Need a Break from Airbnb’s Expensive Cleaning Fees and Bad Cancelation Policies? Still, Shocked by A Bad Experience You Had with Airbnb? Are You Just Looking at Different Options for A Trip You Have Coming Up? For your Next Holiday Rental, Check out These Six Options Besides Airbnb:
Airbnb Holds a Monopolistic Grip, but Travelers Are Getting Sick of It
Airbnb Is a Huge Company. According to Data from Second Measure, a Company that Studies Transaction Trends, Airbnb Made up 19% of The Entire Accommodation Market in 2018. This includes Hotels and Other Holiday Rental Companies. The Pandemic Likely Made Airbnb’s Share of The Pie Bigger: A 2021 Shareholder Letter Says that Longer Stays by Mobile Workers Helped the Platform Make More Money that Year.
This means that Airbnb Is the Only Company that Rents out Vacation Homes, Which Makes It Hard for Tourists to Find Good Alternatives. There Is Good Competition in The Hotel Business, but Airbnb and Everyone Else in The Vacation Rental Business Rule It. Still, Some of These Rivals Offer Real Alternatives to Airbnb for Travelers with Certain Needs.
Hipcamp Might Be a Good Choice for People Who Want to Go Camping, While Booking Might Be a Better Choice for People Who Want to Find High-Quality Rentals in Cities. Each Has Its Flaws and Restrictions. Today We’re Going to Take a Closer Look at Six Sites that Are Similar to Airbnb but May Be Much Better for Some Travelers:
Vacasa Is the Best Place for Skilled Management with A Touch of Home
- Good: High Standards, Knowledge of The Area, and A Wide Range of Services.
- Bad: not as Many Rooms as Big Companies Like Airbnb and Vrbo.
- When to Use It: You value Good Property State, Knowing the Area Well, and Finding Unusual Things.
Vacasa Is Different from Other Vacation Rental Sites. It’s Not Just a List of Properties; It’s Also a Full-Service Vacation Rental Management Business that Works with Homeowners to Professionally Run Their Homes. In other words, You Can Expect:
High Standards of Quality: Vacasa Homes Are Carefully Checked Out and Cleaned According to Strict Rules, Which Makes Sure that Guests Have a Consistent and Pleasant Stay.
Being Able to Book on Points: Some Pretty Cool Relationships Have Been Made Between Vacasa and Sites Like Homes and Villas by Marriott International, Wyndham Rewards, and American Express Travel. These Partnerships Let You Book Vacation Rentals Using Points.
A Diversified Portfolio: Vacasa Handles 40,000 Homes in The US, Canada, Belize, Costa Rica, and Mexico. These Homes Range from Cozy Cabins to Condos on The Beach. One Rental We Looked at In Wilmington, North Carolina, Was Built in 1902 but has been Fully Updated Since Then. It Had a Charming Neo-Renaissance Style that Made It Stand Out From the Generic Hilton and Best Western Hotels Nearby.
Strong App: Vacasa’s Web and Mobile App Work Together Perfectly During the Renting Process. You Can Easily Get Check-In Directions by Text Message or In the App, and It’s Easy to Check out In the App. Vacasa Offers Customer Service 24 Hours a Day, Seven Days a Week.
One Big Problem with Vacasa, Though, Is That It’s Not Always Available. Even Though Vacasa Is Thought to Be the Biggest Vacation Rental Management Platform in The U.S., Its 40,000 Vacation Home Listings Are Still Very Few Compared to Airbnb’s 7 Million or So Current Listings Around the World. On top of That, Vacasa only Really Works in North America. Don’t Use Vacasa if You Want to Find a Holiday Rental In, Say, Europe or Asia.
For Travelers Who Want a Properly Managed, High-Quality Rental Experience with A Touch of Local Charm, Vacasa Is a Good Contender. Its Focus on Quality and Human Touch Makes It a Good Choice for People Who Want to Avoid the Problems that Can Come with Individual Listings on Other Platforms.
Vrbo: The Best Option to Airbnb that Has a Loyalty Program
- Good: Strong Search Tools and A Free App Called One Key.
- Bad: Policies for Canceling Are Not Clear. There Are No Shared Places, Just Single-Family Homes.
- When to Use It: You Want to Look at Different Prices.
Vrbo Is Like Lyft for Airbnb Users. Vrbo Is Like Airbnb, but A Little Less Cool. Also, Vrbo Isn’t the Main Focus for A Reason. It Has Some of The Same Features (houses, Apartments, and Even One-Of-A-Kind Stays), but It’s Not as Well Known as The Other Name. It Also Has a Lot Less to Choose from In Most Places, but Its Hidden Gems Can Be Great Deals.
One Big Difference Between Vrbo and Airbnb Is that Vrbo Has a Program Called One Key for Repeat Guests. Also, You Don’t Have to Book a Lot of Vrbo Stays Just to Get Points. Vrbo’s Parent Company Is Expedia Group, Which Owns several Travel Companies. This means that You Can Earn and Redeem Rewards for Trips Made Through Hotels.com, Expedia, and Vrbo.
When You Sign Up, You’ll Get 2% Back in One Key Cash for Every Dollar You Spend on Certain Hotels, Vacation Rentals, Events, Packages, Car Rentals, and Cruises. Then, You Can Use Your One Key Cash to Pay for Your Next Trip. That’s at Least $10 Off Your Next Vrbo, Even if You Booked a $500 Vrbo and Only Have $10 in One Key Cash. Not Too Bad.
What Should You Watch Out For When You Book a Vrbo? Watch out For Cancellation Rules that Are Hard to Use and Poor Customer Service. Also, Unlike Airbnb, Which Has Hotel Rooms and Shared Areas, You Can only Rent Single-Family Homes. When Looking for A Renting Home on Its Own, It’s Always a Good Idea to Look on Vrbo and Compare Prices.
Some Ads Can Be Found on Both Sites, but Vrbo Is Sometimes Cheaper. There Is Also a “total Price” Choice in Vrbo’s Search Function that Lets You Compare how Much a Rental Really Costs, Which Includes Cleaning Fees and Other Costs. Most of The Time, It Makes Sense to Look at Vrbo as An Option for Airbnb. This Is Especially True During Busy Travel Times when Airbnb Listings May Be Hard to Find.
Booking.com: Best for stays abroad
- Good: More Properties that Are Handled by Professionals. A Lot of Homes in Other Countries.
- Bad: Small Portfolio. A Lack of Passion or Charm.
- When to Use It: When You Travel Abroad, You Want to Stay Somewhere That Won’t Cause You Any Trouble.
People All Over the World Know Booking.com as A Great Place to Look for Flights and Hotels. It Also Has Vacation Rentals. A Lot of The Properties Are Apartments in Buildings that Are Professionally Managed. This Is Especially True in Big Foreign Cities. Like Vacasa, the Skilled Management Makes It More Likely that Your Trip Will Go Smoothly. For Tourists, This Means It’s Easier to Book and Check Into These Apartments. The Rooms on Booking.Com Don’t Have the Personality and Charm of Some of Airbnb’s or Even Vacasa’s More Colorful Offerings, Though.
Hipcamp Is the Best Place to Go Glamping on A Budget (or Just Camping).
- Good: Cheap and Strange.
- Bad: A Little Rough. Controlling the Quality Could Be a Problem.
- When to Use It: On the Road, You Want to Find a Cheap and Fun Place to Crash.
It’s Clear from The Name that Hipcamp Is a Tool for Booking Camping Sites. You Can Keep Scrolling if You Want to Find Four Real Walls. But Hipcamp Is Appealing to People Who Want to Connect with Nature. Hipcamp’s Website Lists Both Simple Camp Sites Where You Can Set up Your Tent and “Glamping” Choices Like Renting Airstream Trailers and Yurts.
In General, It’s a Good, Cheaper Option for Airbnb for Travelers Who Want to Stay in A More Rural Area. It Might Be a Good Choice for Travelers on A Budget Who Want a Simple Place to Stay or For Travelers on The Edge of The Beaten Path Who Want to Experience Something Truly Unique. Remember that Rustic Has Its Difficulties and Charms.
Marriott Homes and Villas: Good for Marriott members seeking more space
- Good: High-Quality Standards, Earn and Spend Marriott Bonvoy Points.
- Bad: Very Small Collection and Redemption Points Aren’t Worth Much.
- When to Use It: There Are Marriott Points You Want to Use.
In 2019, Marriott, a Huge Hotel Chain, Started a Home Rental Business that Has Quietly Become Popular with People Who Move a Lot. The Best Thing About Marriott Bonvoy Is that You Can Earn and Exchange Points for Vacation Rentals. This Can Be Useful if You’ve Accumulated a Lot of Bonvoys from Staying in Hotels or Using a Marriott Bonvoy Credit Card to Earn a Lot of Points.
It’s Hard (or Impossible) to Book a Vacation Rental for “free” with Points Because Airbnb and Most of Its Competitors Don’t Have Reward Systems. However, Marriott Bonvoy Points Are Easy to Get Through Credit Cards and Transfer Partnerships. This means that Marriott Homes and Villas Lets You Book a Holiday Rental without Having to Pay Cash.
The Value of Bonvoy Points Used to Book Through the Homes and Villas Program Isn’t Always the Best, Though, and It’s Often Not Very Good. First, You Should Know How Much a Bonvoy Is Worth. Nerd Wallet Looks at Hotel Credit Programs in Depth Every Year and Says that Each Bonvoy Is Worth 0.8 Cents. Now, Look at How Much It Costs in Cash and Points to Book a Car. You Might Book Even if It’s a “lesser” Deal Just to Use Up Your Points (though Nerd Wallet Doesn’t Suggest Building up Hotel Points).
You Should Also Think About Whether You Can Save Your Points for A Regular Hotel Room, Which May Give You More Value in The Long Run. It Might Be Worth Saving Your Points for That, Especially if You Can Use One of The “Sweet Spots” for Marriott Hotel Stays. Most of The Time, It’s Better to Use Bonvoys if You Plan to Book a Marriott Hotel Room Soon.
Local Vacation Rental Management Companies: Best for Supporting Small Businesses
- Good: Helps out area hosts and businesses.
- Bad: It’s all up to chance.
- When to use it: Vacation rentals are regulated by local rules.
Have you ever stayed at an Airbnb and been told not to talk to the neighbors by the host? The vacation rental may be against the law in that area or against the rules of the homeowners association that governs the property. A lot of popular holiday spots have their own rental management companies. As an example, most of the homes in Seabrook, Washington, are holiday rentals that are owned and rented by the town. If the above platforms aren’t helping you find holiday rentals, you might want to do a quick internet search to see if any local businesses can help.
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How to Pick the Best Alternative to Airbnb
Airbnb may be the king of vacation rentals, but its crown isn’t set in stone. Think about these other choices if you’re a traveler looking for certain features, loyalty programs, cheap options, or one-of-a-kind experiences. Also, don’t forget how useful it is to compare prices.
There are, however, good options for Airbnb if you’re unhappy with its price, features, or safety. While none of them are as big as the big fish, they all fill a different trip need. When comparing sites like Airbnb (e.g., Booking vs. Vrbo), always look at the total cost, which includes taxes and fees. The extra costs can add up quickly.