Vacations are a much-needed escape from the daily grind we all endure throughout the week. They give you a chance to relax, reboot, and jump back into your daily routine completely rejuvenated.
While vacations should definitely have their fair share of rest and relaxation, there’s nothing wrong with spicing it up and planning a trip that incorporates some of your favorite hobbies and activities.
For those of you out there who are looking for a unique, memorable, and fun trip with your friends and family, there’s no better way to go about it than by booking a vacation rental property.
You may be looking into HomeAway. With rental properties spread all across the United States — and the entire world — you’re bound to find the perfect rental home for your next theme trip. With access to golfing regions, wineries, amusement parks, and much more, HomeAway has homes fit for any hobby and interest.
Let’s give you a quick overview of HomeAway and how it works, and then provide you with some inspiration for your next big vacation.
What Is HomeAway?
HomeAway is a vacation rental platform that lets vacationers rent homes from property owners and property managers all over the world. The HomeAway platform features over two million homes in more than 190 countries.
The HomeAway company — which also owns VRBO — offers private accommodations to travelers looking to have a unique and memorable vacation. Similar to Airbnb, HomeAway.com lets you search for vacation homes of all shapes and sizes, however, Airbnb offers shared spaces in addition to private homes.
By using HomeAway, you can find the perfect property listing that fits all of your requirements, including your budget, number of rooms, and activities for your friends and family to enjoy. Let’s take a look at how you can use HomeAway to start booking your next trip.
How to Use HomeAway
It’s super easy to use HomeAway to search for, book, and travel to your next vacation destination. The first step is signing up for HomeAway, which you can learn to do by reading through our Definitive Guide on HomeAway.
Signing up for HomeAway allows you to keep all of your booking information in one place and lets you message homeowners with any questions you may have. After you read through the guide and signed up for HomeAway, you can follow the next three steps to planning your best vacation yet.
1. Search
You can start by browsing through vacation rental properties and destinations to find the perfect place. If you know the general area you want to travel to, you can type in the city, state, or country. You can also enter the dates in which you wish to travel, or at least a range of dates if your travel plans are flexible.
Lastly, you can filter through search results by characteristics like price, property type, features, amenities, and nearby activities, which we’ll touch on more below.
2. Book
Once you’ve found the perfect rental property, you can begin the booking process by either tapping the “Request to Book” button or asking the owner any questions you may have.
After you request to book the property, the homeowner will have 24 hours to accept your reservation. Once your reservation is accepted, you can enter your credit card information to complete the booking process.
It’s important that you complete your payment through HomeAway if you want to be covered by the Book with Confidence Guarantee, which will protect you from scams and any mishaps along the way.
3. Stay
Now that you’ve found your place and everything is booked, your job is to have a relaxing and enjoyable vacation. Since you booked with HomeAway, you can use the mobile app to access crucial vacation information like your check-in and check-out times, directions to the property, and the WiFi password.
You can also contact the property owner with any questions or concerns you have during your stay. Lastly, after your trip, you can leave feedback and a review for others to read and decide if they want to book the same property.
Now that you have an idea of what HomeAway is and how you can find your rental property, let’s figure out what type of vacation you want to take and provide you with some rental examples to get you started.
Golfing Trips
Golfing trips are the perfect option for family trips, bachelor parties, or large group outings. The United States has some of the best golfing in the world. Legendary golfing destinations like Myrtle Beach, Hawaii, or California are all excellent options for a golfing trip. You can also head overseas and opt for courses in Ireland or New Zealand.
Grab the clubs, start practicing that swing, and book your next golf outing on HomeAway as soon as possible.
Amusement Parks
Amusement parks and theme parks are always on the radar of the younger ones in the family. Of course, families will likely have to make a pilgrimage to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Every kid must see Disney at least once in his or her life, so you better start planning now.
Other hot places include Cedar Point in Ohio or Six Flags in California where kids can unleash and have endless fun on roller coasters, attractions, and other adventures. Finding a place on HomeAway that’s within close proximity of these attractions shouldn’t be a problem.
Skiing and Snowboarding
Who says winter needs to be cold, dark, and depressing? With all that snow out there, there are plenty of activities to do, including skiing and snowboarding. Ski trips are one of the best ways to take advantage of the powdery snow winter has to offer.
A trip to Colorado, Utah, or New York makes for a perfect setting to enjoy some of the best slopes in the U.S. On HomeAway, you’ll be able to filter for properties that not only are close to the slopes but also have ski-in and ski-out access. What’s more convenient than that?
Winery and Brewery Tours
These types of trips are geared towards adult enjoyment. Winery and brewery trips are perfect for bachelor and bachelorette parties, couples getaways, and larger adult group outings.
It seems like everywhere you turn these days, breweries and wineries are opening up. Not only can you explore excellent brewery options in places like Oregon and Washington, but you can also hop across the pond to places in Europe and Australia that provide unbeatable wineries and wine regions.
If you opt for Europe, there’s an endless array of options of some of the oldest wineries in the world. Countries like Italy, Spain, and France are at the top of our list. Start searching on HomeAway to find dreamy wine and brewery regions for your next trip.
Scuba Diving and Snorkeling
If you haven’t tried your hand at scuba diving and snorkeling, then you’re definitely missing out. We suggest hopping on board, getting a little wet, and enjoying the underwater nature all around the world. There are so many places you can decide to go scuba diving and snorkeling.
One of our favorites is Costa Rica — it’s not that bad of a flight and there are a ton of beach houses you can choose from. For those of you who are a little more serious about the hobby, you can travel even further to places in Asia, like Thailand, which hosts some of the best diving in the world. You could even opt for a trip to Greece and go island hopping in between all of the fun activities.
Start Planning Now
Whatever trip you’re planning on taking, HomeAway likely has the perfect vacation rental waiting for you. There are plenty of options that are made for trips of all shapes and sizes.
If you’d like to learn more you can head to these links to explore some of HomeAway’s property types and see some of the best properties in the U.S.
Start planning your vacation today to lock in the perfect rental property for your next trip.
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