Vacation Rentals in Hotels, Condos & Homes

  Hotels & Resorts

As hotels have worked to find ways to target family vacation customers, they have had some success in establishing family orientated brands such Embassy Suites (Hilton), Residence Inn (Marriott), Kimpton Hotels (IHG), Hawthorne Suites (Wyndham) or even Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts or Club Med.

But these all have had limited success because of the seasonality of family vacations as compared to catering to the business travelers. Focus goes where the money can be made.

Boutique Hotels

A segment which has gain some momentum is Boutique Hotels. The best of these are hotels that are +/- 100 rooms which have minimal focus on the business travel. As such, by default, they must find ways to cater to leisure travelers. A company focus on embracing this un-brand hotel approach is a company called Implied Hotels. They focus on finding unique properties located is great locations and create a unique almost branded hostel type of experience.

  Condos offered by individual Owners

There are companies which offer access to rentals in these units on behalf of the owner. This is similar to how Airbnb offers rentals for individual who own a vacation Home. Some of the largest operators are Vacasa, Awaze and Evolve. They offer a great variety and many locations. Typically, these are limited service or self-catered type of experiences.

Condos offered by Timeshare companies

One of the often-overlooked Condo vacation options are the timeshare companies. The rental access here is one not heavily marketed because the focus is on provide access for timeshare members or potential timeshare members. However, timeshare rentals are offer by most of the great hospitality brands including Marriott, Hilton, Wyndham, Disney, Accor and Holiday Inn. Because of this brand affiliation and the timeshare business model, these Condos are well taken care and well designed. Plus, they also offer a higher level of service ranging from room service, to housekeeping and great onsite restaurants and pool and beach facilities. 

 Homes offered for Rentals by individual Owners

Companies such as Airbnb, VRBO (which now owns HomeAway) and FlipKeyoffer rentals on behalf of individuals who own a vacation Home. They offer a great variety and many locations. Typically, these are limited service or self-catered type of experiences.

There has been much consolidation in the Travel Technology and Search business. For instance, VRBO (and HomeAway) which are owned by Expedia Group and FlipKey and HouseTrip are owned by TripAdvisor Group. Meanwhile Airbnb remains as an independent company.

The benefit of being part of a large group is your search will give you access to accommodations from a variety of source. As an independent, Airbnb will only show you Homes which they have agreements with Homeowners, typically known as Hosts.

Recently, hotel brands have began to create products which compete with Airbnb and VRBO. Most notably is Homes & Villas offer by Marriott. They have agreements with Home Management Companies and individual homeowners will need to sign up with one of our home management companies who understand the standards and requirements of the Marriott platform.