Alternatives To VRBO For Finding North Conway Cabin Rentals?

Alternatives To Vrbo For NH Cabin Rentals

The acronym VRBO stands for vacation rental by owner. The problem is that the company called VRBO does NOT allow you to know the owner's telephone number, email address or even their name!

Weird huh? The owners started a company to connect owners with vacationers and morphed into a company whose only goal was to show properties to folks and charge them a huge service fee for using their website.

Did you know that the Service Fee charged by VRBO can be as much as $499 (up to 17% on some sites) added to the rental fees. It makes sense to search for Alternatives to VRBO

Back in the day, vacations in the White Mountains at New Hampshire cabin rentals were planned at the kitchen table. If you were lucky you owned a Rand McNally Road Atlas, you had mailed away for countless brochures from travel vacation bureaus, asked friends and family for suggestions and owned a car in good enough shape to get you to your destination!

Fast forward to 2021 and nothing about planning a vacation and picking things to do in North Conway, NH even remotely resembles the days of yesteryear! Plus, most families vacation a couple times a year instead of once every few years.

Maps have been replaced by online websites and GPS, the main source of vacation destination information is the Internet, Facebook is the main source of information about our friend's and relative's travel experiences at NH cabin rentals, and most average families have at least two fairly new vehicles in the driveway or the travel will be done by plane!

It's much easier now a days to choose a perfect New Hampshire cabin rental and plan a vacation in North Conway, NH. Once the destination has been chosen, next on the agenda is picking out the best North Conway cabin rental. There are booking sites like VRBO (or maybe you'd like an alternative to VRBO) and HomeAway, the search has become somewhat of a one stop shopping.

Several years ago HomeAway, the company that owns VRBO, started allowing property managers of vacation rentals to advertise on their family of sites. The problem with allowing property managers to advertise on those sites is that VRBO and HomeAway started as site that listed properties being rented by owners. Get it? VRBO = Vacation Rentals by Owners

Now, instead of knowing you will be dealing with the actual owner of a property you might be interacting with a property manager that represents their client's properties. Some property managers represent tens of properties while others represent hundreds!

In the last year, both VRBO and Homeaway have forced guests to do all their bookings online. Some guests would rather push a button book online rather than communicating directly with owners.

The ability to push a button called "Book it Now" will cost you lots! VRBO and Homeaway charge guests a Service Fee when they book online of up to 20%!

Airbnb and TripAdvisor charge guests a Service Fee up to 24%

Do the math... if you are renting a huge lodge for a group vacation for $5,000, the Service Fee could be as high as $1,200 to use the site.

Which leads you to wonder... what's so special about booking a vacation directly with an owner? Well, I'm just the gal to tell you!

​Here are my top 6 reasons to rent a North Conway Vacation Rental By Owner (Vrbo)

• No Service or Booking Fees

• You get to experience North Conway like a local

• Rent from locals & get the benefit of their experience

• Who else knows the ins and outs of the lodging like the owner?

• No middle man when it comes to customer service

• MORE and FREE amenities

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1. NO Service/Booking Fees

VRBO and HomeAway have been around since the 2000's. In December 2015, both VRBO and HomeAway were purchased by Expedia.

Shortly after the buy-out every vacation rental owner who advertises on VRBO and HomeAway received an email and the following is an excerpt:

Alternatives To Vrbo to Find a North Conway Cabin Rental

Expedia charges 8-16% Service Fee on every booking completed online through their system! This fee will be paid by YOU, our guests, when you make your payment on VRBO and HomeAway! This applies to ALL North Conway cabin rentals and in fact, all listings on VRBO and HomeAway.

Service/Booking fees are no stranger to the vacation rental industry. Airbnb charges guests a 6-17% fee, FlipKey charges guests a booking fee of 12-22%, and it's anyone's guess how much Vrbo charges!!

Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch has never accepted payments on any vacation rental booking site. We do our best to make a vacation at our North Conway cabin rental called Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch affordable for most groups and one of the ways we've done that is never take payments online. Booking directly with us (Teena), we will NEVER charge a property managements or service fee.

It's our pleasure speaking with you directly and helping you plan your vacation fun!

The other change when Expedia took over VRBO and Homeaway is that ALL contact information is now hidden from owners and guests.

They no longer allow us to share email addresses or phone numbers. They want to ensure they get all of their booking/service fees and owners/guests do not book directly.

Please remember to bookmark Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch's website address (www.FourSeasonsLodge.com) for the future.

We'll always be doing what we do... but we'll do all our bookings from our website to save you BIG bucks!!

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2. You Get To Experience North Conway Like a Local

Sure, you can book with any of the local hotels and motels but if you want space to spread out in, a kitchen to cook in (satisfy food allergies or to save money) and not be sequestered to the commercial side of town consider a North Conway cabin rental!

We host many groups traveling with elderly grandparents for a family reunion or with some that do not participate in active outdoor sports. These folks can stay home and relax, read a book, babysit, cook a gourmet meal or float in OUR Indoor Pool!

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3. Rent From Locals & Get the Benefit of Our Experience

Vacation rental owners who live in the same town as their property have a wonderful gift to offer you, their experience.

Active people that live in vacation areas will know the best restaurants, hikes, bike routes, photo op stops, best activities for kids and much more plus, they can provide you with opinions about customer service, quality of food, appropriateness for children or those that are less that fit and much more!

We spend lots of well used time helping our guests make the most of their vacation and memories that last a lifetime!

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​4. No One Knows a New Hampshire Cabin Rental Like an Owner

Many New Hampshire cabin rental owners use their properties as a place to vacation so they really know their property. I know that WE do!

We have lovingly hand crafted all of the wood furniture at Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch and are there often changing and improving the The Ranch for our guest's enjoyment.

We do a walk through The Ranch before every guest arrives and anything that is not quite right is taken care of immediately. Especially since we live, separately, but on sight!

We created a huge poster that hangs at the The Ranch with almost everything you'd need to know about The Ranch plus we are available by phone for questions. 603-662-5391 (Hopefully, non-emergency questions can wait till morning)

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5. No Middle Man When It Comes To Customer Service

You check in after a long drive and the heat won't turn on or the toilet won't stop running. What do you do?

If you have rented directly from an owner, you call them.

If you rented from a property manager you call their answering service.

Most vacation rental owners either own one or just a couple of houses as opposed to property managers that oversee tens if not hundreds of properties!

Working directly with an owner is a one on one relationship from inquiry to enjoying your vacation. An owner will work with you as a guest and work hard to ensure that your vacation experience is a wonderful one!

Property owners have a lot invested in making sure that your vacation is a memorable one from start to finish. Owners that I know feel that renting our homes is not a job, it's a great experience to help folks have fun on vacation!

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6. MORE and FREE Amenities

Vacation rentals are becoming more like boutique hotels these days.

Many vacation rentals have amenities that rival hotel resorts AND there is no added fees to enjoy them all! Many amenities are becoming the norm in vacation rentals.

​We do our best to provide lots of active entertainment for everyone vacationing at Russ-Tee Bucket Lodge so that kids will look UP from their tablets and phones for once!

We're a stones throw away from the Saco River, the Maine border, downtown North Conway, and right across the street from an old fashioned farm with an infamous corn maze! There's something to do for everyone at the Ranch!

Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch

Vacation rentals in North Conway, NH and Vrbo/Airbnb

The townspeople of Conway, NH voted to ban vacation rentals in Conway. Stay tuned to NHPR for how this turns out.

In the meantime, Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch is not listed on HomeAway/Airbnb or many other booking sites and is approved as an approved short term rental and is approved by the town to continue renting forever. Yeeeehaaa!

There is a good reason I book my guests directly. You know why? To save YOU money!

I recently completed a search of vacation rentals by owner (Vrbo), I discovered that many listings showed they were offered by large property management companies.

I have owned a New Hampshire cabin rental for 30 years now and have loved the experience of helping folks have a wonderful experience on vacation in North Conway, NH.

I am a local, love to experience all that North Conway has to offer, love to host groups of folks that love each other, it tickles me that every year folks call to book their next vacationed at Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch, and I strive to save folks money.

I book 100% of my vacations directly with my guests to save them thousands of dollars in Service Fees and fees paid to property managers (I am my own property manager).

Another thing that pains me for folks trying to book an amazing vacation is when I hear stories of scammers ripping people off when they try to book directly.

In an effort to make renting a North Conway Cabin Rental a safe experience, I wrote a blog titled, "Safe Rental Tips for North Conway Vacation Rentals". Check it out. It will save you money!

It's our goal to help anyone who inquires about Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch find a vacation rental that suits THEIR group. A crisp modern home might not be suitable for some groups whereas a quaint space built in a 300 year old farm house may not have others jumping up and down.

My Mom always chanted that, "Knowledge is Power." I couldn't agree more. Using the information above will help you gather information about a vacation rental from the person who knows the property best, the owner!

Our History With North Conway and The Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch

Here at The Ranch we have a long history in North Conway. We vacationed in the White Mountains every year and as soon as possible, made the cozy village my home!

These days we shop at North Conway outlets, eat at North Conway restaurants, partake in lots of fun things to do in North Conway, NH and have great relationships with the local craftspeople and business owners.

We have arranged coupons and deals for guests of Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch, possibly the oldest farm house in North Conway!

We take pride in offering you a wonderful North Conway cabin rental with real traditional hospitality and 21st century amenities plus fantastic outdoor activities that are just a few steps out the door.

Our guests know they can turn to us for the inside scoop on great restaurants, hikes that are perfect for young families, where to see wildlife, if something is a good value, great photo op spots and much more.

Our "repeat offenders" as we jokingly refer to our wonderful guests that return year after year, tell us often that they cannot wait to return every year to see the beautiful wood furniture that Russ has handcrafted and added to the Ranch and what other changes we've made.

For almost 30 years, we have welcomed groups of families or friends to North Conway. We have watched many children grow and eventually many of them have returned to offer the same great experiences they enjoyed as kids to their children.

We LOVE what we do and hope a vacation at Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch will be the beginning of a love affair with your group and all the North Conway, NH has to offer!

We look forward to sharing our special space in this beautiful world with you. Don't hesitate to phone us to discuss a rental or pick our brains for information about North Conway!

Teena

Russ-Tee Bucket Ranch

603-662-5391