Airbnb introduces 24-hour buffer between rentals

On the off chance you stay in an Airbnb soon, it should at least be cleaner than usual.

The popular app outlined some new coronavirus-related policies in a Monday press release. Starting in May, Airbnb will strongly encourage hosts to sanitize rooms after visitors leave using new, comprehensive cleaning guidelines. In addition to that, hosts will have to leave at least 24 hours between one visitor leaving and another one coming in.

These new cleaning guidelines, geared toward Covid-19 prevention, recommend masks, gloves, and specific disinfectants. Hosts can enroll in the cleaning protocol program and get certified, which will show up on their Airbnb profiles. In other words, you'll know if a host has adopted the new cleaning standards.

According to Airbnb's press release, hosts can choose not to commit to these guidelines. But they'll need a 72-hour buffer between guests.

Airbnb hosts had to cancel and refund bookings once the coronavirus pandemic started, hemorrhaging money in the process. The company set up a fund to offer some relief to those hosts, and these new policies could potentially bring some of that lost business back.

One could argue strenuous cleaning standards should have existed before the pandemic. But once people feel comfortable traveling again, they can at least get the peace of mind that comes from a sanitized bedroom.