Airbnb ranks Victoria among most popular places in Canada for remote workers
With the COVID-19 pandemic changing the landscape of working conditions across North America, Airbnb says more and more people are looking to travel and work at the same time.
On Wednesday, the company highlighted some of the most popular places to stay in Canada for remote workers who are looking for a long-term place to stay.
Victoria saw the fifth highest number of long-term bookings of any city in Canada in the first fiscal quarter of 2022, according to Airbnb.
Toronto was the most popular choice, followed by Montreal, Vancouver, and Calgary, respectively.
Meanwhile, Victoria was considered the fifth "best equipped" city for long-term remote workers, based on the amount of long-term stay listings available for travellers.
Victoria wasn't the only island community to be put in the spotlight Wednesday.
Airbnb says Nanaimo was considered the third most-hospitable city for long-term stays in Canada, based on its per cent of five-star reviews.
Approximately 87.1 per cent of travellers at long-term accommodations in Nanaimo gave the city's hosts five star reviews, the highest percentage in B.C.
Nanaimo was beat only by Halifax, with 92.6 per cent, and Winnipeg with 87.7 per cent.
A welcome sign in Nanaimo, B.C., is pictured. (CTV News)
HOUSING CRISIS
With affordable housing a top concern for many Canadians, particularly in B.C., the popularity of Airbnbs in Victoria may not be welcome news to some.
Last month, the City of Victoria told CTV News it was investigating hundreds of potentially unlicensed Airbnbs.
Under city bylaws, short-term rental licences can only be awarded to homeowners under specific conditions.
Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps said that 410 investigations into unlicensed short-term rentals were underway in early June.
She hoped that those investigations would lead to fines, noting that in 2021four cases about unlicensed short-term rentals went to court and led to $20,000 in fines and five people being banned from operating their rentals.
Helps said she'd like to see more support from other municipalities, the province, and Airbnb to help curb the number of unlicensed short-term rentals, as B.C. wrestles with housing affordability.
"We've used the full extent of our authority," Helps said at the time.
"We know we're in a crisis. We cracked down on this five years ago before there was a crisis, and we're using all of our tools in our tool box," she said.
With files from CTV News Vancouver Island's Eric Lloyd
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
LIVE B.C. seeks ban on using drugs in 'all public spaces,' shifting approach to decriminalization
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in 'all public spaces,' marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
AFN chief says Air Canada offered a 15% discount after her headdress was mishandled
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.