This is my own personal budgeting tip for travel, which may help you stay within your budget for an awesome trip!
The larger your family, the more difficult it can be to get away for a vacation and keeping within your budget!
Sometimes a vacation budget can be met if a shorter trip is planned. It's better to at least get away for a short trip, than not at all!
Vacation rentals are great and one of my favorite ways to get away. But, the rentals can be expensive, and especially if it's in a popular vacation spot. Peak season rates are of course even higher!
Now let's grill the meat and potatoes and get into it!
How to reduce the cost to secure a vacation rental:
This is an easy step-by-step solution for saving money!
- Locate the vacation rental of your dreams.
- If you can book dates that are not 'peak season', you save more!
- Determine how the rates may fit into your budget.
- Figure on shortening your length of stay to make it work.
- Review their booking calendar for the availability.
- Determine their minimum number of nights stay.
Specific instructions for Step 6:
- Many vacation rentals require at least a two night stay, but what if you can't afford that rental for two nights? The solution is simple!
- Look again at their calendar for their available dates.
- Search for gaps between rented dates.
- The *gaps I'm referring to are the nights not booked, but are less than their normal minimum stay.
*Gaps are your friendly solution to reduce the cost of your stay! 😎
- If their minimum is normally two nights, you're looking for the stray one night that's not booked up.
- Or, as another example: If their normal minimum is a 5 night stay, look for the gap between those, which are less than 5 nights.
You've got the drift now, so let's continue to the next step!
STEP 7 - MAKING A SPECIAL REQUEST:
STEP 7 - MAKING A SPECIAL REQUEST:
- Contact the vacation rental manager - preferably by *phone!
*If you try to make the request through email or by using a contact form, you might reduce your chances for success! 🙈
- Prepare a script to make the special request.
- Your script (phone conversation) may go something like this:
Hi, I'm Your Name, I'm interested in booking your rental for these dates: (Now clearly state the dates you want to secure).
I see that/those night(s) is/are less than your normal minimum night stay, and they're not blocked out, yet appear to be available.
In that it's less than your normal minimum nights stay, then most people would probably not ask to book those dates, but I figured you would most likely be happy though to fill those dates if you could! Would you please consider booking us for that/those nights?
Now zip up your lips and wait for their reply! 🙊
Give them time to respond - without saying another word!
Wait patiently for their answer!
If you speak before they respond, it might kill the deal!
Assuming they responded positively with a 'yes'...
Now immediately respond with your strategy for a possible discount!
STEP 8 - ASKING FOR A DISCOUNT:
This strategy is therefore time-sensitive for securing a discount, but not always the case. Even if you're months out from those dates, it doesn't hurt to ask for a discount!
Most people probably don't bother to make a special request for less than their minimum requirement, so use that to your advantage!
YOU may have a chance to get a discounted rate,
which no one else would ask for!
- Your script for a discount might go like this:
Thank you! I'm excited you will allow us to book your vacation rental for those dates! (Don't pause here!) In that most people probably don't bother to ask to book less nights than your minimum, those nights have less opportunity to be booked. Would you therefore consider providing us a discount for booking those dates you would otherwise not fill?
Now zip up your lips and wait for their reply! 🙊
Give them time to respond - without saying another word!
Wait patiently for their answer!
If you speak before they respond, it might kill the deal!
There's an old saying I learned in marketing years ago:
"He who speaks first - loses!"
That strategy has worked for me multiple times, so I hope my idea works for you, so you can rent a vacation rental with a discount!
If you liked my vacation rental budget strategy, please consider sharing this post with a friend. Thanks!
My personal story with how this strategy worked for me:
The first time I implemented that strategy was when I rented a luxury oceanfront condominium on the coast of Oregon, at Depoe Bay for one night. (The link lands on a video I made while there on vacation).
Normally they had a two night minimum, but I found one stray night that was available.
They were more than happy to fill one stray night to keep the rental booked each day of the month!
It was a win win for them and for us! It worked out great for us because two nights at that place would have been too expensive for our budget, but one night was workable.
Now in that particular case we did have it within our budget to rent a second place, but it would have required that it be less expensive.
We lucked out with locating yet another stray one-night for a second vacation rental within half a mile of the first! The second night we had a perfect view of the boats going through the channel in Depoe Bay!
There again they were more than happy to book the one stray night!
Then the second time I again used that same strategy. We were able to book a vacation rental beach cabin, and again within our budget by locating a stray night they had not been filled.
Then too, their requirement was normally for a two night minimum, but in that they had the one stray night it was good for them, and good for us!
Another caveat to using that technique:
If you want to rent a specific place, but are not quite sure if you will like the rental, locating a stray night on their availability calendar gives you an opportunity to test drive the place for just one night, without committing to two or more!
The basic rule of thumb here applies if they have a stray night available, so be sure to ask about renting the vacation destination of your dreams for less than their normal minimum.
Most likely they'll be more than happy to rent it out to you, but they'll also perhaps want you to keep that strategy a secret!
That my friends, is also why I'm not revealing where those vacation rentals are that have made exceptions to the rule - lol. If I did that then those stray nights on their calendars might not be available any longer, if I had to compete with all of the rest of you to rent it - lol!
Also keep in mind: The closer you are to the date you need a rental, the more likely you'll be able to apply that strategy - but don't let that stop you with asking!
If you are planning your vacation a year ahead you may not find as many possible stray one-nighters to rent.
It is of course not as fun to stay anywhere for only one night, but if it's your only opportunity to get away, it's better than not getting a vacation at all!
Image is of an area of Depoe Bay, but photo was provided courtesy of Pixabay:
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| Vacation Rental Budget Strategy! |
