We’re going to do some vehicle traveling in the US and have never tried vrbo & airbnb instead of hotels but are trying to learn about them OR OTHER type places to stay.
I’d appreciate any experiences to share.
Thanks
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Watch out for cleaning fees. They can be huge. Do a Google street view of the surrounding area. Often, the house does not match its environment. A diamond in the rough is a nice way to put it.
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I’ve done VRBO before, but not Airbnb.
It was completely painless but I did a lot of research first and knew where I wanted to be before I even started looking for a place.
If you make it down to my neck of the woods, I know of a number of places you can stay and not spend a fortune and neither is any of those or similar services.
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Good advice from Brian.
We’ve stayed in several over the recent few years and had good luck.
The price advertised on the search map will be higher when you check out/pay, Larry. Go slow and be prepared for an alternate close by (if possible).
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I’m not following, Scott.
Do you mean what we may see price-wise online map is less than we will be charged at check out/pay? Why is that allowed?
Be sure to read the FINE PRINT in your Rental Agreement. I have heard a lot of complaints about hidden fee’s and loopholes to take your money!!
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I read a news article a year or so ago that showed how common it is to find hidden cameras in Airbnb’s. The numbers were staggering.
Between that and all of the hidden cleaning fees, I will never stay in one.
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We almost exclusively use VRBO or Airbnb instead of hotels. Way, way, way better, in my opinion. One of the biggest benefits is typically you will have a clothes washer and dryer. That allows us to pack super-light. We read the reviews and also do like Brian said and look at the place using Google maps. We haven’t ran into any hidden fees, meaning you will see what you are paying for before you have to pay. There should be no additional fees once you make the payment.
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We like using Airbnbs when we travel. Often time it’s less expensive than the hotels. You do need to do your research, but that goes with any place you stay. We turned our partially finished basement into a fully finished airbnb. It has a living area, complete kitchen (minus dishwasher), bedroom, full bath, and walk in closet with stacked washer and dryer. It has a separate entrance which allows our guests freedom and privacy in their coming and going (something to consider). We put in a mini-split so they’d have their own climate controls (something to consider).
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Thanks Anthony, and you don’t mind renting it out for a single overnight? Just seems like a lot to clean for one overnight fee…to me. But I don’t know. 
Hey Larry, yeah, we rent it out for one night all the time. Our cleaning fee is very small ($25), however we’ve never had a problem. We keep it very clean and the guests are appreciative. We haven’t had anybody trash the place. It stays booked up so we have our routine down once the guests check out.
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It sounds large, but it’s not. Between 700-800 sq ft in total as I recall.
Thanks.
Is the cleaning fee in addition to the nightly stay fee?
Do owners show that cleaning fee at time the overnight fee is shown?
Yes, the cleaning fee is an additional charge to the nightly fee and it is listed with the nightly fee so you know about it ahead of time.
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Yes. The price is meant to get your attention.
When you go into the listing for further information the fees are often 20% +.
Scott
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We have used VRBO (merged with Homeaway a few years ago?) in Indian Shores Florida. We never had an issue.
But as many say, read the fine print. Most of that fine print is from the owners themselves passed on through the rental companies. As such, the rental companies cannot help you much as those rules are not theirs.
Most important, have fun and safe travels!!
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If you’re searching Airbnb it clearly shows the nightly fee and the total (which includes all other “hidden” additional fees) so I’m not sure why everyone is saying they are hidden if they are on the search page. I don’t think a lot of these guys giving advice have searched for one in a while. I had seven Airbnb properties for a few years prior to Covid and have stayed at dozens over the years. Only had one bad experience in FL which was operated by a large agency. Just like home inspections, each part of the country is probably a little different on what to expect. Read the reviews for the property and stay away from properties that are under property management as their reviews get skewed. You can always tell a lot by the review responses from the owner. The owners rules are listed so if you are comfortable with that then you should be good. These typically include putting dishes in the dishwasher and taking out trash prior to leaving.
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Thanks, Bob and everyone. 
Those details are very helpful to me…a novice at this.
I appreciate it.
