THE National Day holiday is around the corner, and those making last-minute plans to travel at that time are busy booking fast-disappearing hotel rooms in popular tourist destinations.

In a bid to cash in on this rush for rooms, social media users are flooding platforms with offers of apartments for rent just for the holiday week, at prices that are a fraction of what is being charged by hotels.

The hashtag, “Living in my home during the National Day holiday” is trending big time on social media platforms, with people living in popular tourist destinations such as Beijing, Shanghai, Xiamen in Fu­jian Province and Changsha in Hunan Province offering their extra rooms to travelers.

On Xiaohongshu, a popular life­style-sharing platform, there are many posts by netizens offering to rent out their apartments during the holiday week.

Experts said this novel way of sharing one’s home not only means extra earnings for the homeowners, but also improves the reputation of the cities. However, they also warned that there are risks involved.

Fu Jian, a lawyer at Henan Zejin Law Firm, said that as there is no written agreement being signed between homeowners and renters, and the ID information is not registered, it would be very difficult for the owner to safeguard his or her rights should a dispute occur.

He advised owners to be aware of relevant rules before renting out their apartments, and added that renters should also choose carefully to avoid unnecessary risks. (China Daily)