Will Airbnb soon offer local tours?

Airbnb, the most talked about travel startup of 2012, is taking a close look at adding local activities to run alongside the home booking service.

Here is what is happening behind the scenes:

The platform would offer two types of services. On one side, in line with the idea of helping travellers discover life and culture, Airbnb would promote local flavour experiences like personal tour guides, food or activity specialists.

Conversely, in order to help both travellers and hosts, there would be a marketplace for logistic services such as check-in and check-out, housekeeping, transportation or food delivery.