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VRBO Vacation Rentals Review


ConsumersAdvocate.org Rating: 4.9 / 5 (Excellent)
114 Customer Comments & Reviews - see all comments
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VRBO is a travel search engine which is a registered trademark of HomeAway.com. It offers information on over 2 million house rentals worldwide with more than 25,000 pet-friendly properties to choose from. It also provides detailed listings on properties such as those with free baby and kid amenities.

Services and Features

VRBO makes searching for a vacation rental simple by letting you enter a destination and travel dates. It also has search filters which lets travellers narrow down results. Travellers can inquire on 3 or more properties which increases their chance of booking. It also has a “Book it Now” option to select a listing.

The company ensures that the money spent vacation is covered with its Cancellation and Damage Protection. This covers non-refundable refundable trip costs in case customers need to cancel their trip due to selected reasons. Typically, vacation rental payments become non-refundable 30 to 90 days in advance of the arrival date. With Cancellation Protection, consumers can insure their trip cost of up to $50,000 if they need to cancel and reimburse due to covered events such as flight cancellations, mandatory evacuation, job loss, injury, sickness, and more.

Damage Protection helps travellers be protected against expenses incurred due to accidentally damage a vacation rental property. This can reimburse travellers if their refundable damage deposit is withheld due to a covered loss. Coverage is offered starting from $59 up to $1,500 with no deductible.

Accommodation

Single Family Style Home

Condominium

Town Home

Cottage

Villa

Apartment

Website Features

Instant Booking

Loyalty Programs

Social Media Integration

Visual Calendar

Currency Setting

Language Setting

Client Information Management

Mobile App

Search Filters

Predictive Search

Favourite List

Property Galleries

Google Map Integration

Simple Checkout

Website Fees

Guest Fees

4% to 9% of rental amount excluding taxes or deposits

Host Fees

$349 a year

Listing Fees

Not Stated

Payment Options

Credit Card

PayPal

Mastercard

Amex

Visa

In-Person

Support

FAQs

Community Forum

Knowledge Center

Customer Reviews

Phone

Vacation Rentals at VRBO

VRBO has a wide variety of vacation rentals and accommodations including kid-friendly and pet-friendly properties. It also offers Cancellation and Damage Protection for non-refundable trip costs for covered reasons. VRBO also promotes travel confidence by giving added protection through Security Deposit, Emergency Rebooking, and Comprehensive Payment Protection.


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114 Customer Comments & Reviews

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EJSmith522
8/4/2020
Do not recommend Vrbo services. It may take several attempts to cancel a reservation and receive a full refund. Their online messaging system is ignored and not forwarded to property management in a timely manner. There are separate charges in a reservation, Vrbo service fee and managing property reservation charges. Vrbo's customer service is not handled in USA so expect poor phone quality, language barriers and abrupt disconnections.


jjcalder2020
7/25/2020
The owner of this property (VBRO property number 9172560ha) would not return $1000 I paid to them. If you are thinking about renting this Hudson, FL property please be aware that Debi Hartman, Property Manager along with the property owner refused to return over $1000 to me when I was unable to occupy the property for seven weeks due to COVID. Also know that according to the VBRO website the property appeared to have been rented to someone else during the same period I was supposed to be there. The property owner insisted that I knew the rental policy and should have purchased renter insurance. She said this even though the VBRO rental insurance does not cover pandemics like COVID. So... Read More


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Lynda M
7/22/2020
ABSOLUTELY WILL NEVER RECOMMEND VRBO TO ANYONE!!! They refuse to take responsibility and do what is right. They hide behind bulls*** policies that aren't worth the paper and ink they are printed on. If the property owners will not act with integrity then Vrbo should step up to the plate and help their customers. The property owner told us she refused to refund us (not even a dime) because she had to "keep her business afloat". What about our home that we need to "keep afloat"? We saved for that trip and our hard owned money was STOLEN by the owner and Vrbo. Now that owner has our money and will take someone else's money for the same week. TOTALLY CRIMINAL!!!


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Kom D
7/19/2020
Will Never use VRBO Again!!! I was Forced to cancel my April 2020, VRBO-booked trip to the Caymans due to COVID-19 pandemic, the closure of the GCM airport and related travel ban. VRBO refunded VRBO-imposed fees - in my case approx $300 - but despite numerous attempts to contact the owner of the Cayman Reef Resort condo to request a refund, including messages via the VRBO app, the owner did not respond - no reply at all - not even to deny my refund request or to offer a credit for future travel. Nothing. I lost $2000. I will never use VRBO again. VRBO needs stronger policies and practices to govern property owners, including the need for VRBO to establish formal exceptions to... Read More


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Oliver
7/10/2020
Had to cancel my trip. Since I expected something like tat, I booked a house with a longer free cancelation policy. Now I just cannot cancel since VRBO removed the cancel button and the chat is hardly available. Even after I got through and they said that they would cancel, it still shows my reservation still standing. If I get in touch with the property manager (another company, VACASA), they want to keep nearly $500 as booking fee - although nothing like that is mention on the VRBO page. Did not try this yet... Edit Delete Share


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randy h
7/7/2020
do not use this company misrepresents properties and then will not respond on chat when trying to contact for canceling or refunds rating 0


Ed C
7/5/2020
One Star Rating: In late June 2020, , our experience doing our stay at the property (Vrbo Property # 283733) and (Vrbo Reservation# Reservation ID#: HA-7CZYBJ) was fine, we enjoyed the house, the property and the beach, however, three days after we returned home, we received an accusatory e-mail from the owner, Margaret Palau, alleging that we broke the washing machine, left water damage, and that we left sand everywhere. These were false accusations and she did not even present any evidence, including not sending any pictures, nor did she give us the due courtesy of even asking us questions about it, through a telephone call, just a terse brief personal e-mail, and she did not even... Read More


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Colleen
6/17/2020
Wow this is my 1st experience with VRBO and it is awful. Mainly the response and attitude of the property manager in responding to my questions about cancelling due to Covid issues. We booked only a month out and of course had to pay in full but then issues started to arise so I reached out and it went downhill from there. At one point the prop manager said "Covid is all over the world and we as a country have been living with it for 4 months. The country is opening, AZ is open. You and your family had every intention of coming out here even with Covid-19 still being around. I am not sure what is changing now." WOW... 1st and last time dealing with them. Customer service is so important... Read More


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Julie P
6/4/2020
My husband and I have had multiple properties listed on VRBO over the years, and they were great. Unfortunately, things changed in the last two or three years. Their new fees for the traveler AND owner (annual and per booking) are high...which means as an owner, I am forced to charge my customers more. Not only that they keep your money until AFTER the renter arrives. So if I have a renter that reserves a year in advance, VRBO hangs onto the money the renter has paid for a year. Customer service is in another country, so it is hard to understand them.


acgbassman
5/31/2020
You guys suck. Refunds from deposits can and should be refunded within days not 1-2 months. I will pass on my disgust to all my friends and family and search the web to leave bad reviews on every site I can find. You are keeping the money just to wheezle a few more dollars by holding on to it in your bank. Not cool!!! Signs of a bad company.



Top Rated
Our Partner
  • More than 2 million house rentals worldwide
  • Inquire on 3 or more properties for greater chances of booking
  • Cancellation and damage protection provided
  • Book through VRBO mobile app
  • Over 25,000 pet-friendly properties available
  • Broad list of properties that include free baby and kid amenities
  • Book with Confidence Guarantee