Top 5 Vacation Home Rental Sites

[trip style = budget or lux]

Renting a vacation home—or holiday home as our European friends call it—is an immersive experience. By sheer virtue of staying in a home, villa, condo or flat, you delve into your destination's beat, saying adios to hotel culture and hola to local culture.

I've rented about five vacation homes over the past few years, and it's a trip style I enjoy. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE staying at hotels, but by escaping the destination's hotel bubble, suddenly you're living in someone else's shoes, shopping where they do, eating what they do and doing what they do. That's the beauty of a vacation home; you can live like a local or spend a night or two cooking and doing the things you'd do at home. Your choice. Either way, here are five holiday home rentals sites that should be on your vacation rental radar.

5 Vacation Home Rentals Sites

VRBO
Specialty: From cabins to condos to castles, Vacation Rentals by Owner features more than 150,000 property listings in 100 countries. This for-rent-by-owner pioneer, and one of the most-visited sites in the industry was founded 15 years ago and aquired in 2006 by HomeAway {featured below} and continues to operate as an independent brand.
Regions: Worldwide listings with an American focus {have used and would recommend}

Airbnb
Specialty: Airbnb targets in-the-know, design-conscious folk who are looking for stylish and unique accommodations from private islands to private yachts, and villas to VW vans. Searching for lodging in Paris or on a stationary plane is easy with their collection approach to listing rentals. Grouping like rentals together in collections by theme or location, you can see what you might want to rent from a worldwide or city perspective. Bonus: I love the instant book feature, which practically eliminates the need for a host to manually OK the booking.
Regions: North America, Europe and exotic locales {have not yet used, but look very forward to trying many of their listings, like this off-the-grid house...amazing!}

HomeAway
Specialty: With over 540,000 vacation home rental listings in 120 countries, HomeAway has the world's largest collection of online rental homes. Enough said.
Regions: North America, Caribbean, Europe, South America, Central America, Africa {have not yet tried}

AlluraDirect
Specialty: World-class ski resort-focused vacation rentals specializing in British Columbia, Canada at mountains like Whistler Blackcomb, Sun Peaks and Big White. Speaking from personal experience, this site is the place to book a mountain getaway!
Regions: BC, Canada {have used and would recommend}

OwnerDirect
Specialty: With a largest presence in BC, Owner Direct knows a thing or two about winter and summer West Coast escapes! Headquartered in Kelowna, BC, this Canadian vacation rental company is a leader in matching up owners and renters, as well as last-minute deals.
Regions: BC, Florida, Hawaii and California plus a few other listings worldwide {have used and would recommend}

Bonus: Inspirato
The new kid on the block is a vacation rental site with a twist. Launched this month and created for the luxury market, Inspirato offers exclusive private villa vacations with personalized concierge service at significant discounts in 40+ destinations in Europe, North America and the Caribbean. Deals are viewable to the public, but only members—who pay an initial $9,500 fee and then an ongoing yearly $2,500 fee—can book.

[photo credit: Airbnb]

Travel Trends :: Solo Travel

Have you ever traveled solo? ....Contiki tours don't count...

Recently I've seen a big push on the part of major travel companies to target solo travelers and create single traveler-friendly accommodations. In fact, a few months ago I received an email from someone who was looking for some sunny, single-occupancy getaway options; I wish some of the below options would have been available at the time.

Because most packaged vacations---whether cruise or all-inclusive---are based on double-occupancy, unless you travel with a stranger, finding a single room and paying a single price is challenging. Traditionally, this has left solo travelers with DIY vacation packages: booking a flight + hotel + ....... which can also be frustrating given most hotel rooms have space for two.

Whether you specifically want to travel solo, or can't find anyone with the same time-off, here are some single travel options for your next getaway:

Single Traveler Getaways [trip style = cruise] Nowegian's Epic, its newest, biggest and most impressive ship---think vodka ice lounge, big-top circus tent & Blue Man Group headline show---offers 128 single rooms. The Epic hit the high seas in June and surprise surprise, the single rooms have been in high demand, which is likely driving the company to come out with more single rooms on two ships it has coming in 2013 and 2014.

Although Royal Caribbean has been known to offer favorable pricing on cruises for solo passengers, they are now refitting the 2,112-passenger Radiance of the Seas and adding 3 single rooms. Three rooms? Really? I understand this decision is bottom-line influenced, but only adding three singles rooms to an under-served market is a short-sighted mess. The newly renovated ship will service Alaska and Vancouver this summer. {via The Cruise Log}

[trip style = all-inclusive] I've heard stories in the past about Club Med Turks and Caicos being a pretty hot & heavy singles destination, and it appears it still is. Targeting "friends, singles and couples", the resort offers group, single and double-occupancy pricing.

[trip style = urban getaway] The ultra-hip Ace Hotels {Portland, Palm Springs, New York, Seattle} offers shared and well-priced standard rooms. Note that most hotel shared rooms mean 3 of 4 beds and a bathroom down the hall. If you're scared off by the shared bathroom, stay in a 3 or 3 1/2 star hotel with shared rooms and the bathrooms are usually cleaned well.

Pod hotels are all the rage in Asia and Europe, and these small-scale, no-frills hotel rooms are fabulous if you're planning on spending most of your time out and about, and not doing any lounging by the non-existent fire in your room. And for those of you who want to venture to NYC, the futuristic Yotel is opening this spring! If you have trouble finding a room I'll be shocked, given the 669 cabins planned. Don't miss your room's signature techno wall.

[trip style = budget conscious] Some hostels are grungy, but others can be really nice {like this gem I stayed in while in Cusco, Peru}. So, if you don't want to do the out-of-university budget travel thing, but want a decent, value-priced place to stay {where you can be as social as you want} don't dismiss a hostel. Find a hostel search iphone app here.

[trip style = luxury] Seasoned solo travelers who prefer the finer things in life swear by 5-star hotels with a busy bar and/or coffee shop scene. This way, a social gathering place is mixed into the overall experience.

PS - Today is our 300th post! Thanks for reading {and sometimes skimming:}. Please continue to pass it on as we dish out daily travel to amateur jetsetters.

[photo by @TripStyler at the Eiffel Tower. The first time I visited Paris it was on a 4-day solo trip---fabulous experience.]

Mexico Redeemed...

[trip style = sun + beach + luxury] {more pics below}

The Lure Most Canadians and Americans with any penchant for travel have made it down to Mexico at least once. The shining sun, saucy spanish language, vibrant culture, beachfront homes and all-inclusives lure us away from dark and dreary winters. Except for a stop-over in Cozumel, I've always kept my Mexi visits to the Pacific Coastal side, visiting San Felipe (on development trips), Mazatlan and Acapulco. Since my husband and I were almost attacked in Acapulco 5 years ago {thank goodness for my leftover bag from dinner which turned into a weapon of mass no destruction to ward off our 20-something perpetrators}, I wasn't too keen on returning.

Another Chance But I had to give Mexico another chance, it's the Canadian way. We've all had bad travel experiences right? Hoping that a trip on the Caribbean side would redeem my relationship with Mexico, I booked  5 nights at the Fairmont Mayakoba thinking the property looked pretty nice and newish, but not having any clue what I was getting into. {See my review of the Fairmont Mayakoba here.}

The Journey Last Friday, our direct {and reasonably-priced; $522 return} WestJet flight from Vancouver arrived into Cancun about 5.30pm. {Trip Styler Tip = when booking short vacations, always try to secure a direct flight, it enhances your experience by giving you more time at your destination and less time in airports!}. Racing towards Playa Del Carmen by taxi, I was impressed with the condition of the road, number of police checkpoints and mammoth resort entrances on our Formula 1-like journey. I think our 24-year-old taxi driver cut the commute time in half given his Mario Andretti tendencies and 140km/h speed. Then his speed fittingly slowed to a meandering pace, and we came face-to-face with the Mayakoba's statuesque, backlit onyx front gate, surrounded by perfect and poquito palm trees. Based on its upscale and modern design, I knew it wasn't just any resort.

Mayakoba Mayakoba is a sprawling, lush, manicured and master-planned, Spanish-owned resort development 10-mins from Playa Del Carmen. Its front entrance looks different because it's unlike any other development in the area with a series of canals connecting 3 stand-out, luxurious hotels on the property: The Banyan Tree, The Fairmont and The Rosewood. Case in point, Tory Burch just tweeted from The Rosewood 8 days ago. Looks like I just missed her. Too bad really, we could have talked totes and tequila poolside.

Mexico, I'm sorry it took me so long to return. I hope to learn more about your culture, talk more with your locals, eat more of your guacamole, drink more of your cervezas and run more on your beaches sometime soon. Until next time, hasta la vista {see you later}.

I would recommend any of the resorts at Mayakoba, and it just so happens one of my favourite Private Sale travel sites {Jetsetter.com} is offering 3145sf, garden pool villas at the ultra-luxe Banyan Tree for $390/night. Although this price tag might seem expensive, the service is unreal and each suite comes with a private infinity pool and breakfast.

{Biking to the beach}

{Fairmont Mayakoba beachfront pool}

{Run or walk forever in either direction}

{One of Mayakoba's meandering rivers}

{Cenote - a well with exposed rocky edges containing groundwater typically found in the Yucatán Peninsula}

{Looking toward the Fairmont's adult pool and La Laguna Restaurant}

{Bouquet of roses given after dining at the Banyan Tree's Tamarind restaurant}

{Rosewood beachfront villas}

{Secluded beach 'beds' beside the Rosewood}

[photos taken by moi in the Playa Del Carmen area, Mayakoba, Mexico}

Hidden Hideaways

[trip style = budget + luxury + sun + beach] Sometimes hotels come across my desk that cause me to stop what I'm doing and attempt to live vicariously though the travel eye candy-like pictures. The next 3 hotels are in this category. I drool just thinking about them. Rather than boasting 10 pools, 12 restaurants and a zip-line, they are small, secluded hideaways. Places that you'd actually want to unplug and just be. I haven't visited any of them yet, but they are all on my travel bucket list. Prepare to be dazzled by secluded bliss...

Yelapa Casa Pericos, Mexico Last year, when our friends told us tales of their balmy adventure getting to and staying at this tiki meets swiss family robinson meets woodsy chic abode, I just about died. Here is their account: Yelapa, a sleepy little town of about 1000 people across the bay from Puerto Vallarta, is a place where life slows to a crawl. The town can only be reached by boat, most typically from Puerto Vallarta. Here there are no cars and accommodations come with neither TVs nor phones. The slow pace of life was hammered home as we spent the better part of a day watching the construction industry at work. We were lying in our hammocks sipping drinks on the beach while locals attempted to load rebar onto a burro (for the record that is not an easy task). Restaurants in Yelapa are a family affair which generally consists of a few tables in someone’s house or backyard. We stayed in a beautiful palapa {the hotel} built over the ocean that was open to the elements. This gorgeous little town offers days spent on the beach, beautiful walks to waterfalls, great food and little else. A perfect slice of paradise to get away from it all. Cost: $95 - $295

Royal Plantation {Fowl Cay Resort}, Bahamas Staying in one of only six villas on a private 50-acre island in the Bahamas is a trip I'd settle for, and I think you would too. Couple this escapist experience with white-sand beaches, a personal boat, all the beach-front and ocean activities you could imagine, plus included food and bevs, and you've got yourself a pretty fabulous hidden hideaway retreat! Book a house or book the island, you decide. Cost: From $1285/night (based on double occupancy; includes activities, food & bev)

Jade Mountain, St. Lucia When I see pictures of an architecturally stunning, idyllic retreat with infinity pools overlooking aqua waters and tropical peaks, let's just say my interest is peaked. Designed by a Canadian architect now living in St. Lucia, Jade Mountain is constantly being recognized by travel publications "best of" lists. One day in the future, I'd like to put it on my own "best of" list! Cost: From $950/night

[photo credit: Yelapa Casa (Yelapa town - Steve) Fowl Cay & Jade Mountain]

Overnighting at Versailles

[trip style = luxury]

If you've ever visited the former home palace of France's many Louis the... Kings, you know it's lavish, lovely and lush.There's no shabby in Versailles' version of chic.

For those of you who prefer a more luxurious trip style, this hotel-to-be is for you...

Fit for a King It was just announced last week that a private Belgian company will turn part of Versailles into a hotel as part of an initiative by France's Culture and Tourism Ministers for the economic and touristic development of French Heritage Sites. Slated to open at the end of 2011 {likely meaning 2012} the project will see a 23-room luxe hotel contructed in the existing Hotel du Grand Controle, the old site of the Chateau's treasurers.

Nitty-Gritty The renovation process is only estimated to cost 7.3 million. I say only, because by today's standards that's not much money when you're talking about a high-end hotel's {extensive} renovations. And while we're on the topic of finances, the future hotel's nightly rates have not yet been released, but it's likely they'll be akin to any removed boutique hotel near or part of an oft-visited monument. Expensive.

Either way, I wouldn't mind staying in a lesser version of the 17th-century French Monarchs' unrestrained excess at Versailles. Maybe the hotel will feature nightly galas with period costumes as the dress code? If so, I'm in.

[Via France24 & USA Today Travel]

[photo by buggolo]