Rethinking Rentals: How the EU Is Adressing Data Gaps in Tourism

This resource is an article from Transition Pathways, written by the platform’s editorial team. It focuses on how the European Union is responding to data gaps around short-term rentals (STRs) and why consistent, comparable information is seen as necessary for housing and urban policy discussions across Europe.

The article describes STR platforms such as Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo as deeply embedded in Europe’s tourism market, offering flexible accommodation and creating income opportunities for hosts. At the same time, the expansion of STRs is linked in policy debates to pressures on housing availability, rising prices in some markets, and changes to the character and composition of residential neighbourhoods—especially in cities and high-demand destinations.

A central argument is that many local and national authorities have struggled to regulate STR activity because they lack reliable, standardised data on listings and rental activity. The article highlights that differing national frameworks and inconsistent registration requirements have contributed to a fragmented regulatory landscape across EU member states. This fragmentation has made enforcement difficult in places that want tighter controls, while in other contexts it has contributed to policies viewed as disproportionate.

The article points to Regulation (EU) 2024/1028 as a major step toward harmonising STR data-sharing obligations in the EU. It states that the regulation entered into force in May 2024 and is scheduled to apply from 20 May 2026. A key feature is a standardised host registration system: property owners offering STRs would register via a simplified digital process and receive a unique identification number that must be displayed on listings. This is presented as a mechanism to streamline administration and make monitoring of rental activity more effective.

Another pillar described is the obligation for online platforms to share “essential information” about rental activity with relevant authorities. The article frames this as enabling better enforcement of local housing laws and measures such as zoning restrictions, and as supporting more data-driven policymaking. It also emphasises the need to balance tourism-related economic activity with housing affordability and long-term residential supply—issues that are directly relevant to sustainable housing and urban development debates.

The article underlines that the regulation is intended to operate in line with the EU’s data protection framework, particularly GDPR. This is presented as a way to increase transparency and accountability in the STR market while maintaining rules around privacy and lawful processing of data shared between platforms and public authorities.

The article highlights technology as a potential enabler for effective oversight. It describes blockchain as a way to create tamper-proof registries so that only legally registered rentals appear on platforms, and AI as a tool to detect fraudulent listings or identify STRs operating outside legal frameworks in real time. It also cites Croatia’s eVisitor system—used for tourist registration and deregistration—as an example of how digital tools can provide real-time insights and strengthen data management. The article suggests that similar initiatives could help other countries improve tourism and housing-related governance through better information.

Overall, the article portrays the EU’s STR approach as an evolving attempt to create a more structured and transparent market through common data rules, while acknowledging that practical challenges remain and that results depend on adoption and integration by platforms, hosts, and authorities. It also notes that implementation is proceeding without direct support from the Common European Tourism Data Space initiative (launched in 2023), and that potential future integration with wider EU data collaboration efforts has not yet materialised.