Deciding between a vacation rental or hotel is an important decision that can impact the quality of your next vacation. There are quite a few factors to consider when deciding on your travel accommodations. What type of experience are you hoping to have? How many people are traveling with you? Do you want to shop and prepare your own food or dine out for every meal?
How long will you be at the destination? When we travel as a family, we all like to have our own space, so this means we end up either booking multiple hotel rooms or a vacation rental with plenty of bedrooms and bathrooms.
We like going out to restaurants in new cities, but we also like to have some staples and snacks on hand, so having a kitchen is an advantage of a vacation rental. We also don’t mind going to the market and picking up supplies, so that isn’t a huge downside for us. But, the ease of hotel restaurants and room service may be a bigger perk for some.
If we are moving from destination to destination and only spend a night or two in one place, we will go for a hotel. Whereas, if we are staying put for a week or more, a vacation rental better suits our needs.
For hotel reservations, there are many online options. We usually look on travel sites like Expedia or Kayak to get an idea of location, price, and most importantly, reviews. Don’t risk your trip on a cheap property with lower reviews. Look for lots of recent positive reviews. Once you have identified your preferred property, book directly with the hotel itself. This will be worth it in the long run, even if it is a few dollars more expensive.
Trying to deal with reservation issues through a third party is not straightforward, so booking direct is best. If you need multiple rooms, request rooms that are next to each other when you book. Adjoining rooms are not usually easy to find outside of the U.S,, but may be available if you ask.
For vacation rentals, we recommend Airbnb and VRBO. Both sites let you sort by number of bedrooms, bathrooms, amenities, etc. It’s also a good idea to look for Super Host or Premiere Host properties, if available.
This means that the host is experienced and has many satisfied guests. Again, the reviews are extremely important, and knowing you have the backing of Airbnb or VRBO is a good safety net if any issues do come up.
Whether you book a hotel or vacation rental, either can be a resource for recommendations on drivers, restaurants, etc. Your hotel’s management and/or property hosts have lots of knowledge about the area, and are almost always very helpful in helping travelers coordinate transportation, dining, tours, etc.
Looking for more travel ideas? Check out our Travel Tips and Destinations collections.
Have a great adventure!
The Passporter