AirBNB---VRBO

I frequently use both Air Bnb and VRBO. With VRBO, you communicate and pay outside the VRBO system, usually. There are "instant book" properties, and those pay a higher fee to VRBO and are listed in any search before the VRBO's that just pay an annual fee to be listed. Some of the VRBO (and also booking.com, which works the same way) properties want no cash down. All cash upon arrival. I've declined some of these (especially those with low number of reviews) because they could overbook and your dates are often not blocked out. So, not quite as safe as Air BnB, which does not forward the $$ to the owner until 24 hours into your stay.

My thoughts on booking.com and vrbo: check the whole list and if a property has many recent reviews (like 20 or more) they are much safer bet than a listing that has one or two reviews.

You can email either way and ask about laundry. I've gotten lots of very specific responses, no problem asking ANYTHING. You cannot communicate with an Air Bnb owner outside of the app.

Remember that in Europe "third floor" is really fourth floor in US. We once booked a great little apt in Paris, but it was on the fifth US floor with no elevator. We did not "run out for a baguette to go with our wine" as we might have otherwise...so something to be aware of.

We prefer VRBO, but note, we only rent apartments for stays of 4 nights or longer. There are some hassles not worth putting up with for shorter stays.

I have eschewed Airbnb over the usually rigid cancellation requirements. They also seem more likely to feature places that people actually live in, versus true vacation rentals. Of course, some properties are featured on both sites.

I pay through VRBO when required, but am OK with doing only the deposit that way then paying cash-on-arrival. (A common request in Italy.) Sometimes with VRBO I have been successful b=negotiating a better rate than posted when we are staying at least 5 nights and traveling off-season.

You might also look at www.Booking.com as they feature apartments I also see on VRBO and I feel Booking.com offers a bit more protection. Often the properties are cancellable up to a week in advance with no penalty.

As to a washer, we usually find them in the apartments.

We used both on our trip to Italy. I used whichever had the best apartment for us. We did pay through the website and sometimes paid only the tourist tax(small amount) in cash on arrival, sometimes it went through the website, each owner is different. Some took a photo of your passports, others wanted a copy. I was hesitant of that but other said hotels do this also. Ask them before you commit how they handle the money. I always made sure I saw a picture of the washer in the unit so I knew for sure, because laundry while making dinner or eating breakfast is easy- sitting outside your apartment is not fun.

We have used both Airbnb and VRBO. With Airbnb, you pay at the time of booking, Airbnb hold the money and pay the host once you arrive and accept the apartment. (Next trip, I have communicated with the Airbnb host outside the “system”, and agreed I will pay 100% cash on arrival).

VRBO, negotiate, pay deposit, pay balance somehow. One time, 100 euro deposit by paypal, balance of about 2000 in cash. The second time with that host, it was 100% cash once we arrived.

Washing machines. One place it was shared, but that does not mean that you have to hang around for hours waiting. Just set it going and leave it. If others need the machine, they will put your clothes in a basket.

Many apartments have a three or four night minimum.

One thing - you are unlikely to find a clothes dryer in an apartment.

P.S. VRBO = Homeaway and FlipKey = Tripadvisor. So, tripadvisor is one more place to look.
Have fun deciding!

many THANKS to all of you! Such great info!

sound like AirBnB or booking.com might be better for us as first timers. Just not sure about the paying balance in cash....

I'll keep saving apartments, we don't have exact travel dates just yet.

sound like AirBnB or booking.com might be better for us as first timers. Just not sure about the paying balance in cash....

You do not HAVE to pay the balance in cash with VRBO. It depends. Watch Airbnb cancellation policies very carefully as they are not forgiving! Booking.com is probably the most stress-free.

ok, so look at multiple site and just pick what I like best and go from there...

Thanks so much to all of you for the info.

Make sure you really examine the photos, and bookmark ones with photos of important stuff like bathrooms, kitchen, etc.; not photos of art or a vase or a wall hanging.
I've rented lots of apartments, but have noticed recently that a lot are saying two bedrooms, when really the second one is actually the living room.
Again, scrutinize all the photos carefully.
I like listings that show a drawing of the actual floorplan.

You can message the host through AirBnB and ask about the washer / dryer location, if there's soap provided, etc. We found a place with a washer / dryer combo in Venice.

Be sure you know the total cost. Cleaning fees can be substantial. I saw one listing (not in Italy) on booking.com that looked like a good deal until I read the fine print: The posted rate did not include 15% tax or 15% cleaning fee.

Thanks everyone, great info and advice. Funny now I noticed pictures with both floorplan and pictures of washing machines.

Sarah_atx do you mind sharing where you stayed in Venice?

Another important consideration that somehow escaped me when I rented a place in Mexico (from expats)..... the price showed up for me in U.S. dollars, but of course was converted to local currency for them, and my credit card charged me greatly for the privilege. Now is the time to figure out which of yr cards do not charge a foreign transaction fee.
And yes, read the fine print 're cleaning fees, etc, vrbo will show you a quote for days you are considering, I was just looking at a studio in Boston that would allow me to rent for 2 days at $89 per day, but the cleaning fee was $100, and some other fees added up to another 80. That was an usual listing, most are more logical

I would like to piggy back this question. One of the comments states that something to look for is the reviews, recent reviews. Our first experience with Homeaway was last fall, in Florence. LOVED our apartment and I would be glad to share name and info. I am returning to Florence this fall, with my mom. She cannot manage stairs so that perfect apartment is out. Anyway, I found what looks to be great. Close to Duomo, recently renovated, medium price (not a “too good to be true” number). My hesitation is there are only 8 reviews (all perfect) but from 2014. Why would there not be updates reviews? Should we be concerned or no??

Doric8, pretty sure I wouldn’t have thought about fees when making my reservations., so thank you. Looks like Chase has several cc with no foreign transaction fees. I’ll probably get another card before we go.

Thanks again everyone!

Alecia,

Is it possible the apartment is on another site, like VRBO? Can you search by the property owner, maybe they have other properties... Just a few ideas based on reading the forum.

We aren’t planning to stay in Florence, otherwise I would have loved your recommendation.

We used AirBnB during our stays in Florence and Rome last September and could not have been happier. I only looked at listings from "Super Hosts" with lots of recent reviews and read every review from every listing (both our hosts managed multiple apartments) before making a decision. Reviews can only be written by actual confirmed customers after their stay.

I searched for a apartment with a separate bedroom, free WiFi, private bathroom, washing machine and terrace in specific neighborhoods and found exactly what we wanted. I booked 6 months out and had many options to choose from. We would rent from either host again (after reading the reviews again, of course).

With time spent on due diligence, you will find the perfect place for you trip. You are in for an amazing time!!!!!

to Alecicia: You can also search by the name of the apartment, if it has one. I have emailed several with the same question, and sometimes they tell me they are new to xyz and they have older reviews at abc website. Other times, their explanation just doesn't work so I move on.

Here is a fabulous apartment we rented 4 years ago (from a different website), Called Battistero. Literally across the street from the Duomo, however one bedroom and one pullout couch. ELEVATOR!

http://www.italyflorence.it/easystore/schedevedi.asp?schedaid=35&pg=2

hey laura
you've gotten great info here from people and what's involved with booking apartments. you'll learn things after your trip to florida about apartments. you can always do a "dummy" book and see fees involved., and if high season it will cost more. due diligence will pay off for you, not a surprise when you get bill. also cancellation fee may be more but may be worth it, like booking.com or homeaway.com then losing money. Italy has a fee for tourists, we left cash euros at end of stay in venice. look at pictures closely what they have, in london airbnb our apt said 2 bedroom, which 2nd bedroom was living room, dining room with 2 chairs and dining, available for 4, and couch for sleeping (bedroom), washer had someone else's clothes and mildew, for how long who knows, one light in bathroom mirror, no bar in slippery shower, 17 year old girl for check in and above loud tube stop on "quiet" street in theatre area, owner out of country. it was horrible. look at picture what apartment looks like. the washer/dryer issue about fee maybe in a complex that you share, something new to me. we put clothes in wash evening when home and just use dryer rack or our own clothesline we brought. brought light weight clothes so would dry by time we got back from adventures. look at where apartment is to not carry over bridges, cobblestones, how far from train station. rather stay close and can walk or taxi to further away places, italy has taxi stops, no hailing with hands. like i said i always have washer necessities packed instead of shopping for it. with your time hopefully one time to wash. when in siena make sure within walls so not dragging suitcases outside of wall. keep all your saved apartments which is best for you and family and what works for you, more expensive is not always best. also get 2 keys in case one person wants to check things out by themselves, plus separate bathrooms and not sharing. when in rome if family wants to do water activity, romeboatexperience.com. some may agree or disagree but we are tourists, book things early to get a spot and check miss the crowds. all the posters here will give you great info, you want the best vacation without ugly. keep asking questions cuz you'll get great answers from these travelers that have been there done that. like before when you have lemons make lemoncello!
aloha

Hey princess!

Thanks again for all the info!

Definitely getting lots of great info here. liking the idea of an apartment, more and more. Thanks to an earlier comment, I've really started looking at the pictures and looking for specifics. Really need to read what's included...noticed that shampoo is noted as either included or not, but didn't think to look at paper stuff like TP! (we need to purchase for our Florida condo, but they also offer a "grocery service") On AirBnB, I sorted to just look at Superhosts-thinking that might help us a bit, since it will be our first time. We'd be ok with just one bedroom, my daughter can sleep in the common area, we are used to sharing close quarters.

Yes, location, location, location- we've had some misses in this area. years ago my husband and I picked a hotel in London which was in more of a business district, so not many restaurants nearby for dinner. Also booked a cabin in Seward Alaska, which looked like it was in the "woods", but was really a residential trailer park. Neither was idea, but you just go with it once there. I looked for that in Siena as some of the properties are outside of town. Venice and Rome, I need to look at the neighborhoods to decide on an area...

Starting to really list out what to do in each city, my next post will likely be a day to day itinerary!

Thanks again everyone!

Hey Laura,
We used AirBNB for our Bologna and Parma apartments. Both charged half of the total charge upon booking and the other half a few weeks before our arrival. Be prepared to pay the tourist tax in cash.

One thing we noticed was that while both apartments looked huge in the AirBNB photos, they must have used a very wide angle lens when taking the pics because neither apartment looked nearly as big in person. I believe AirBNB lists square footage (square meters) so definitely pay attention to that too.
-Mike-