When I see a blank calendar, I think the same as I do when I see an empty restaurant
parking lot.....there is something wrong!
I like websites that allow you to search for availability. If owners don't use a
calendar, or do but don't keep it updated, they are at the bottom of my list. It
frustrates me to use sites that do not offer date searches when I have a specific
date to travel. Going into each listing, clicking the availability calendar and
seeing that, although it's been listed for three years, there are no reserved dates
makes me think someone may not doing their job or is lazy. I do not like to inquire
across the board; I really like to narrow it down.
Personally, if there are enough options to choose from that have calendars, I won't
even look at those without ..
You try to make the search easier for vacationers by providing "search by availability,"
but if owners do not have a calendar, or do not keep it up to date it's useless.
Convenience and customer service is the name of the game in this day and age.
If you don't have a calendar, or it doesn't appear you update it, you go on the
bottom of my list. If I'm traveling on certain dates without flexibility, I don't
want to take up my time or the owner's time. If there are only certain days I can
travel, I don't bother with sites like VRBO, where I can't search by availability.
I don't have time to view 50 listings which may or may not have availability calendars.
I do realize there are reasons for not providing a calendar, but I don't feel it's
in the best interest of the vacationers.
We take 7 or 8 trips each year. If the calendar is empty, that says to me either
they are desperate to fill dates, or they have not bothered to update the calendar
(when is the last time they bothered to scrub the tub?), which gives me an uneasy
feeling about the way a property is managed and maintained. I immediately move on.
If I see an empty or out of date calendar, I either think that they are internet-clueless
and don't keep their site up (which means they probably won't e-mail me promptly
either), or there's something wrong with the place that it isn't rented. I want
to see a calendar that's accurate. I don't have time to waste, especially when there
can be hundreds of vacation rentals in a place like Florida. I've had many people
call me and tell me they'd spent HOURS on-line trying to find the right place.
As I was planning a vacation, the big thing for me was finding places available
on the dates I needed. I started by looking at prices and what I needed, but it
came down to X had an opening for this date and it was within our price range and
had everything we needed. I could not have found it without the availability calendar.
I found a few that had a calendar but did not update it. It's frustrating to find
the place you want and find out it's already booked.
Homeowners' Comments about the calendar
I view the Internet as a place you can go to get accurate information without having
to contact someone.
As an owner I can see both sides of the calendar issue, but how I've felt as a user
is completely different. I just think us owners, as a whole, need to think more
of the online rental and booking process from a user's prospective.
As an owner, I can see the appeal of not having to keep up a calendar (I recently
started another vacation rental so now am managing two), but if it makes things
easier for my guests, I'm doing it.
The majority of callers who haven't searched by date are the last-minute prayerful,
hoping for a July 4th cancellation . . . or a family hoping for a big discount.
Using a calendar cuts my inquiries by about one-half, reducing my workload, but
still leaves me with very meaningful totals.
Our guests seem to check availability and then call with questions or to book.
I truly believe that, for some vacation rental shoppers, the "empty calendar" is
indicative of a vacation rental's lack of popularity. I keep mine up to date.
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