Thanks to the internet, tourists are now finding it easier to look for alternative accommodation for a traditional hotel stay through the search engines. Vacation Rentals are the most competitive alternate for traditional hotel rooms. It is very much suitable for traveling with a group and it is much cheaper too!
Are you an owner of vacation rentals? And tiered of spending too much money on advertising your home on the internet to getting few inquiries for the money you spend? Advertise smart in free sites and get more inquiries for no cost.
Most homeowners choose to sign up with sites which are getting considerable traffic. The number of visitors to the site per day is important as it increases the chances of getting more inquiries and renters. The greater number of visitors to a site - the more popular the site is. Some sites charge homeowners for $30 to $225 in order for their properties to be included in the directory for year, the price needed to be paid for membership depends on the popularity of the listing.
Now days there are lot of sites offering free listing for limited period like 6 months or one year, after that you will be charged a considerable amount fee as listing service charge. On the other hand, there are sites like www.rentalmadeeasy.com offers free listing of vacation rentals for lifetime. These sites also get high traffic especially since more homeowners can access the services of these sites for free. We recommend all home owners to take advantage of listing their homes in those sites and get more inquiries even though the sites have only few hundreds of visitors a day.
How, you might ask, these sites allowing free listing of vacation rentals and homes earn their income? Some of these sites sometimes get minimal commissions for every booking. Also, they get residual income from advertisements on their sites. There are also some sites which actually charge fees for homeowners to prioritize the position their listing, so much like the yellow pages. Some of these sites charge for extra photos after free ones. Some of the sites charge money for adding the link to your own websites. The most interesting fact about these free vacation rental listing sites is they do not require any credit card information when you list your properties; it is completely up to you to decide to promote your property in these site by paying extra to prioritize or adding extras like more photos and links. In addition to these features most of the free sites for listing vacation rentals and homes are also promoting your listing on major search engines and bring more traffic to your home.
For homeowners, paid and free listing of vacation rentals and homes serves as a source of advertisement and a great way to get more booking for their villas, homes, condos, etc. Now days there are more and more real estate investors are choosing to purchase vacation properties abroad because these are not only cheaper, they also more profitable especially when these are advertised in a free listing of vacation rentals and homes.
According to a study, approximately half of the homeowners surveyed say that more than 25% of their vacation rental bookings come from paid listing sites. At present at least 27% of homeowners use three or more paid listing sites and at least 86% of homeowners have listed their properties on free sites. On the other hand, 14% of the homeowners surveyed do not use free listing of vacation rentals and homes, and 18% use more than 3 free sites for their vacation homes. With these statistics, it is undeniable - the use of free listing of vacation rentals and homes is the way to go if you want to profit from your property.
Best Places For Your Luxury Vacation Home
Many people will decide to buy a luxury vacation home at some time in their lives. The only question they have is where to buy or build it. The best place for your luxury vacation home really depends on you and your family. If you love fishing, you probably don't want your vacation home to be located in the desert right? Let's take a look at a few areas to see what they have to offer.
The Mountains
If you love to ski, fly fish, hunt and hike, an area with easy access to mountain ranges is probably perfect for you. You can ski and snowboard in the winter, hike and fish in the summer, hunt in the fall, and enjoy the mild weather in the spring. Mountainous areas offer you privacy if you want it but can also be in or near many major cities.
The Beach
Let's face it. Who doesn't dream of a luxury beach house to vacation to? Almost everyone loves the beach. You can fish, engage in tons of water sports, enjoy the laid back atmosphere of beach communities, and just relax and listen to the waves.
Your Hometown
People have a very strong sense of heritage and many move away to pursue careers and other opportunities. Some people really enjoy being able to vacation in the place they grew up so they can share the experience with their families.
The only way to find the perfect place for your luxury vacation home is to gather your family around and see what everyone has to say. Certain places like Southern California offer access to many types of terrain.
The Mountains
If you love to ski, fly fish, hunt and hike, an area with easy access to mountain ranges is probably perfect for you. You can ski and snowboard in the winter, hike and fish in the summer, hunt in the fall, and enjoy the mild weather in the spring. Mountainous areas offer you privacy if you want it but can also be in or near many major cities.
The Beach
Let's face it. Who doesn't dream of a luxury beach house to vacation to? Almost everyone loves the beach. You can fish, engage in tons of water sports, enjoy the laid back atmosphere of beach communities, and just relax and listen to the waves.
Your Hometown
People have a very strong sense of heritage and many move away to pursue careers and other opportunities. Some people really enjoy being able to vacation in the place they grew up so they can share the experience with their families.
The only way to find the perfect place for your luxury vacation home is to gather your family around and see what everyone has to say. Certain places like Southern California offer access to many types of terrain.
Plan Your Cruise Vacation And Save Time And Money
Once you decide that you'd like to cruise, there are a number of other things to consider to enhance your cruise as well as make it go smoothly.
Naturally you need to sort out things like when and where you want to cruise as well as with which cruiseline, which ship and what things you want to do off the ship. Do you want to cruise to Alaska and watch whales or stay warm and cruise the Caribbean? Would you rather sail on a massive ocean liner or does a smaller, more elegant vessel interest you? Are you ready to leave tomorrow or would you rather wait and search out the deals? When the ship docks in the various ports of call, will you remain on the ship, head out shopping or go on a fun filled, exciting shore excursion?
There are a few ways you can collect this information and doing the leg work up front will save you time, money and aggravation down the road I promise you that. Saving the legwork and getting right down to the good stuff is what most people are after. I have written three books on cruising and have compiled all of the slick tricks that I've learned into the books for you to have all the info you need together in one spot. Follow the link in my resource box and have a look.
You should also search out, join and familiarize yourself with the Cruise message boards. On these boards, members will post their reviews of everything from flights to ships to shore excursions and more in great detail. Do take these reviews with a grain of salt though. Some of the people seem like they couldn't have fun anywhere!
This is an excellent way to find out about the various shore excursions. Members will report back on what tours they did, what operators they liked or disliked, any problems they had and more.
In many cases, someone on a forum will start a post called a "roll call". This is a gathering place for passengers of a specific sailing date for a specific ship and I highly recommend you search them out. If you cannot find a roll call for your cruise...create one! How you say? It's very easy...
Let's say you are cruising on the Carnival Legend from February 17th to February 24th. You would simply search for or create a post called "Carnival Legend - Feb. 17th to Feb. 24th" People will find it, trust me! Once a few of your cruisemates find your post, you will be able to swap plans and stories, maybe learn a tips or two and maybe even make some friends. My wife and I always make a point to meet up somewhere on the ship with our roll call friends and we've remained friends with some of them to this day.
Let's not forget your friendly local travel agent. Sure you can research and book your flights and cruises all by yourself online, but if you find it overwhelming, don't be afraid to let the professionals take care of you. Sometimes paying a few extra dollars is worth it to know that someone else has taken care of the details. My guides and the forum participation will still insure that you are able to make informed decisions.
Before you go
I'm generally not a paranoid person, but would like to share a few security tips that could help keep things secure while you're on your vacation. Before you leave for your cruise, it might be a good idea to call the post office and have them stop delivery of your mail. If you haven't arranged for someone to come and get your mail while they feed your pets, you might want to look into that. A large pile of mail sticking out of your mailbox is telling sign for thieves to come and rip you off.
Your home phone should either have the ringer turned off or have you answering machine set to pick up on two rings. This could reduce the risk of someone figuring out that you're not home.
If you happen to live in a snowy part of the world, your driveway might get snowy while you're gone and if you haven't got any tire tracks in your driveway, this could be all the indication thieves need to know it's safe to enter your home.
Rather than rely on mail stoppages, answering machines and light timers, I prefer to keep things looking natural while away. I always have a friend come over to get the mail and feed the cat as a minimum. If they are a really good friend, they'll shovel the driveway and walk, but people don't like to do their own shoveling let alone yours, so why not have it done? One way is to pay the neighbour kid a flat rate to keep it shoveled while you're gone. Letting his/her parents know when you'll be leaving and returning as well as what you've asked to have done is probably not a bad idea.
If you know someone with a plow or have a local plow service, you can ask them to come scrape your driveway after each snow. I guess if you're really cheap, you could just have the friend drive on your driveway when they come to get the mail.
At any rate, chances are that someone isn't lying in the bushes waiting for you to go on vacation so you'll have to gauge the risk and do what gives you piece of mind.
Next time I'll cover packing and preparing for your cruise. If you want to cut to the chase and get right into the info, stop by http://www.cruisevacationparadise.com and pick up one or all of my cruise ship tips books. They contain a vast amount of information that will allow you to select and prepare for the cruise vacation of a life time!
Naturally you need to sort out things like when and where you want to cruise as well as with which cruiseline, which ship and what things you want to do off the ship. Do you want to cruise to Alaska and watch whales or stay warm and cruise the Caribbean? Would you rather sail on a massive ocean liner or does a smaller, more elegant vessel interest you? Are you ready to leave tomorrow or would you rather wait and search out the deals? When the ship docks in the various ports of call, will you remain on the ship, head out shopping or go on a fun filled, exciting shore excursion?
There are a few ways you can collect this information and doing the leg work up front will save you time, money and aggravation down the road I promise you that. Saving the legwork and getting right down to the good stuff is what most people are after. I have written three books on cruising and have compiled all of the slick tricks that I've learned into the books for you to have all the info you need together in one spot. Follow the link in my resource box and have a look.
You should also search out, join and familiarize yourself with the Cruise message boards. On these boards, members will post their reviews of everything from flights to ships to shore excursions and more in great detail. Do take these reviews with a grain of salt though. Some of the people seem like they couldn't have fun anywhere!
This is an excellent way to find out about the various shore excursions. Members will report back on what tours they did, what operators they liked or disliked, any problems they had and more.
In many cases, someone on a forum will start a post called a "roll call". This is a gathering place for passengers of a specific sailing date for a specific ship and I highly recommend you search them out. If you cannot find a roll call for your cruise...create one! How you say? It's very easy...
Let's say you are cruising on the Carnival Legend from February 17th to February 24th. You would simply search for or create a post called "Carnival Legend - Feb. 17th to Feb. 24th" People will find it, trust me! Once a few of your cruisemates find your post, you will be able to swap plans and stories, maybe learn a tips or two and maybe even make some friends. My wife and I always make a point to meet up somewhere on the ship with our roll call friends and we've remained friends with some of them to this day.
Let's not forget your friendly local travel agent. Sure you can research and book your flights and cruises all by yourself online, but if you find it overwhelming, don't be afraid to let the professionals take care of you. Sometimes paying a few extra dollars is worth it to know that someone else has taken care of the details. My guides and the forum participation will still insure that you are able to make informed decisions.
Before you go
I'm generally not a paranoid person, but would like to share a few security tips that could help keep things secure while you're on your vacation. Before you leave for your cruise, it might be a good idea to call the post office and have them stop delivery of your mail. If you haven't arranged for someone to come and get your mail while they feed your pets, you might want to look into that. A large pile of mail sticking out of your mailbox is telling sign for thieves to come and rip you off.
Your home phone should either have the ringer turned off or have you answering machine set to pick up on two rings. This could reduce the risk of someone figuring out that you're not home.
If you happen to live in a snowy part of the world, your driveway might get snowy while you're gone and if you haven't got any tire tracks in your driveway, this could be all the indication thieves need to know it's safe to enter your home.
Rather than rely on mail stoppages, answering machines and light timers, I prefer to keep things looking natural while away. I always have a friend come over to get the mail and feed the cat as a minimum. If they are a really good friend, they'll shovel the driveway and walk, but people don't like to do their own shoveling let alone yours, so why not have it done? One way is to pay the neighbour kid a flat rate to keep it shoveled while you're gone. Letting his/her parents know when you'll be leaving and returning as well as what you've asked to have done is probably not a bad idea.
If you know someone with a plow or have a local plow service, you can ask them to come scrape your driveway after each snow. I guess if you're really cheap, you could just have the friend drive on your driveway when they come to get the mail.
At any rate, chances are that someone isn't lying in the bushes waiting for you to go on vacation so you'll have to gauge the risk and do what gives you piece of mind.
Next time I'll cover packing and preparing for your cruise. If you want to cut to the chase and get right into the info, stop by http://www.cruisevacationparadise.com and pick up one or all of my cruise ship tips books. They contain a vast amount of information that will allow you to select and prepare for the cruise vacation of a life time!
Renting a Vacation Home Instead of a Hotel Room
A great way to take an affordable vacation is to rent a home. It's even better if there are a lot of people going on the vacation, like your family or a group of friends. If you search on the internet you'll see that you can rent a beautiful townhouse or apartment in a great city for way cheaper than the cost of a hotel room.
The fact that you're staying in someone's home instead of a hotel room means the added luxury of a lot more space. You could have a beautiful full kitchen, a large bathroom or two, and maybe even a porch or balcony with a great view.
With large groups traveling on vacation together your rent becomes much more economical. There's also something very nice that you get from living in a home temporarily: It becomes a home away from home. You can't quite get the same thing from a hotel room. You can also be able to afford some amazingly luxurious vacation homes and villas on a worldwide scale.
The fact is that most people automatically think of booking a hotel room when they are planning their vacation. Staying in a hotel is the most commonly used accommodations for travelers today. Staying in a home however can offer that difference that even the most comfortable and high end hotels can't.
These homes can vary greatly in their look and feel. It could be a charming European cottage or a cozy beach house right on the water. It could even be a modern secluded cabin nestled deep in the woods.
When deciding what kind of place to rent there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, how many people are going? You want to have enough space to comfortably fit everyone. That includes making sure there are enough bedrooms and bathrooms. One thing you really don't want on a vacation with 12 people is only one small bathroom for everyone to share.
Another thing obviously is location. Does your group prefer the beach or a lake? Would you rather be around lots of people or do you prefer to avoid the crowds? A great way to avoid crowds and peak rental rates is to go somewhere on its off season. It can be very worthwhile to enjoy a great location with more room to yourself and more money in your pocket.
Perhaps the most important factor for some people can be what activities there are to do in the area or what attractions there are to go to. Do you want to swim with the dolphins? That can really narrow your search. Want to finally take the trip to Disney World? Just look in the Orlando area for cool places to rent. It doesn't necessarily have to be a big resort hotel.
In summary you can really enjoy your vacation by finding a great rental home that suits the needs of your family or friends. Just consider what is most important to you: type of home, location, or activities in the area. Maybe it's one of these or some combination of two or even all three. Whatever you chose you can take these as a great starting point to plan your next vacation.
The fact that you're staying in someone's home instead of a hotel room means the added luxury of a lot more space. You could have a beautiful full kitchen, a large bathroom or two, and maybe even a porch or balcony with a great view.
With large groups traveling on vacation together your rent becomes much more economical. There's also something very nice that you get from living in a home temporarily: It becomes a home away from home. You can't quite get the same thing from a hotel room. You can also be able to afford some amazingly luxurious vacation homes and villas on a worldwide scale.
The fact is that most people automatically think of booking a hotel room when they are planning their vacation. Staying in a hotel is the most commonly used accommodations for travelers today. Staying in a home however can offer that difference that even the most comfortable and high end hotels can't.
These homes can vary greatly in their look and feel. It could be a charming European cottage or a cozy beach house right on the water. It could even be a modern secluded cabin nestled deep in the woods.
When deciding what kind of place to rent there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, how many people are going? You want to have enough space to comfortably fit everyone. That includes making sure there are enough bedrooms and bathrooms. One thing you really don't want on a vacation with 12 people is only one small bathroom for everyone to share.
Another thing obviously is location. Does your group prefer the beach or a lake? Would you rather be around lots of people or do you prefer to avoid the crowds? A great way to avoid crowds and peak rental rates is to go somewhere on its off season. It can be very worthwhile to enjoy a great location with more room to yourself and more money in your pocket.
Perhaps the most important factor for some people can be what activities there are to do in the area or what attractions there are to go to. Do you want to swim with the dolphins? That can really narrow your search. Want to finally take the trip to Disney World? Just look in the Orlando area for cool places to rent. It doesn't necessarily have to be a big resort hotel.
In summary you can really enjoy your vacation by finding a great rental home that suits the needs of your family or friends. Just consider what is most important to you: type of home, location, or activities in the area. Maybe it's one of these or some combination of two or even all three. Whatever you chose you can take these as a great starting point to plan your next vacation.
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