We are thinking of renting a beach house in Bolivar this weekend. Trying to sort out cleaning fees and host fees?
Any idea how they are calculated or they can be modified or waived?

Looks like taxes + host fees + cleaning fees are almost half the price.

They have gotten out of control ! I haven't seen that they'll negotiate. You just have to find and pick the properties that have less fees. If anyone knows other tricks I'm all ears !

Look up 94chem. He has a place down there for rent. He is not shy in promoting it. Supposed to be a good place.

I agree the fees have gotten ridiculous. Unfortunately, all you can do is do the math and calculate the true nightly rate on your own.

That being said, we have found some fantastic properties for really reasonable rates. The longer your stay, and the bigger your group, the better deal VRBO is over a hotel

We greatly prefer a rental compared to a hotel when traveling with groups. I only rent from VRBO after having an extremely bad experience with AirBnB - I will never give AirBnB my business again and they pretty much told me they are fine with that. Just make sure you read the contract before booking on VRBO because each host/property has a lot of flexibility on terms. I also find that VRBO is much more up front about fees than AirBnB, which can greatly impact the overall price. The last two VRBO rentals we got the host didn't make us do any cleaning or laundry on move out, which was very nice to not have to worry about.

I'm pretty sure vrbo let's you sort by total price for the trip which would include the fees

I used VRBO for years, and never had a bad experience.

The key is lots of research -- really going over the photos to understand the layout and setup of rooms/bathrooms, using Google Maps to try and ID the actual house/street, etc. -- and frequent communication with the host.

The more research you do and questions you ask, the fewer surprises you'll have when you arrive.

Can't help with the fees and costs. They have gone up to the point where a lot of our traditional getaways no longer make fiscal sense.

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The key is lots of research -- really going over the photos to understand the layout and setup of rooms/bathrooms, using Google Maps to try and ID the actual house/street, etc. -

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Agreed.

Maybe we need a VRBO thread, to showcase properties that we have used, and recommend them to others?

I might try that later today.

Fees on Airbnb went crazy during Covid, and it hasn't really gotten better. I also hate the fact that you get sucked in by a nightly rate, only to find the cost sometimes as much as doubles with all the fees. I also won't book any place with a limited cancellation policy (as in, they keep a chunk of money after 48 hours from booking).

I don't find Airbnb to be as useful in the US anymore, particularly for short stays of only a few days.

But internationally, Airbnb has been great. I've used it in Canada, Rome, and Sicily, and have recommended it to friends who have used it in Paris. International rentals typically don't have the outrageous fees, and often have more generous cancellation policies.

The key is research, reading all of the reviews, scouting pictures, etc. It always takes me longer to research and book when I'm using Airbnb.

Edited to add, Airbnb was a GREAT option for us on recent trips to Sedona, AZ and Yosemite. I've used it in Hawaii, too, but that was so many years ago, my experience is prob no longer relevant.

I find it to be more useful in areas where hotels options are limited (especially chain hotels).

Definitely a fair point about needing separate rooms.

I meant to also add that I don't find it as useful because so many cities have put restrictions on short term rentals.

Airbnb used to be the way to go in NYC, but short term rentals are no longer allowed.

That coupled with the fees definitely makes is a less traveler-friendly option (even if you still end up using it).

I also found a great place in Sedona, AZ that was significantly cheaper and more appealing than any of the hotel options. Same with the Yosemite area.

We have used VRBO over AirB&B probably 10 times in the past few years. No issues. Just be careful of the cancellation fees. Many of AirB&B properties give you a day or two to cancel without a first day rental charge. Most that we have used on VRBO have free cancellation up to about two to three weeks before you arrive.

All the cleaning and other fees are getting crazy, but you are giving the total cost before you pay. Even with that, I still like to stay in a rental with larger rooms and a kitchen. washer, dryer, etc. and also outside decks and privacy.

I always get up about 5:30 am and have my first few cups of coffee sitting outside watching the stars and about 6:30 or so begin breakfast, so for four of us, we are probably saving $75s to $100 a day on the breakfast meal.

I would suggest do some additional research after you find options that are agreeable on VRBO/AirBnb, etc. A previous vacation rental owner here, once you list your rental, it can pop up on all different sorts of platforms with various fees and finding the local option can save you money. Case in point, last month found a rental in Townsend, TN in the Smokes on VRBO, did a search on Google Maps, on the streetview, saw a local rental company sign, called it and saved approx. $400 on a week stay going with local over VRBO. Good luck!

No issues with AirBNB, never tried VRBO, but I always do my do diligence on the location, value and reviews. Sometimes a rental property will appear on both and VRBO usually has better rates. However, there are some properties that are solely on AirBNB or VRBO.

That being said, I echo the person before me saying that going through the rental property company is sometimes cheaper. You might start there first and then go through the other websites if it doesn't pan out.

Places are going to charge a cleaning fee

Only hope is to get around the VRBO service fee. Only way to do that is to end up in contact with the owner and book outside of VRBO. The deal is if you message them via VRBO it blocks email addresses and phone numbers. If it's a property management company much easier to find them online and call. If an individual it's tougher but can still get around it

Milwaukees Best Light said:

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Look up 94chem. He has a place down there for rent. He is not shy in promoting it. Supposed to be a good place.

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Yeah, thanks. I was a Superhost, but I mostly do direct bookings now. I had a friend down there for the biker rally over Halloween, but the place is open through the end of January, including Christmas. As an example, these off-peak 3 night weekends would be $580 TOTAL.

https://www.facebook.com/Seahorse.Ranch.Crystal.Beach

Atm94unc98 at the google

Good luck finding a 3BR, 2BA hotel that sleeps 10 people for that price.

EclipseAg said:

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Ireally going over the photos to understand the layout and setup of rooms/bathrooms

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Can't stress this enough. We rented a cabin in the Black Hills and the photos didn't show that the bedrooms weren't truly separated, the walls didn't reach the ceiling.

So that might have put a damper on things after the kids went to bed...

Been using VRBO to book ski trip condos and it works pretty well.

Esteban du Plantier said:

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EclipseAg said:

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Ireally going over the photos to understand the layout and setup of rooms/bathrooms

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Can't stress this enough. We rented a cabin in the Black Hills and the photos didn't show that the bedrooms weren't truly separated, the walls didn't reach the ceiling.

So that might have put a damper on things after the kids went to bed...

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Yeah a lot of owners don't really think through the details of issues like privacy, bathroom access, etc. Or they are actively trying to hide flaws.

We rented a house in New Braunfels -- great house, no problems with it -- but one of the "bedrooms" was literally a laundry room that opened into the kitchen with no door. Okay for a kid, perhaps, but no adult wants to sleep there.

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The key is lots of research -- really going over the photos to understand the layout and setup of rooms/bathrooms, using Google Maps to try and ID the actual house/street, etc. -- and frequent communication with the host.

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Yes! I just ran into this issue. We spent 3 days in Charleston before the South Carolina game. I reserved Property A based on the VRBO listing. The week before we arrived, I started receiving communication and instructions from the management company about Property B. It turns out that Property A is a combination of Property B and Property C where they just open a connecting door between B and C turning two properties into one. This was not clearly described in the online listing and the management company didn't communicate this clearly until I'd made several follow-up phone calls. We were happy as we got the property we reserved but poor communication by the management company was the only hiccup.

I will also say, though, that online pictures are able to portray a different perspective than reality. The online listing made everything look very roomy but ultimately it was a well-decorated Charleston "single house."

MouthBQ98 said:

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Been using VRBO to book ski trip condos and it works pretty well.

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Likewise, I've been using it for my Puerto Rico trips and it's been great.
But, as others mentioned, it would be nice if the daily rate they showed also included the $200 cleaning fee, etc.

Avoid any home managed by Vacasa. They are the WORST.

Bayou City said:

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Avoid any home managed by Vacasa. They are the WORST.

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Agreed.

We've used both for several years now… probably 15 times all over the country. Only two were below average experiences. Most of them were exceptional. The worst one was in Monterey, California. When we left, we had to basically clean the entire house, including washing the sheets and putting them back on the bed.

04.arch.ag said:

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They should have to list the nightly rate to just include all the fees. It's ridiculous to see 250 a night for a 3 day weekend ended up being 1500 after fees etc.

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You can change your settings to do just that.

Southlake said:

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We are thinking of renting a beach house in Bolivar this weekend. Trying to sort out cleaning fees and host fees?
Any idea how they are calculated or they can be modified or waived?

Looks like taxes + host fees + cleaning fees are almost half the price.

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I am an Airbnb owner. The host fees are determined by Airbhb. The cleaning fee is determined by the owner.

Airbnb is worthless in the US. I would never consider using it in the states unless I was traveling with a huge group of people that needed a large house and was going to split the costs. Even then it's probably cheaper to stay in a hotel.

It's still a great bargain in other parts of the world though, especially if you want to easily be able to do laundry, etc. while traveling for a long period of time.