City Stays Apartments

What City Stays Apartments does

City Stays Apartments is a Lisbon-based short-term rental property management company founded in 2012 and operating under the name City Stays Portugal. The company serves two distinct customer segments: tourists and visitors seeking furnished apartment accommodation in central Lisbon, and property owners who lack the time or expertise to self-manage short-term rentals. Its core product is a full-service apartment rental offering across 10+ central Lisbon neighborhoods (including Cais do Sodré, Rossio, Bica, Alegria, Sé, Belém, São Lázaro, Chiado, Príncipe Real, Bairro Alto, and Martim Moniz), with units ranging from T1 (one-bedroom) to T4 (four-bedroom) configurations accommodating 2-10 guests.

The company operates on a 25% commission-plus-VAT management fee model for property owners, with a guaranteed 25% return on investment positioning. Its technology stack is built on the Guestcentric booking engine for reservations and payment processing, supplemented by a self-service keyless entry system for contactless check-in and multi-channel distribution across third-party OTAs. Ancillary revenue streams include add-on guest services (extra cleaning, breakfast, airport transfers, Tuk-Tuk tours) and owner consulting services (fiscal/legal advisory, interior design, photography, compliance management). The company is privately held, founder-led by Pedro Barata, employs 1-10 staff, and holds the Safe & Clean certification from Turismo de Portugal. No funding rounds, parent company, or external investors are disclosed.

Name

City Stays Apartments

Legal name

City Stays Apartments

Website

https://city-stays.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

City Stays Apartments is a Lisbon-based short-term rental property management company founded in 2012, managing furnished apartments across 10+ central Lisbon neighborhoods on a 25% commission basis, serving both tourists seeking accommodation and property owners seeking full-service rental management.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Vacation Rental Property Management

NAICS

Other Traveler Accommodation (72119), Accommodation (721)

SIC

Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000)

akta.pro primary industry

Urban serviced apartments (city-centre) (THAMACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Furnished Corporate Apartments (Urban, Mid-Rise) (THAMAHAG), Corporate Extended-Stay Housing (Relocation & Project-Based) (THAMAFAA)

Keywords

• Short-term rentals
• Apartment management
• Vacation rentals
• Property management
• Hospitality services

Headquarters

HQ city

Lisbon

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Property Management Commission: City Stays charges a 25% commission plus VAT on rental revenue for complete property management services including pricing optimization, booking management, guest support, cleaning, and maintenance.
2. Additional Guest Services: Additional revenue from services such as extra cleaning, breakfast service, airport transfers, and special requests. These are charged separately to guests.
3. Owner Consulting Services: Additional services for property owners including fiscal and legal advisory, interior design consulting, photography services, and compliance management.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

City Stays Apartments manages a portfolio of fully-equipped apartments in central Lisbon neighborhoods for short-term tourist and visitor stays. For property owners, the company delivers end-to-end vacation rental management — pricing optimization, multi-channel booking management, guest communications, cleaning, and maintenance — in exchange for a 25% commission on rental revenue, supplemented by fees for ancillary guest services.

Product overview

City Stays Apartments is a short-term rental property management company operating since 2012, offering fully equipped apartments in Lisbon across neighborhoods including Cais do Sodré, Rossio, Bica, Alegria, Sé, Belém, and São Lázaro. The core product is apartment rental management with a 25% commission model for complete property management services. The offering combines short-term vacation rental apartments for guests with a comprehensive owner services platform that includes revenue management, multi-channel booking management, quick code-based check-in, 24/7 customer support, cleaning and maintenance services, legal compliance support, interior design consulting, and photography services. Apartments range from T1 (1 bedroom) to T4 (4 bedrooms) with nightly rates varying from €8,000 to €9,500 or €100 per night for premium options.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Short-Term Apartment Rentals Fully-equipped short-term apartment accommodation in central Lisbon for leisure and business travelers, with kitchens, living areas, and modern amenities, bookable by the night through the company website and third-party platforms.
• Vacation Rental Property Management Services End-to-end management of apartment owners' short-term rental assets, including pricing optimization, multi-channel booking management, guest communications, cleaning, and maintenance, offered for a 25% commission on rental revenue.
• Airport Transfer Service Add-on airport pickup and drop-off service for guests booking short-term apartment stays with City Stays Apartments in Lisbon.
• Breakfast Service Optional breakfast add-on for guests staying in City Stays Apartments, provided as a paid ancillary service.
• Additional Cleaning Service Optional additional cleaning service available to guests during their stay for an extra fee.

Quantifiable outcome

• Guaranteed 25% return on investment for property owners
• +1 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Guestcentric GroupcoreTechnology or IntegrationGuestcentric Group (www.guestcentric.com) is engaged as the technology partner for executing the booking mechanism of City Stays' business operations. Guestcentric operates under City Stays' authority with a signed contract for their services. They are instructed in writing on how processing should be performed.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Sonder Holdings: Tech-enabled serviced apartment and short-stay operator with units across major European cities. Comparable urban apartment-stay product with larger scale and technology investment.
• Staycity Aparthotels: European aparthotel/apart-hotel chain with central city locations including Lisbon. Broad incumbent offering similar urban serviced apartment product with stronger brand and distribution.
• Airbnb (Host Services): Global short-stay marketplace and host services platform. City Stays competes with Airbnb-hosted listings in Lisbon and depends on Airbnb's channel for distribution, making Airbnb the dominant market force.
• SACO Serviced Apartments: UK-headquartered aparthotel operator with units across multiple European cities including Lisbon. Competes for the same urban serviced apartment demand at greater scale with standardized operations.

Direct peers

• The Lisboans: Lisbon-based short-stay apartment rental manager offering design-led serviced apartments across central neighborhoods. Direct competitor to City Stays in the urban serviced apartment segment with overlapping guest profiles and pricing.
• Upon Lisbon Prime Residences: Lisbon aparthotel operator combining apartment-style units with hotel-grade services in central locations. Comparable urban serviced apartment offering but with larger operational scale and brand presence.
• Feeling Lisbon Apartments: Local Lisbon vacation rental operator managing furnished apartments in central neighborhoods. Closely comparable in size, target customer (city tourists) and core value proposition of full-service apartment stays.
• Nest City Flats: Independent short-term rental management firm in Lisbon handling guest check-in, cleaning and owner services. Closely matches City Stays' third-party property management model and unit-pricing approach.
• Lisbonaire Apartments: Independent Lisbon short-stay apartment manager offering city-center units with similar self-check-in and concierge services. Directly comparable business model and customer base to City Stays.

Others

• Guestcentric Group: Booking engine and digital marketing SaaS provider for hotels and serviced apartments. Enabler/ecosystem partner - City Stays uses Guestcentric as its core reservation technology provider.

Market position

Strengths2 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/city-stays-apartments

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about City Stays Apartments