Mich Goh, Director of Public Policy for APAC at Airbnb, has built her career around understanding the unique needs of each market in the region. Every APAC market wants something different from tourism, and that diversity defines the challenge she faces.
In rural Japan, the goal is to return empty homes to active use, creating new opportunities for local economies. In Goa, the focus shifts to training women hosts in remote areas so they can capture a larger share of tourism revenue.
“Everyone’s trying to do a slightly different thing,” she explains, highlighting the varied priorities across the continent.
Her method for engaging governments and skeptics begins with listening before proposing solutions. She references an eight-country study that showed 89% of travelers had already explored destinations beyond major cities in the previous year, and that 91% intended to repeat such trips.
Rather than defending short-term rentals outright, she asks participants to identify the real concerns affecting their communities. She inquires about the outcomes they hope to achieve and the specific problems they aim to solve.
This listening-first stance also informs her outlook on travel trends for the next five years. She anticipates a move away from merely checking off landmarks toward experiencing the emotional character of places. “It’s not about what you see when you travel to a location,” she says, “it’s about how that place makes you feel.”
A concrete illustration of her approach occurred during a public consultation in Putrajaya, Malaysia. In that session, a group of residents expressed worries about short-term rentals in their buildings. By acknowledging their concerns and asking clarifying questions, she was able to shift the atmosphere and support a more constructive dialogue.
This approach is reflected in her read on where travel is headed over the next five years – a shift from ticking off landmarks to actually feeling a place.