Airbnb buys Luxury Retreats to offer more luxurious villas for your vacation

By Lulu Chang Published February 16, 2017

If you’re going to go on vacation, go on vacation. And by that, we mean treat yourself. Thanks to Airbnb’s new acquisition, you can certainly do that when it comes to your accommodations.

On February 15, the vacation rental company announced the addition of Montreal-based Luxury Retreats to its portfolio. The luxury vacation rental company offers more than 4,000 homes in 100 destinations around the world, so if you don’t want to stay in the living room of someone’s fifth-floor walkup, perhaps it’s a Luxury Retreat for you.

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“From airbeds in an apartment to castles to villas, Airbnb has always been focused on providing a broad range of amazing experiences and trips,” said Airbnb’s co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky in a statement. And now, that range is growing even more expansive with the addition of Luxury Retreats’ properties. The company promises “high-quality listings, world class concierge service, and a range of amenities and the acquisition [that] will complement Airbnb’s work.”

For the time being, Luxury Retreats will maintain its status as a standalone company, but as its relationship with Airbnb deepens over time, the Montreal-based company’s listings will be highlighted and added to Airbnb’s database. And yes, that includes rentals like an eight-bedroom villa in Turks and Caicos or this 14-person villa in Tuscany.

This deal will be Airbnb’s largest to date, and Bloomberg reports that the company spent $300 million on its acquisition. But Luxury Retreats is certainly helping the San Francisco firm bulk up in an area where it has a bit less variety — while Airbnb has more than 3 million listings, only a small percentage of them are deemed castles. Luxury Retreats, then, will help diversify its offerings.

“Airbnb has revolutionized global hospitality, connecting a vibrant community of hosts and guests to deliver a tremendous amount of unique travel experiences,” said Luxury Retreats Founder and CEO Joe Poulin. “We are thrilled to join the Airbnb family with a continued commitment of delivering quality, luxury travel experiences.”

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