Airbnb are looking for the wackiest and wildest home ideas in the world – and have launched a $1 million fund to make them a reality.
The Unique Airbnb Fund is the company’s first-ever $1 million programme designed to find and help finance the most unconventional and unusual liveable spaces on the planet.
The ten recipients of the Unique Airbnb Fund will be selected by an expert panel of design and style innovators, including Emmy, Tony and GRAMMY Award-winning actor Billy Porter, Airbnb Superhost Kristie Wolfe, of the famed Big Idaho Potato Hotel, and global and cutting-edge architecture firm MVRDV.
Each winner will get $100,000 – which is approximately €87,000 – to turn their dream into a reality.
As of March 10, design enthusiasts can submit their proposals at airbnb.com/uniquefund. All of the submissions will be scored, with criteria including creativity, feasibility, sustainability and social good (more found here).
Inspired by the entrepreneurial spirit of the company’s three co-founders, the Unique Airbnb Fund is meant to enable anyone with an extraordinary house idea to design and build it into a reality, and share it with travellers all over the world.
“The only thing better than pushing the boundaries of style, is empowering others to do the same,” says style icon, Billy Porter.
“I’m thrilled to join Airbnb in this global search for the most outrageous, spectacular home ideas ever. I can’t wait to see these concepts developed by design lovers from around the world firsthand.”
“The Unique Airbnb Fund is a great initiative that makes hospitality exciting. It will empower people to create new spaces with daring, imaginative and fantastic architecture,” says MVRDV partner Fokke Moerel.
“Personal wunderkammers will be created for guests to appreciate and be inspired by.”
Searches for unexpected and unique spaces – such as shepherds huts, windmills and tiny houses – have increased by nearly 70 percent over last year on Airbnb, according to the company.
In fact, some of the most booked listings of all time include domes, RVs, treehouses, and yurts across the world.
And if you’re thinking of applying for the fund and looking for some inspiration, here are some wild Airbnb options across the world:
- An Elephant-Sized Stay on the Jersey Shore (Margate City, New Jersey)
- The Boot – Fairytale Accommodation (Nelson, New Zealand)
- Big Idaho Potato Hotel (Boise, Idaho)
- Camaya Bali Suboya – Magical Bamboo House (Bali, Indonesia)
- Sheep Wagon at Shash Dine (Page, Arizona)
- Beautiful Dome with Mountain Views (Rio Negro, Argentina)
- UFO Futuro styled Flying Saucer (Redberth, UK)
- Cabane Spa Zen (Raray, France)
- Cabana Floripa (Santa Catarina, Brazil)
A chance to enter the Unique Airbnb Fund is now open until 11:59pm EST on April 15, 2020. The ten winners will be selected by the panel of judges mentioned above by May 15, 2020. For more information, see the Official Rules.
