Works for Me Wednesday: Vacation Homes
We are huge fans of vacation homes. It all began on our honeymoon. We opted to travel to Sunriver, Oregon, a beautiful vacation resort in Central Oregon. We rented a home and enjoyed a week of relaxation and privacy. Once we had our daughters we travel there every year if possible. The benefits far outweigh any negative when it comes to renting a home vs. a hotel.
2) The room to spread out is much larger. Everyone can have their own space when needed. T.V.s' often abound if kids want to watch a movie and dad wants to watch sports and mom wants to watch a cooking show. The kids have their own room to play in. Our girls love making forts.
3) You don't have to worry about going out to eat everyday. We simply include our grocery budget and I cook the meals we want, which are usually healthier than going out to eat. Most homes come with fully equipped kitchens (especially if going with a private owner)
4) We can invite guests to come with us, which allows for even more fun.
5) Most homes come with bikes, BBQ's, games, sometimes pool tables, or ping pong tables, etc..If it is in a resort community there are usually pool and tennis passes.
6) You can go as small or as large as you'd like depending on your budget.
How we make it work:
1) In the past we have gone with local real estate companies who manage vacation rentals, which works and often they will have a stay 4, pay for 2 deals.
2) We found that a home rented by a private owner has been the best deal for us. We've stayed with a particular home for years and they give us an amazing deal. Building relationship with an owner is a good thing. We treat the home as though it were our own. I do tend to like staying in different homes, but we just can't beat the price we get. We do take our youth group seniors once a year and then we stay in a variety of homes.
3) Save! I know some people think it's so expensive to stay in a home, but if you save throughout the year, it will be fine. Plus figure in all your costs for eating out, entertainment, peace, etc...and I think it's worth it.
4) Some sites we've looked at for rentals... http://www.greatrentals.com/, http://www.vrbo.com/, those are two that we have used.
So, next vacation, give this a thought.
With Joy UNquenchable,
That's a great tip! We did the same thing when traveling to Arkansas and then to Tybee Island, GA. What fun!
ReplyDeleteSunRiver is wonderful!! But, that's an aside. We've stayed a few different places with kitchens and it really does help the budget tremendously- If it has a washer/dryer, that's a nice bonus!
ReplyDeleteHi Kirsten, this was fun to read because I grew up over at Sunriver. It is, too, one of our favorite get-a-ways with our family and we make it over there about 3 times per year (sometimes 4). The photos on our walk (last post) were in SR.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we'll meet up there one day.
Sandy
My family is long overdue for a vacation! I do have a few other friends that rent private homes and they say its great!
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Robin
We often rent houses or cabins when we go on holidays. We find that houses will often sleep six or more, but holiday apartments and hotels usually don't.
ReplyDeleteWe usually self-cater too, with perhaps one dinner out, as feeding six can cost a fortune. I often cook a few things ahead of time and take them frozen to our venue; then at least I feel I am having a break too.
Kate