Does anyone else get frustrated with VRBO?
 

Hey everyone. I am just curious if I am being to harsh or if VRBO is really as frustrating as I think it is. I feel it is not very user-friendly. Maybe I am not used to it or something. Is this just me?

I didn't enjoy figuring it out at all and gave up. Isn't "real time" enough for me. Seems like just a bunch of old info and general prices.

I prefer VRBO over most of the other sites. I've found it easy to access. As far as being up to date with info and pictures that isn't the fault of VRBO, that depends on the individual property owner. The only thing I wish I they had on VRBO was an advanced search. I was looking for a pet friendly house with a pool and either a game room or a pool table and that was a little time consuming.

I have also used VacationRentals.com and although they do have the search boxes to check for things like pool, etc, I find those listings even more outdated and the website moves slow.

I have never had a major problem with it, has worked well for us. Seems like it could be more consistent state to state and country to country - some have maps showing regions (like Oregon) and some don't (like Montana). Also I wish it was more popular with Europeans - i.e more German listings for example

I don't understand the problem. I have found vrbo to be a great research tool in finding many properties that are now filled with many memories.

Yeah, I don't really understand the problem either. The advanced search I mentioned above would be nice but I've never had a problem using VRBO.

It's just not my cup of tea, but that's just me. I was just OVERwhelmed with all the listings and I felt like finding a nice condo in our price range was like finding a needle in a haystack. I sifted through for hours and days before giving up.

I'd rather not have to call each listing that had potential to check dates and prices. I prefer to vacation hunt late at night (night owl) on the computer and prefer real-time calendars and prices, but that's what you get with chain hotels, not privately owned rental houses. :)

I probably mostly gave up because we couldn't afford the prices of renting a real house, and looking for something cheap became too hard to do!

I love vrbo.com, and have used it for 7-8 years. I've never phoned an owner. Just contact them through the website, and then they send the contract through email. Easy.

I've happily used VRBO many times too, but do sometimes find the interface and load times frustrating. Thought it was maybe a browser issue, but if the OP is having the same problems, maybe not. I also wish you could sort results by amenities, especially pet friendly rentals.

If VRBO is just not working for you, try www.homeaway.com, VRBO's parent's website.

I've used VRBO many times and haven't had any problems navigating the site. In fact I love that there are so many choices. I stick to the listings that have lots of photos. I'm pretty good at spotting creative editing or things that are not shown by design. Every rental has lived up to or exceeded our expectations.

I also love VRBO and have used it for years. I just use the calendars for availablility and when finding a couple that I like use the email provided for further information.

I've had good luck with it too. I think this may be a case of expectations from the site though. I look at is as more of a classified listing service than a reservation service. I see something of interest, so I contact the owner and see what's up. It takes more leg work than booking hotels or even a vacation rental through a service, and that doesn't work for everybody.

Oh I have used it several times. LOve how you can ask owner quetions....see pics. In fact, we rented a lovely cabin and a beach rental so far this summer.

Hmmm - Stephen joined just to tell us about his site, eh? Thanks, we appreciate being spammed.

I wish it was my site! ;-)

Seriously though, if you want real-time and are tired of emailing owners and out-of-date calendars, check it out.

I have rented from them a ton, had one problem & vrbo backed me & I rec'v'd a full refund. I always get quick responses. Could it be better, sure - but how 'real-time' can you get when you are waiting on deposits & such + many people inquire & will leave the owners 'hanging'. I don't 'do' hotels unless absolutely necessary & got tired of paying reservation fees, cleaning fees, this & that tax & deposits the size of my mortgage payment. Many of the owners don't even cash your deposit check, they just send it back to you.

I'm a vacation homeowner with a listing on vrbo and I'm a user of vrbo and I find it easy enough to sort through the listings and find accommodations that are pleasing to me. Just last month I reserved a house in Santa Monica for a week in May 2011 when we will travel to CA for my son's graduation from USC. It's not that complicated. I've read several threads on this site complaining about rental websites and it's not clear to me why people are having such trouble. It's straightforward, allbeit somewhat tedious to track the many listings that may be of interest to you for your vacation. It's easy to confuse the listings while researching due to the number available for popular locations. But, this is a positive, not a negative and offers the vacationer many choices. Using a rental site requires diligence and a commitment to researching the properties of interest.

IMHO, it's just time consuming, and not that complicated . . .

(Oh, I'm property 101944 on vrbo if you're interested in visiting Martha's Vineyard).

I have never had a problem with the VRBO site, and in spite of the VRBO folks pushing the parent site Homeaway, I just like VRBO best. We've used VRBO for rentals both here and overseas, and last year we bought a second home that we list on VRBO. Although we advertise it on several paid sites, VRBO brings the best return for our advertising dollars and we will stop using the other paid sites.

The ads are only as good as the owner, as it is a paid classified service. There are many unorganized and unresponsive folks out there who own properties, those are the ones who don't update their rental calendars or clearly list prices.

Also, those who don't update the rental calendars may be trying to avoid paying hotel tax. Not saying that all are, but the local taxing entities do monitor the sites and want their tax money (we pay ours happily).

I'm very glad I'm not in a foreign country at the moment. I've been on hold with VRBO now for about 10 minutes so far- trying to get the location/check-information for a rental we're to arrive at in 2 days. VRBO software fields have no information for this rental. I've used VRBO for years with now issues getting to this simple basic information, and am very annoyed and dismayed with the loss of such basic functionality in navigating travel. Guess it's time for a good competitor to arrive on the scene- and soon. Am hoping this pre-payment and inability to get rental information does not lead to a vacation lawsuit ultimately!

Why are you talking to VRBO and not the owner of or management company for the rental? They are the party you've contracted your rental with, not VRBO.