COP26 'Human hotel' was big success, says report

Human Hotel, the initiative which paired up local homeowners with delegates and activists in need of accommodation, released its report on its operation during the UN talks.

It was unveiled that 1,260 homes in the area were opened up to guests, 50 per cent of them for free.

Some guests stayed in Glasgow homes for up to 21 days.

The report also said that 61 per cent of hosts have never shared their homes before, proving that the majority decided to help out the arriving delegates after seeing a callout.

A total of 12,339 nights were booked on the online platform during COP26.

The report revealed that 126,896 kg CO2 emissions and 2,768,640 litres of water were saved, thanks to the scheme.

It also mentioned that 80 per cent of guests give the network five out of five stars as an alternative accommodation for campaigners.

More than 90 per cent of hosts reported having done so after reading about the accommodation crisis.

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The scheme provided accommodation for visitors from 127 countries, who otherwise would have had to rent expensive hotel rooms or Airbnbs.

During COP26,  their prices were soaring, with some people paying thousands of pounds.

Over 50 per cent of guests said they would not have been able to come to Glasgow without the Human Hotel.

This rise in prices was not unique to Glasgow, said the Human Hotel boss, it is a common phenomenon among cities hosting big international events.

In October, we reported on a Glasgow Airbnb host, who was banned from the platform after demanding an extra $2000 from his guest a few weeks before the event.

Co-founder of the Human Hotel from Denmark, Martin Rosengaard said: “I would say that the initiative was successful.

“A lot of people could not have attended without it, which is the most important part.

“This is about accessibility and democracy, and of course, a lot of new friendships were created, which we are very happy about.

“Reading all the positive comments from hosts and guests has been overwhelming.

"Guests were saying: thank you for making it possible for me to attend, otherwise it would have been impossible due to economic restraints.

“On the host side, it has been much about feeling thankful for having a chance to participate.”

Based on feedback, guests reported having found a friendly, loving community in Glasgow, which embraced them.

Martin stayed with a Glaswegian couple in the city’s Southside, 

He added: “I think a lot of local people knew about it, it was a big event in Glasgow and surrounding areas but people were asking ‘what can I do’.

“For a lot of them, this was a way to get involved, that is what they were saying in their feedback.

“And we should add that this is all in the light of Covid as well.

“We could only get started with the organisation very late in August because of restrictions.

“This meant that our time was much less and we are very thankful for everyone who signed up.”

Even though the Covid-19 pandemic posed a significant challenge, the success of the initiative is obvious.

The Human Hotel has been running during big international events since 2009 and will continue to operate, said Martin.

He added: “There were days when I was taking the but to the COP26 venue and out of curiousity, I asked around who stayed at a host and I was surprised to see that more than half of the bus said they were.

“I got goosebumps.

“We are very thankful and hopeful for the future.

“I want to say thank you to the citizens of Glasgow, it has been incredible and it couldn’t have been done without all those great, hospitable people, including my own hosts.

“It was great having been to Glasgow and stay locally.

“I felt that the city was similar to Copenhagen in many ways, the weather was similar and I felt a familiar Northern spirit.

“The people were a bit shy at first but very warm once you get to know them.

"It was a joy to be there and I am returning for sure.”