The most popular Airbnb destinations in Canada are in Toronto and southern Ontario

Neighbourhoods in (and around) Toronto have made a prestigious list of top picks for summer travellers.

While we’re now a handful of months away from clearing snow off our windshields, Airbnb has unveiled numbers that highlight which cities, and specifically neighbourhoods, people are choosing to vacation in across Canada.

As for why the largest global vacation rental platform is seeing high leisure numbers in the great white north, well, take your pick: with international travel costs, major sporting events, and geopolitical shenanigans making vacationing in one’s own backyard the new norm.

Airbnb reported that domestic vacationing has skyrocketed by 180 percent annually, so, with that throughline in mind, it isn’t at all surprising that Canada’s largest city (us) made the list.

As for where domestic and international travellers are choosing to book — the ever-enduring, ever-trendy, and perpetually experimental Kensington Market took a top spot.

[Residential and commercial spots line the streets in downtown’s Kensington Market] 

“[Kensington] really is just a great snapshot of what people are looking for when they generally travel, which is general affordability without sacrificing experience. It has all this food and culture, but more importantly, it’s close to a myriad of other neighbourhoods,” Sachin Persaud, senior communications manager at Airbnb Canada, told yourcitywithIN.com.

Another key part of Airbnb’s metric for success is that popular neighbourhoods — Kensington here, Le Mille Carré Doré in Montreal, Hastings-Sunrise in Vancouver, or Downtown in Halifax — are sought after because they offer a condensed slice of the city with rental rates under $300.

An enticing prospect amid the modern boom of domestic travel, as the average hotel stay can push close to $400 in a major Canadian city.

[Long-standing businesses, keeping the heart of the neighbourhood going] 

While Kensington made the actual top 10, Persaud provided some micro data (which Airbnb has plenty) showcasing other areas in Toronto proper and the Greater Toronto Area that see the highest booking activity during the fleeting Canadian summer.

The Beaches dominated the east, while on the other end of town, Runnymede remains the most popular spot west on the Bloor Line. Airbnb’s survey further stated that 58 per cent of travellers likely wouldn’t have visited the neighbourhood of their listing if it weren’t for staying there.

Persaud stated that popularity in these areas is rising as they cater to those who may only have two days in town and thus pack in as much as they can in a small window of kilometres — which isn’t hard to do in a city like Toronto.

[Suit and a slice — as downtown Toronto as it gets] 

“Ultimately and mathematically we’ll never know why people book the way that they do, but anecdotally, we likely assume it has to do with a proximity to great restaurants, great shopping, and even if time is tight, public transit that can get you across town,” says Persaud.

However, what about outside the big city?

It warrants no further digging why young travellers want to be in the heart of the action, but when it comes to something as abundant as the Airbnb platform, it’s worth mentioning that there is also a hotbed of suburban areas seeing huge traffic this summer.

[Just hanging out, in Kensington Market]

In fact, according to Airbnb, Meadowvale Village, Cooksville, and Lakeview out in Mississauga are growing in popularity for travellers across the board.

Persaud states that this is likely the case for several reasons: Mississauga’s proximity to Pearson International Airport, older travellers likely locking in accommodations due to this convenience, and larger detached houses that can sustain multiple people.

“I mean even with that demographic aside, it once again boils down to what you are looking for. If some Gen Z kids want to come to Toronto for a concert or festival, rates (and room) in the big city for a large group may be out of their grasp, especially if there are six of them, making these neighbourhoods more viable,” says Persaud.

Airbnb’s data further revealed that these areas, even with all their amenities and conveniences, are immensely buffered in desirability by the fact that they statistically have the highest metric of engaged hosts.

[Numerous business owners live above their stores in Kensington Market, as well as rent them out] 

On the Airbnb platform, hosts rent the space, and it’s up to the person booking whether they choose an option where a host is on premises.

In the Greater Toronto Area, there are plenty of options with hosts on site (often cheaper), and, with that in tow, 87 per cent of respondents to Airbnb’s survey stated that they were delighted with their stay, as hosts pointed them in the direction of activities within their own neighbourhood.

When it comes to areas like Kensington Market, which hosts iconic vintage shops like Courage My Love, sprawling barside patios like at the Burdock Brewery, or the abundance of local food spots, it comes as no surprise that travellers with maple leaf passports (and beyond) are choosing community-based neighbourhoods to highlight their summer, that are specifically guided by someone who calls that community home.

Something Persaud in his position fully understands, stating, “They [hosts] provide first-hand knowledge of these areas and neighbourhoods that you wouldn’t get with any other kind of accommodation. This gives guests something way more intimate and meaningful — an actual way to experience a community from the community.”