Not that there is an equivalent of course but if you’re using other booking sites, who do you have the best and most seamless experience with?
VRBO, except for the fact they charge so much to client and host, so I make that price higher and by pass that ‘flaw’. Flip Key I find the worse because of Trip Advisor which can be so easily abused by the lunatics among us.
Thanks. Just tried to list with VRBO but they don’t allow ‘pay per booking’ for Australia, only the annual option.
HomeAway/VRBO I find to be excellent and have been on both Aurbnb and HomeAway/VRBO for 2 years and generally find the HomeAway/VRBO to be an easier platform for me as host and for guests as well. Also it is not more expensive as hosts since with a flat annual fee I calculated I paid much less than the 3% with Airbnb. My bookings usually trend as 60% with HomeAway and 40% Airbnb. Also the review system is much better than Airbnb on HomeAway/VRBO.
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I have listed with Wimdu. So far the bookings are a bit slow but the people seem great - though the messages don’t come through in English so I have to use google translate. My first guest from Wimdu arrives on Saturday - we’ll see how it goes!!
HomeAway /VRBO is now adding additional fees on top of the annual fee. I loved VRBO last year but now do not care for it with the new fees.
If you look at their forums, you are far from alone. There’s just a lot more money to be made for them as a booking site than a simple listing site.
Hi Rod,
Yes I did notice that and it’s because they were purchased by Expedia. It’s a sliding scale which is at 9% for the lower cost stays and it goes down to 4%. I am not sure how it shall work out for HomeAway/VRBO since that will be much less than Airbnb and many of us list on both platforms. I used to be signed up with TravelAdvisor/FlipKey and I have many posts on this forum as to why I am not.
Thanks sso much for your reply.
Glad you received a guest from them. I have been listed with them for a long time but have never had an inquiry even. I will update my listing and see if that helps. I am not a city center listing and that may be the reason as well.
It took so long that I thought I had unlisted my place (which I had intended to do). However, the traffic is nothing compared to airbnb, just a few bookings for the summer. I did lower my price to attract some business - I hope to get some decent reviews then be bump it up. . I like airbnb a lot but don’t want all my eggs in one basket. ; )
Yes, you never know what might happen when they go public… Board meetings have a way of producing “initiatives” that put the squeeze on suppliers and customers.
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I have listed my apartment on Airbnb, HomeAway, Wimdu, Housetrip (housetrip has a good market share in Europe), 9flats and Misterbnb.
So far 9 bookings out of 10 came from Air, the remaining bookings from HomeAway, many dumb enquiries and not a single reservation on Housetrip and Wimdu, no enquiry at all on 9flats and Misterbnb.
I guess it also depends on the tourists in your area. For instance Wimdu is very strong in the german market but I know that Germans account for only 3% of the visitors in my area.
As a host I think that Airbnb has the most user friendly platform.
Helen, so nice to see you! Have you heard about all the changes at HA? It’s transitioning from the listing platform you loved to a transactional one. In addition to that subscription fee, they are adding booking fees. Also they expect all of their transactions to be contained by the end of the year. Meaning you’ll lose control over your communication with the guest, and be forced to make all payments through them. Owners are hopping mad and threatening to not renew! Some are even filing class actions, since they are now adding booking fees. See: HomeAway may face a class action by owners over its new guest fee | PhocusWire
and HomeAway's new fee sparks some anger the company tries to quell | PhocusWire
Read the comments for an earful!!!
Do they provide any degree of support?
Yes, @felixcat… I found them to be SUPER responsive. When I was setting mine up, I emailed them and asked, how about a field for House Rules? Within 24 hours, there was one on the site! The site looks beautiful, professional and what’s best is THERE ARE NO FEES! You can control your own reviews too. Felix, I will PM you with what my listing looks like if you are interested. All they want in return is sharing and viral love!
The site is setting YOU up to deal with your guests directly. For those of us on Air, we can use this to fill in. For those who rely on HA/VRBO… they need to start using the site now!
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Sounds good. Thanks!
Thanks for that @konacoconutz! I just listed with Wimdu also but no reason why I can’t try HomeEscape as well. Do keep us posted with how you go with them. Have to confess to being a total fan of Airbnb - though as bookings have been quiet the last couple of months I’m keen to have alternative. Cheers to all from DownUnder.
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I just listed on house escape. I like how Airbnb deals with all the collection of money and I don’t have to worry about it at all.
Just wondering what payment method you use with other sites that don’t collect it for you.
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I will probably use personal check or wire. Anything else can result in chargebacks.