SJ J.

VRBO used to be the go-to place for renting vacation homes. Sadly, that's no longer the case. They now charge us a booking fee to travel and they use language designed to scare you into thinking the person you're renting from MIGHT BE A CRIMINAL waiting to scam you. Here's a thought... if VRBO is so afraid of homeowners scamming us travelers, what does that say about their VETTING policy of homeowners? They're idiots to try to scare me into thinking I'll be scammed because that just makes them look as if they'll accept fraudulent listing.

If you want to avoid their stupid booking fees, do like we do. Find a house you like, ALWAYS read traveler reviews of course, because those will give you the real insight into the house and the owners. Then copy a uniquely worded part of the listing description and paste it into a Google search. You WILL find that same house listed elsewhere, and chances are you can deal direct with the owner AND avoid the booking fee, which is as much as 10%!

Unfortunately for us travelers, VRBO is no longer "Vacation Rental By Owner" it's more like Vacation Rental By Expedia and all they care about is money.