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WHA T  I  REALL Y   W ANT  IS . . . . .


                                                  By Debbie Storms

                    Ah, yes, a vacation. That   your shortlist comes in handy   Clear and written rental rules
                 marvelous time spent away     once again. It is a worthwhile   will save you many problems
                 from home or business. A time   exercise when determining your   when renting a vacation home.
                 for respite, rest, and recreation.   selection of a vacation rental.   Avoid those last-minute surprises.
                 Whether it is just a few days or   Prior guests will give you the   Confirm your reservation pay-
                 even weeks, getting away from it   best indicator of what the home   ment terms.
                 all doesn’t have to mean hours of   and surroundings are really like.   Multiple rental websites like
                 stressful time searching for your   When possible contact the owner   HomeAway, VRBO, and Booking.
                 vacation rental.              to ask questions if necessary.   com have been around for years,
                    Today there are so many    Reading the reviews requires   but do not necessarily get the
                 sources, search engines, and tools  making a sensible judgment. Be   same recognition as sites like
                 to use for planning vacations.   wary of the guests that are critical  Kayak and TripAdvisor. Search-
                 Streamlining your connection to   because they wanted the Ritz   ing can be streamlined by using
                 paradise or wherever your heart   Carlton on a Holiday Inn budget.   Tripping.com, which bills itself as
                 desires can be a few creative   Look closely at all the photos.   the largest search engine making
                 steps away.                   Quite often, pulled shades or   property comparison easier than
                    Surprises – well, they are not   no pictures of the windows can   jumping between rental sites.
                 all good. To make sure your va-  indicate an unsightly view out-  AlltheRooms.com offers a wide
                 cation rental meets your dreams   side. The use of a fisheye lens can   variety of accommodations.
                 create a short list of possibilities,   make the room look larger than   Among them are rental proper-
                 desires, and non-negotiables.  it actually is. Are there photos of   ties from numerous websites, in-
                    Location, location, location.   the yard, ocean views, and other   cluding Airbnb, FlipKey, Expedia,
                 The first thing to do when choos-  amenities? Beware if all the pho-  and Priceline. Luxury and unique
                 ing your short-term rental is to   tos are close-ups of flowers, small   outdoor accommodations can be
                 look at its location. Using your   amenities, and other articles.   found on Glampinghub.com.
                 Maps app will help you find the   They don’t give you a true per-  Orbitz and Travelocity are
                 surroundings of the place you   spective of the space. The photos   both Expedia brands as well as
                 are visiting. Do you desire to be   by previous guests who have the   HomeAway and Hotels.com.
                 secluded, beachfront or in the   first-hand experience will better   They have an integrated system
                 city center?                  capture the truth. Some websites   and will give you easier access to
                    The cost is an important   do not offer guest photos. How-  information from various sites.
                 factor. Finances raise the stress   ever, if you Google the location,   TripAdvisor long considered the
                 meter, so using the price range   you may be able to find a site that  go-to hotel review site has been
                 option will filter getaways within   has some helpful photos posted.   reminding travelers that they can
                 your budget and will help you   Cross-referencing is a good idea.   also use the site to book vacation
                 enjoy your vacation more.     Using other websites to gather   rentals. Tripadvisorrentals.com
                    Make sure the rental meets   information can fill in the blanks.   offers around 800,000 properties
                 your purpose. Most websites      Before booking any rental,   in 200 countries.
                 let you sort listings by location,   make sure the site’s policy is   So many places and so much
                 price, number of bedrooms, pet   comprehensive. These points   to do. Getting away from it all
                 friendliness, and other features.   are very important. The cancel-  and getting that holiday you
                 When choosing a short-term rent-  lation policy, especially less than   deserve is just a short list away.
                 al, it is necessary that it offers the   24 hours prior, the rental size,   You’ll not only find your vacation
                 amenities you desire. Does it have   amenities, or location differing   you will also discover new places
                 its own kitchen, dining area and   from the description, could put   for future holiday adventures.
                 some have gardens? Does it pro-  a serious damper on your trip.   Kick back and enjoy your time
                 vide the space you require and the  Using the filtering system when   away!
                 environment? Filtering for private   searching will help narrow these
                 home, shared home, or a room is   points down. I prefer to choose   What I really want is.............
                 one more point to queue in on to   filters such as the minimum size   Let me know what you have
                 avoid that unwanted surprise.   accommodations, lenient can-  in mind.
                    The next foray into renting is   cellation policies, privacy, and of   dstorms88@gmail.com
                 reading the reviews. This is where   course, my price range.



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