Home » Blog » Travel

Save Money on Holiday Vacation Rentals

If you’ve ever traveled with children, then you know that finding holiday vacation rentals often makes more sense than staying in a traditional hotel. When you spend your vacation in a rental, you often have access to multiple bedrooms, a kitchen and other amenities that make a family stay all the more pleasant. And, frankly, all the more affordable or at least a better bang for your buck. The only exception to this vacation rental notion is if you can find a great rate at one of those extended stay hotels. I know that they are designed more for corporate travelers. Even so my family and I have had luck staying in these kinds of suites, which often offer the same amenities as a vacation rental. holiday vacation rentalsIn this day and age of AirBnB and VRBO, all of that has changed. These days staying in an apartment-style setting or renting a house via VRBO (Vacation Rentals By Owner) is much more commonplace. And with the holidays almost upon us, I get the feeling that when looking to book a stay somewhere, more people are thinking vacation rental. Here is my article on how to save money at the beach.

10 Cities Where Holiday Vacation Rentals Make Sense

According to TripAdvisor, one of my favorite sites to use when looking for reviews on travel, when it comes to booking a place to stay for the holidays–especially Thanksgiving–vacation rentals really are the way to go. Recently, TripAdvisor crunched some numbers and found that TripAdvisor Vacation Rentals can provide bigger savings, even in budget-friendly cities. In fact, in some instances, you can save more than 70 percent by choosing holiday vacation rentals versus booking multiple hotel rooms for your family. I know that I have always loved staying in a rental with my family. When we do we usually make grocery shopping a priority our first day there. I remember a trip to Williamsburg, Virginia, when we stayed in such a rental. Our first stop after dropping off our bags was a nearby Trader Joe’s. Some of the benefits of these rentals include having multiple rooms–instead of everyone bunking together. If we want to make breakfast, we don’t have to wait for the restaurant to open. And if we want a late night snack, we have our fully stocked kitchen to help us out. As far as the Top 10 cities where booking a vacation rental can save you the most, here is how TripAdvisor breaks that down. Cities are listed in alphabetical order. All rates are for a three-night stay. Note: Rates and savings were valid at time of posting.

Vacation Rental in Atlanta, Georgia

According to TripAdvisor, booking two hotel rooms in Atlanta during the holiday season could set you back $1,419. By booking a two-bedroom holiday vacation rental in Atlanta, you would pay about $900 less or $517. That’s a savings of 64%.

Vacation Rental in Dallas, Texas

TripAdvisor says that two hotel rooms in Dallas, Texas, on average, cost nearly $1,600. You can save more than $1,000 off that price by booking a Dallas rental, which might cost as little as $557. That’s a savings of 65%.

Vacation Rental in Houston, Texas

The average hotel rate, for two rooms in Houston, is about $1,450. Would you like to save more than $960 by booking a rental? TripAdvisor found Houston home rentals cost just $377. That’s a 72% savings.

Vacation Rental in Las Vegas, Nevada

According to TripAdvisor, always popular Las Vegas will set you back about $1,300 for two hotel rooms. Compare that with a Las Vegas holiday vacation rental, at $526, and you’ll save close to $800 or 59%.

Vacation Rental in New Orleans, Louisiana

Taking a vacation in the Big Easy with your family? Expect to pay more than $1,750 for two hotel rooms. Renting in New Orleans, on the other hand, would save you close to $900 or could cost as little as $872, says TripAdvisor.

Vacation Rental in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

While living in Philadelphia might be cheaper than other Northeastern cities, that same is not true with hotel rooms. A two-room hotel booking might be about $1,845. You will save some by going with a rental–about $700. A Philadelphia holiday vacation rental might cost about $1,100. That saves you just 38%.

Vacation Rental in San Diego, California

Isn’t the weather always supposed to be great in San Diego? What a great place to spend the holidays! In fact, San Diego could be a fantastic family destination throughout the year. And by going the holiday vacation rental route in San Diego, you’ll save more than half on what you would have paid for a two-room hotel, so says TripAdvisor. That’s $806 for that rental versus $1,718 for those hotel rooms.

Vacation Rental in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., our nation’s capitol, is another expensive city on the East Coast. While you definitely don’t want to be heading to D.C. around inauguration–think of the crowds–during the holidays you might uncover some deals. TripAdvisor says two hotel rooms might knock more than $2,000 off your travel budget. But by going with a D.C. vacation rental, you would spend more than $700 less–or about $1,300, a 36% savings. This is good information to have, if you happen to be planning holiday travel to Houston, Dallas, Atlanta or one of the other 10 cities in this list. I would recommend checking out vacation rentals, regardless of which city you’ll be visiting this holiday season–or at any time during the year.

Make money from renting your home

On the flipside if you’ve ever thought about listing your home or apartment for someone else to use as a holiday vacation rental–and so you can make extra money–you can do that with VRBO.com. In fact,the VRBO website has a calculator tool you can use to figure out how much you can make from renting your home. First, you put in the number of bedrooms and the number of bathrooms. Next, you put in the home’s address. Finally, you’ll need to make an account on VRBO.com so you can get your estimate.  I discovered I could make nearly $6,000 extra in a year renting my two-bedroom home. Others I know make that in a month.