. No check-in/check-out dates or any other filters were applied during the data collection.
