I Just Got Back from the Turo Power Host Summit - Here’s What Actually Matters for 2026

I just got back from the Turo Power Host Summit and I want to break down what was discussed, what this means for you and I as hosts, and where Turo appears to be heading in 2026 and beyond.

Now, for those of you who aren’t familiar with the summit, this is a private event that Turo hosts for top-performing operators. Traditionally it was limited strictly to Power Hosts, but as that designation has evolved, invitations are now also based on vehicle count and overall performance.

It’s a packed two-day event. Year-in-review presentations. New product announcements. Breakout sessions with Turo leadership. Open Q&A. And increasingly, smaller room discussions where you can actually talk to product teams or hosts who are scaling successfully.

These summits are designed to energize hosts. Everything is presented in a positive light, even when the policy shift being discussed isn’t necessarily positive for you operationally. That’s the nature of corporate events.

So instead of covering everything, I want to focus on what actually impacts your bottom line.

Let’s Start with Airports

Airports were a major topic, specifically delivery and parking.

Turo is leaning heavily into airports because, according to their data, airport guests are statistically less risky. That’s important context.

But they’ve also made a recent change that has not gone over well with many hosts.

Hosts now pay both sides of airport parking.

Previously, the guest paid parking when they picked up the vehicle and the host paid when retrieving it after the trip. Now the host pays both.

I don’t love this change.

Yes, it standardizes the experience for guests. Yes, it simplifies expectations. But it feels like it benefits the guest at the expense of the host.

That said, I did learn something interesting in a one-on-one conversation.

Turo is no longer heavily promoting “Free Delivery.”

The free delivery badge is gone. There’s no clear delivery cost filter from the guest side like before. And since pricing is shown as an all-in cost, adding a delivery fee may not hurt bookings the way it used to.

That opens the door to offsetting airport parking through structured delivery pricing.

It’s not groundbreaking, but it changes how you might approach your delivery model — especially in airport-heavy markets like Love Field.

Expanded Delivery Customization (This Is Big)

In 2026, Turo is rolling out more granular delivery zones.

Right now, delivery pricing is fairly blunt. You set a flat fee and maybe a radius. That’s about it.

The upcoming update will allow hosts to define specific zones and price them differently.

That matters.

Imagine offering $50 delivery generally,  but free delivery to a specific Airbnb complex two minutes away. Or to a mechanic shop. Or to a dealership that regularly needs short-term rentals for customers.

This isn’t just a feature upgrade. It’s a local marketing tool.

You can now strategically partner with:

Airbnb operators
Body shops
Dealerships
Mechanic shops

And essentially become their rental arm.

For hosts who think like business owners instead of just platform users, this is real leverage.

Turo + ChatGPT Integration

Turo is integrating with ChatGPT so guests can book directly through AI-powered travel planning flows.

Whether that’s revolutionary or just a trendy integration remains to be seen. But Turo is clearly investing heavily in AI.

I’m cautiously neutral on this. AI is a buzzword right now. What matters is execution.

Mandatory Discounts: My Biggest Concern

Mandatory duration discounts are coming.

Weekly. Monthly. Standardized.

My concern was how this would impact daily extenders - because a large portion of my fleet extends one day at a time, sometimes for weeks.

Here’s the clarification I received:

Discounts apply per booking or per extension,  not cumulatively.

If someone books a full month at once, they receive the monthly discount.

If they extend a month at once, they receive it.

But if they extend daily for 30 days, they do not retroactively qualify for a monthly discount.

That was a huge relief.

Forced discounts still reduce flexibility. But they won’t retroactively claw back revenue from extension-heavy fleets.

How Lead Time Impacts Your Earnings

This is probably the most impactful policy shift.

Earnings are now tied to lead time.

If a guest books more than 28 days in advance, you can earn 100% of your daily rate.

If they book 1–2 days before the trip, you may only earn 85%.

So now:

Far-out bookings = higher payout
Last-minute bookings = lower payout

Turo’s logic is that early-booking guests are lower risk.

My issue with this policy is simple.

We don’t choose our guests.

We can’t freely cancel guests we’re uncomfortable with.

Yet we’re penalized if a guest books last minute and turns out to be risky.

Turo’s response was that giving hosts cancellation discretion would inevitably be abused, leading to discrimination or selective cancellations.

I understand the brand protection angle.

But good hosts often become collateral damage in policies designed for the lowest common denominator.

The Real Root Issue: Dynamic Pricing

Here’s where things get messy.

Many hosts (myself included) use dynamic pricing.

The problem is dynamic pricing often inflates prices far out, then as dates get closer, rates drop dramatically to fill empty calendars.

That structure naturally produces last-minute bookings.

And now last-minute bookings cost you money.

In my own fleet, I’ve seen basic vehicles priced at $60–$70 per day far out, even when premium cars are priced similarly. That creates empty calendars 7–10 days out.

Then price adjustments fill those slots… with short lead-time bookings.

Under the new policy, that strategy is penalized.

My adjustment moving forward is to manage my calendar intentionally from a 28-day perspective.

If Turo wants longer lead times, we need to engineer for that.

But I do think they should improve dynamic pricing before penalizing hosts for behavior it indirectly encourages.

Co-Host Payout Automation

Turo is introducing automated payout splits for co-hosting.

If you agree to a 60/40 split, payouts are handled automatically.

Operationally, this simplifies partnerships.

My only hesitation is cost structure. Not all expenses are split evenly in real life. Fixed costs and operational responsibilities vary.

But for newer operators entering co-hosting, this lowers friction significantly.

The “Lowest Denominator” Philosophy

In one of my conversations with someone from product development, something stuck with me.

She mentioned that many policy decisions are made based on the lowest denominator.

For example:

Vehicle descriptions were removed because some hosts wrote unprofessional content.

Vehicle swaps are restricted because guests expect the exact car they booked, not “similar.”

Cancellation flexibility is limited because it would be abused.

Parking fees were standardized because some hosts manipulated timing.

In short,  not all hosts operate professionally.

So Turo builds safeguards for the weakest operators.

The problem is that high-performing hosts often feel constrained by those same safeguards.

My Overall Takeaway

The summit was positive.

Turo is clearly focused on streamlining the guest experience and reduscing risk and in this effort some policy changes help hosts, while others hurt them.

But I walked away with a clearer understanding of why changes are happening, even if I don’t agree with all of them.

Where Turo needs to improve is rewarding high-performing hosts in a tangible way.

If policies cater to the lowest denominator, then incentives should reward the highest performers.

Right now, many hosts feel like that balance is missing.

Final Thoughts

2026 is shaping up to be a year of structural changes.

If you’re running a fleet casually, you’ll feel friction.

If you’re running it like a business, you’ll adapt.

My recommendation moving forward:

Think in 28-day windows.
Reevaluate dynamic pricing.
Treat delivery zones as a marketing asset.
Engineer for lead time.

And as always,  build your operation like a business, not just a listing.

If you have thoughts on these changes, I’d genuinely like to hear them.

What do you think Turo got right?

And where do you think they missed the mark?

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