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If I see an empty or out of date calendar, I either think that they are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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