Vacation Rental By Owner Review

I was not a happy camper growing up, and I mean literally. My dad always took up camping and fishing. I thought I would plan much better vacations, but sadly my boys hated motels and tourist neon. They would have loved my dad's vacations. They didn't love my first ones. I had to come up with a new plan.

I found Vacation Rental by Owner online at www.vrbo.com and that was the end of our vacation woes. I get a house for a week, and we all do our own things - some together and some not. We have our down time to rest at the house we've selected, and it's kind of like home but much more relaxing and really a break from the grind.

For my family, I always look for something out in the woods and on the water. This means the boys can fish and do those kinds of things. I can cook and read while they are sticking worms on hooks. But, I can still see them from the vacation house.

I would have thought this would have been a really expensive option, but one house we love to get in Murphy, NC is only $250 for the whole week. It's small, so if more family members come, then I pay $350 for the week and all the relatives can stay - or come and go as it works out with the schedule. In fact, we're headed there next week. Yay.

With the kitchen and outdoor grill (most of these homes have them), we save a lot on food too. We also have better and more nutritious home cooked food. We eat out as well but what and when we want.

Different homes and owners have different set ups. Some have multiple units. Some have a home used by the family but rented on weeks they're not going. The Murphy house has inner tubes there to float on the river. One we rented at the beach (for $500 for the week) had a kayak and nets to catch crabs. All we've been to have notebooks with things to do and see and notes from the owners and from other visitors. Owners usually have some books, videos, family board games and so on. All the ones we've been to have washers and dryers which really helps on a week vacation.

VRBO has properties listed by owners all over the world. I've been looking at some on the islands and in Mexico. We may do that one of these days. Right now, we've only stayed stateside.

I always get in touch with owners and talk a bit before renting a house. I'd back off if I got bad vibes. So far, it's been great. These are real folks with homes that they'd like to rent out and not have trashed. So, they care about who they rent to as well. I get Christmas cards from a couple of the families we've rented from. We're good renters and leave places as clean as when we arrive. We get great deals and a chance to relax and for everyone to have fun. This is one of the best deals I've ever found online.