Most of us have probably heard of HomeAway before and, if you are reading this, you are probably trying to understand why you should choose Abritel HomeAway as your preferred booking site. In the last couple of years, there has been a surge of short-term rental booking platforms entering the online market place, most notably, Airbnb, Booking.com, Wimdu and Clickstay. Each website makes similar promises to property owners, making it sometimes difficult for homeowners to pick their preferred booking platform. To help you pick the right platform for you, here is why we, at GuestReady, have picked HomeAway as one of our partners.
Abritel HomeAway
Founded in 1979 in Marseille France, Abritel HomeAway is part of the HomeAway Family Group which was acquired by Expedia in 2015. Abritel is the French HomeAway booking portal. Today HomeAway operates across 50 international websites including VRBO, HomeAway.co.uk, VacationRentals.com, Homelidays, Owners Direct and, of course, Abritel. Per month, the HomeAway Family Group attracts over 75 million visitors to its websites reaching 190 countries worldwide. By listing your property on Abritel your advertisement will automatically be translated and shared across the HomeAway Family Group websites, connecting you to travellers from all over the world. So, here are a few reasons why we recommend using Abritel HomeAway to promote your listing online:
1. Increased Income Security
Abritel HomeAway can be considered as the older brother of Airbnb with more refined listings targeting families, professionals and a slightly older crowd than you might find on similar booking platforms. Hosts who list on HomeAway can expect guests who book further in advance and for longer stays; bringing more income security to its hosts.
2. Global Visibility
The HomeAway Family Group has over 50 international booking platforms in 23 languages with over 75 million visitors per month. The booking platform translates its listings to the local languages found across its portals such as German, English, Portuguese and Spanish. By listing your property on Abritel you ensure that your advertisement will be put in front of a global audience helping you maximise your occupancy and rental rate across the year.
3. Flexibility for HomeAway Hosts
If you are looking to let out your property for 365 days or just 3 weeks a year, HomeAway allows you to plan your listing calendar accordingly. As a host, you can determine the daily rental rate of your listings, the minimum number of nights that a guest can book and screen guests to give you more peace of mind. HomeAway is also one of the only major players on the market that offers commission and subscription-based plans to its hosts. For professional hosts, we recommend going for a subscription-based structure where you pay a one-off fee of €249 to Abritel HomeAway which includes the following tools and services:
- 12 months subscription with Abritel
- Unlimited bookings per year at no extra cost
- Global exposure on sites in Europe, North America, Australia and Asia
- Reservation Calendar
- Access to Abritel Reservation manager and listing management tools
- Includes service fees and taxes in the one-off payment
For property owners looking to let out their entire property only a few days a year, Abritel HomeAway offers a commission-based structure to hosts that allow you to pay 8% commission per booking instead of paying an upfront annual subscription fee. Subscription-based bookings are ideal for hosts whose vacation rental income does not exceed € 5,000 per year.
To calculate the average daily rate of your property, check-out our property calculator to see which plan suits you best.
4. HomeAway Reviews
Five and four-star reviews are a great way to boost your occupancy and daily rate of your property listing. The more positive reviews you receive, the better your listing will do. So, it’s important to ensure guests provide feedback on their stay with you. Abritel HomeAway allows guests to review their stay up to one year after checkout, that is significantly longer than you might find on any other booking platform. Airbnb, for example, allows guests to review their experience 14 days after checkout. Similarly to Airbnb, HomeAway allows you to review guests that have stayed at your vacation rental helping you screen guests more effectively.
