This article is being updated. The new article appears at the top of this page and will apply to all reservations taking place on or after 6 June 2024, except as otherwise notified by Airbnb to users. The existing article appears at the bottom of the page and applies to earlier reservations.
Our Major Disruptive Events Policy (the 'Policy') explains how Airbnb handles cancellations and refunds when large-scale events prevent or legally prohibit completion of a reservation. The policy excludes weather or natural conditions that are common enough to be foreseeable in a given location, except when they result in another covered event (as defined in the policy) that prevents completion of the reservation, such as a mandatory evacuation order or large-scale outage of essential utilities. Below is a non-exhaustive list of the most common foreseeable weather events, natural conditions and endemic diseases. This list is subject to change over time, and users should consult this page for updates.
We encourage guests to research their destination before booking and carefully review their reservation’s cancellation policy.
Below are examples of the regions most frequently impacted by tropical storms, cyclones, hurricanes and typhoons, and their storm seasons.
REGION | SEASON |
Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea Examples: Belize, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, The Bahamas, the United States (Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas), US Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands. | from June to November |
North Atlantic Ocean Examples: Delaware, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, South Carolina and Virginia. | from June to November |
Eastern Pacific Ocean Examples: Mexico, Guatemala and Hawaii. | from May to November |
Western Pacific Ocean Examples: Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Japan, Philippines and Vietnam. | from May to September |
Indian Ocean Examples: coastal regions in India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand. | from May to June, and October to November |
South Pacific Ocean Examples: Fiji, Solomon Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Vanuatu and Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia). | from November to April |
Below are examples of areas regularly impacted by winter conditions and storms, and their seasons.
REGION | SEASON |
Northern Hemisphere Examples: North America: Much of the United States (including Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming) and all of Canada. Europe & Central Asia: Afghanistan, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and Ukraine. Japan: Hokkaidō, Tōhoku, Kantō, Koshinetsu, Chūbu, Kansai, Chūgoku, Shikoku and Kyūshū. Other Asia: India (northern states such as Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand), Mongolia and Nepal. | from December to February |
Southern Hemisphere Examples: Argentina, Chile and New Zealand (central area of North Island, South and East of South Island and mountainous areas). | from June to September |
Below are examples of endemic diseases commonly found in different regions that are not covered by the Major Disruptive Events Policy. Affected reservations therefore remain subject to the Host’s cancellation policy for the listing.
REGION | DISEASES |
Africa and the Middle East | Cholera, hepatitis, yellow fever, malaria, meningitis, rabies, typhoid, zika, schistosomiasis, river blindness, sleeping sickness, tuberculosis, lymphatic filariasis, viral hemorrhagic fever, chikungunya, giardia and HIV/AIDS. |
Asia | Cholera, dengue, hepatitis, malaria, rabies, typhoid, zika, schistosomiasis, tuberculosis, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, giardia and HIV/AIDS. |
Australia | Hepatitis, measles, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, dengue and HIV/AIDS. |
Europe | Hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, tick-borne illnesses (including Lyme disease), measles, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and tuberculosis. |
Latin America and the Caribbean | Chagas disease, cholera, dengue, hepatitis, yellow fever, malaria, rabies, typhoid, zika, schistosomiasis, river blindness, sleeping sickness, tuberculosis, tick-borne illnesses, giardia, chikungunya, cyclosporiasis, leptospirosis and HIV/AIDS. |
South Pacific Ocean | Cholera, dengue, hepatitis, malaria, rabies, typhoid, zika, tuberculosis, leprosy, soil helminths, lymphatic filariasis, trachoma and HIV/AIDS. |
United States and Canada | Hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, tick-borne illnesses (including Lyme disease), measles, West Nile virus, eastern equine encephalitis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and tuberculosis. |
The weather events and endemic diseases listed above are informed by data from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Guy Carpenter Asia-Pacific Climate Impact Centre, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization, among other sources.
Our Extenuating Circumstances Policy allows guests and Hosts to cancel only where the circumstances were not foreseeable when the reservation was made. Foreseeable circumstances that are not covered include the weather events, natural conditions and diseases described in this article, as well as any transportation disruptions that result from them. This article is intended to illustrate the most common excluded weather events, natural conditions and diseases rather than to provide an exhaustive list.
We encourage guests to research their destination before booking, carefully review the Host’s cancellation policy and consider buying travel insurance to protect against unexpected travel disruptions.
Tropical cyclones are storms that typically form over bodies of water in the tropics and impact many coastal regions around the world. Depending on their location and strength, these storms are also known as hurricanes, typhoons, tropical storms, tropical depressions and cyclones. Below are examples of the regions most frequently impacted and their storm seasons.
| Region | Season |
|---|---|
| Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea
Examples: Belize, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, The Bahamas, the United States (Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas), US Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands. | from June to November |
| North Atlantic Ocean
Examples: Delaware, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, South Carolina and Virginia. | from June to November |
| Eastern Pacific Ocean
Examples: Mexico, Guatemala and Hawaii. | from May to November |
| Western Pacific Ocean
Examples: Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Japan, Philippines and Vietnam. | from May to September |
| Indian Ocean
Examples: coastal regions in India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand. | from May to June and October to November |
| South Pacific Ocean
Examples: Fiji, Solomon Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Vanuatu and Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia). | from November to April |
Winter conditions and storms are characterized by snow, ice, sleet, freezing rain and/or extremely low temperatures during the winter months. The time of year when winter conditions and storms occur varies significantly by location, altitude and latitude. Places near sea level in the tropics don’t typically experience significant winter conditions or storms, while mountainous regions and areas further from the equator typically experience longer and more severe winter seasons, with a greater possibility of winter conditions and storms earlier and later into the season. Below are examples of areas regularly impacted by winter conditions and storms, and their seasons.
| Region | Season |
|---|---|
| Northern Hemisphere
Examples: North America: Much of the United States (including Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming) and all of Canada. Europe & Central Asia: Afghanistan, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and Ukraine. Japan: Hokkaidō, Tōhoku, Kantō, Koshinetsu, Chūbu, Kansai, Chūgoku, Shikoku and Kyūshū. Other Asia: India (northern states such as Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand), Mongolia and Nepal. | December through February |
| Southern Hemisphere
Examples: Argentina, Chile and New Zealand (central area of North Island, South and East of South Island, and mountainous areas). |
June through September |
Endemic diseases are diseases that are commonly found in certain regions as reported by public health authorities. These diseases may not always be found at high levels in these areas, and may experience high and low periods, but the risk of infection from these diseases is considered to be present on an ongoing basis in these areas. Below are examples of endemic diseases commonly found in different regions.
| Region | Diseases |
|---|---|
| Africa and the Middle East | Cholera, hepatitis, yellow fever, malaria, meningitis, rabies, typhoid, zika, schistosomiasis, river blindness, sleeping sickness, tuberculosis, lymphatic filariasis, viral hemorrhagic fever, chikungunya, giardia and HIV/AIDS. |
| Asia | Cholera, dengue, hepatitis, malaria, rabies, typhoid, zika, schistosomiasis, tuberculosis, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, giardia and HIV/AIDS. |
| Australia | Hepatitis, measles, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, dengue and HIV/AIDS. |
| Europe | Hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, tick-borne illnesses (including Lyme disease), measles, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and tuberculosis. |
| Latin America and the Caribbean | Chagas disease, cholera, dengue, hepatitis, yellow fever, malaria, rabies, typhoid, zika, schistosomiasis, river blindness, sleeping sickness, tuberculosis, tick-borne illnesses, giardia, chikungunya, cyclosporosis, leptospirosis and HIV/AIDS. |
| South Pacific Ocean | Cholera, dengue, hepatitis, malaria, rabies, typhoid, zika, tuberculosis, leprosy, soil helminths, lymphatic filariasis, trachoma and HIV/AIDS. |
| United States and Canada | Hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, tick-borne illnesses (including Lyme disease), measles, West Nile virus, eastern equine encephalitis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and tuberculosis. |
The weather events and endemic diseases listed above are non-exhaustive examples and are informed by data from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Guy Carpenter Asia-Pacific Climate Impact Centre, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization, among other sources.