New Year's Eve 2012: Airbnb's Biggest Night Of The Year

Seems December 31 is the biggest night of the year -- for Airbnb anyway.

The vacation rental site reports that it's expecting more than 140,000 rentals worldwide to be booked for the night of the year-end celebration, and a significant portion of those are in New York City.

Airbnb says more than 21,000 rental properties have already been reserved in the home of the ball drop, a nearly 300 percent increase over the 8,000 New York New Year's bookings in 2011.

Other destinations that are seeing interest include areas immediately outside New York City, as well as the Caribbean, Airbnb said in a release.

Last month, the site made headlines in New York when it provided assistance to victims of Superstorm Sandy. A big hit with travelers looking for alternative accommodations, Airbnb has been dogged by critics, including New York City officials who claim its users' short-term rentals are illegal under current housing rules.