One of our best Hawaii deal tips to combat higher Hawaii airfares is looking at Hawaii vacation rentals. You can stay at the beach in a home or condo and vacation in Hawaii more like a local. Split the cost with friends when you book a larger rental with 2 or more bedrooms. With lots of room to spread out and typically significantly more value for your money, Hawaii vacation rentals are already in great demand.
In Hawaii, well known and highly regarded rental management companies are located on each of the islands. Examples include Maui Rental Group and The Parrish Collection Kauai. You will also find global players like HomeAway, VRBO, AirBnB and as of today, Priceline’s Villas. The new site just launched and so far has only a few hundred Hawaii properties out of nearly 200,000 in total. By comparison, HomeAway has nearly 1 million total listings. TripAdvisor is also a significant player which just acquired Vacationhomerentals.
Villas.com.
Priceline’s latest product is based on its uber successful booking.com model. Expect it to grow exponentially in both Hawaii inventory and overall. Their idea was to launch a dedicated vacation rental platform to provide added credibility and support for the unique and rapidly expanding industry. Villas properties all include instant confirmation with guaranteed availability.
What’s next in Hawaii vacation rentals?
Watch for upcoming consolidation in the global vacation rental industry. Vacation rentals are one of the largest growth areas in hospitality. We anticipate some key acquisitions/mergers will take place in the not distant future.
Your take on Hawaii vacation rentals.
Do you choose Hawaii vacation rentals over hotels? We welcome your comments and experiences.
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We’ve used VRBO a number of times, all successful, and I’m now convinced that they’re far superior to a motel or hotel. We rented a home on the Hilo side of the Big Island for two weeks in 2011, and it was a wonderful experience. Another couple stayed with us for part of the time, and the home had everything that we could possibly need, even detailed maps of the Big Island and a cooler for picnic lunches. We never ate breakfast out, just shopped the farmer’s markets and had an array of fabulous fruit–I enjoyed papaya and pineapple each morning. Prices in the supermarkets were a bit of a shock, but the benefits of not eating every meal out and the ability to pack a picnic and enjoy dining alfresco around the island more than offset the cost. Dinners were sometimes out, sometimes in. I spent lots of time looking for just the right place, which I enjoyed, and I’m ready to repeat the process when I can find good airfares.
We rented a vacation home in Hauula this past winter. It is the ONLY way we will stay in Hawaii from now on. It truly felt like “home” and we loved being away from the crowds. For five adults it was the perfect place! We cooked most of our meals, when we did eat out it was at “mom and pops” – and the prices were truly about what we’d pay here in Texas.
We fell in love with the eastern side of the island – friendly people, less hustle/bustle … just a nice easy going way of life!
We’ve been visiting Kauai annually for the past 10+ years and always book a vacation rental. We don’t mind spending a bit more to get a good view and extra space, and we still save money than if we booked a resort room with “garden” or “pool view” and no kitchen. We used to use VRBO more often but now we have settled into using 2 local management companies that have provided us with excellent customer service, Kauai Vacation Rentals and Kauai Pacific Real Estate. Regardless of where we book, we stlll do our homework by doing Google searches on the properties to insure we get the views and amenities we want.
I have used VRBO on four different trips (Texas, Florida & Hawaii) and have been happy with each. I usually pay a deposit up front to hold the reservation or at least 1/2 the rental. The remainder is due 30-45 days before arrival date. All have been great and super friendly owners and the rental just as described. I highly recommend VRBO!
We just returned from a 10 day vacation on Oahu, where we rented a very nice private condo (1 bedroom) thru HomeAway (VRBO) on the west side of the island for $75 per night. We saw a number of similar condo’s at Turtle Bay funning approx $135 per night, and others all over the island between those two prices and higher. I think if you use one of the sites such as HomeAway, AirBnB, etc by going there yourself (and NOT by following a “link” someone sends you) you should be safe in renting. I do know that most of these sites also offer a low cost insurance to protect you in case of fraud, but what we saw in the phots (and read in the renter reviews) was exactly what we expected, and we had a delightful time in a condo with a full kitchen, living room, dining area, and we did it much (MUCH) cheaper than a hotel room where we’d have had little more than a hotel room with a bed,a couple chairs, and perhaps a mini fridge. We even found a box of Hawain Host chocolates and bottle of wine (along with a nice welcome to Hawaii card) when we got there, and I forgot to mention that many of these folks have beach chairs, umbrella’s, and more for you to use. I will never EVER rent a hotel room again when on vacation in Hawaii (or likely elsewhere) I can assure you of that.
We’ve done both the resort stay and the condo rental on Kauai. While I love the resort life and the welcoming Aloha from the staff at the hotels, staying in a condo was a more affordable and relaxing option. Having a full kitchen, a living room to lounge in (rather than always sitting on a bed in a hotel room), a washer and dryer and all the amenities of home for a better rate than a hotel did make for an enjoyable stay. The only down side to living like a local is it makes it that much harder to leave!
I wouldnt vacation any other way. LOVE whomever thought of vacation home rentals!
I will miss the rates and personal contact the owners of the rental units have been giving through VRBO. (Some “Owner Operated” places still in the website).
Agencies should try to be more accommodating in knowing what comes with each rental property (chairs, boggie boards, etc.) and let you know what time you can get into the property. You still need to do your homework – Read forums regarding your areas and resorts. Watch out for links. Stay on your main website.
We always rent from homeaway, or flipkey. Always found really homey places for a reasonable price. We are more private though and don’t like the resort areas. They are too busy, and noisy for us. We have rented several times and will continue to do so in the future.
We mostly book directly from owners through the owner advertised rental sites and have never had a problem. We’ve found some real gems. I think it helps to choose a place where the owner/manager has a local number and are members of local professional organizations so they can be verified. We have been successfully renting out our Poipu beach house for 12 years.
Chris White, Aikane Kauai Owner/Manager
Hi,
I have booked at least 7 or 8 places through VRBO on multiple islands, and have never had any problems with any of them (knock on wood!). We have found some truly unique and wonderful places to stay that were the perfect finishing touch on a delightful Hawaiian vacation. In fact, I’m returning to Kauai later this summer and staying at one of the places for the third time.
I find that the condos/houses listed on there are a much better value than a resort or hotel, and have much more room and space. Also, they generally always have kitchens and laundry facilities, so we’re always able to save money by eating breakfast at home, and don’t have to pack as many clothes (so fewer checked baggage fees).
As with anything on the internet, you have to read everything closely, and it helps if there are lots of pictures and favorable reviews. But I can’t imagine every going back to staying in a hotel when I can get a whole house or condo for what one hotel room costs!
For my trip next February I thought I’d try renting a condo through VRBO (I normally book hotels). After searching for a couple days I received a offer that seemed like an amazing deal. Not too good to be true but a great price. It wasn’t until they wanted me to pay in full and wire the payment to the UK that I became sucipious. I did a google search and came to the conclusion it was more likely a scam. I am still uncertain how they got my information as I never inquired directly with their website. What has been your experience with scams? I am now leary and might choose to rent directly with a hotel.
Hi Elizabeth,
Online scams are certainly a fact of life in all industries including hospitality. Dealing with reputable companies and not clicking on links with the assumption they go to where they say they go are basic safeguards.
Aloha.