22/10/2026
🚨 ATTENTION TRAVELERS! PLEASE READ BEFORE BOOKING YOUR NEXT VACATION RENTAL!
This is an important message for everyone who travels and believes that all vacation rentals are called “Airbnbs.”
Yes, I’m talking to YOU—the traveler who says, “We booked an Airbnb for our vacation!”
Let me explain something that the vacation rental industry desperately needs travelers to understand.
Airbnb is NOT a type of vacation rental. It is a BOOKING PLATFORM!
Just like Travelocity is a platform for booking airline tickets. When you book a flight through Travelocity, you don’t say you’re flying Travelocity. You say you’re flying Delta, American, United, or whichever airline is actually providing your transportation.
The same is true for vacation rentals!
You are staying in someone’s privately owned home, cabin, condo, or luxury vacation property. Airbnb is simply one of the middlemen connecting you to that property.
As someone who spent years building and operating a successful vacation rental business, managing 30 homes, I have watched this industry evolve firsthand.
And I have reached a point where I can no longer remain silent.
Airbnb built its enormous success on the backs of hardworking property owners, hosts, housekeeping teams, and loyal travelers.
Yet, in my experience, the company has increasingly imposed policies and fees that place an unfair burden on the very people who helped build its success.
My concerns are serious:
* Property owners can be exposed to tremendous financial risk involving their personal investments.
* Hosts and guests face substantial platform fees that increase the overall cost of a vacation.
* Fee structures and policies can negatively affect the earnings of hardworking housekeeping teams.
* Hosts have less control over policies affecting their own properties.
* These added expenses ultimately contribute to higher rental rates for travelers.
In some situations, the total cost to travelers can be significantly higher—potentially as much as 30%—compared with booking directly. Actual savings vary by property and platform.
I believe some of these practices have become excessive, unfair, and increasingly controlling.
That is why I have made a personal business decision: I will not offer Airbnb as a booking option for my vacation rental property moving forward.
I refuse to allow a third-party booking platform to have that level of control over my investment, my business, my team, or the guests I work so hard to serve.
❤️ HERE IS WHAT I WANT EVERY TRAVELER TO KNOW:
BOOK DIRECT WHENEVER POSSIBLE!
When planning your next vacation, search for vacation rental companies and independently owned properties in the destination you’re visiting.
You can still use Airbnb, Vrbo, and other platforms to discover properties. Look for the property name or management company, then search online to see whether that property has an official direct-booking website.
Always verify that you’re dealing with the legitimate owner or management company, compare the complete price, and review the cancellation policies before paying.
Direct booking can mean fewer fees, better communication, more personalized service, and sometimes substantial savings.
And here’s something else worth remembering:
The person who owns and cares for that vacation home is the person who has the greatest investment in making your stay exceptional.
Behind many of these beautiful properties are families, small-business owners, housekeepers, maintenance professionals, and local communities whose livelihoods depend on this industry.
They deserve your support, and travelers deserve transparency about where their money is going.
I am not opposed to technology or booking platforms. I am opposed to business practices that, in my opinion, take advantage of the people providing the actual hospitality.
Vacation rentals existed long before Airbnb, and they will continue to exist without it!
📣 PLEASE HELP EDUCATE OTHER TRAVELERS!
Copy and paste this post. Share it with your friends and family. Help people understand the difference between a vacation rental and the platform used to book it.
And the next time someone tells you they booked an Airbnb, remind them:
“You booked a VACATION RENTAL through Airbnb. There’s a difference!”
Let’s bring the focus back to the property owners, the people providing the hospitality, and the guests who deserve a wonderful vacation at a fair price.
BOOK SMART. BOOK SAFE. BOOK DIRECT.
