Jun 09 (NHK) - Airbnb says it has been obliged by Japanese authorities to cancel thousands of bookings ahead of the introduction of new rules.
New regulations on privately-owned temporary lodgings go into effect on Friday next week. People running such businesses without registering them will be fined, and providers such as Airbnb will be prohibited from listing unregistered hosts.
The Japan Tourism Agency says Airbnb has brokered about 40,000 bookings for the latter half of June and they suspect most are for unregistered properties.
The company has set aside 10 million dollars to compensate affected users by offering full refunds and coupons that can be used on its website.
But Chinese travelers, who top the list of foreign tourists visiting Japan, are unhappy. On Weibo, a Chinese version of Twitter, Airbnb users have expressed frustration and shock with the decision. Some say they cannot book a hotel room with the refund.
