Renting a vacation rental this year? Check out this advice several travelers have to offer.
If you are looking at VRBO or HomeAway, look for the Premier Partner designation. On Airbnb, check for the superhost badge. Both are given for outstanding service.
Read the reviews…all of them. Pay close attention to the dates and if the owner responded to something which wasn’t up to par. If the same negative comment keeps coming up, it’s probably a good sign there is a problem in that area.
If you are planning on doing a lot of cooking, it would be a good idea to pack a quality chef knife in a checked bag. I’ve never had great knives in rentals.
Ask questions of the owner. Don’t assume anything. I did once. When the amenities mentioned linens provided, I assumed that meant ALL lines. It didn’t. No sheets or pillowcases were provided. Just towels!
Introduce yourself to your host via email or text. Do this in advance. It is always a good thing.
When contacting an owner and it takes several days for an answer, this might be a sign he or she is not a prompt person. That would be a consideration if you needed to talk to them while staying at their property.
Look at Google Street View and well as maps. This gives you a good view of busy streets, railroad tracks, bars, graffiti-filled buildings, and streets filled with garbage.