The Ultimate Guide to Google Vacation Rentals

Millions of travelers use the Google search engine when making travel plans, from researching where to go and what to do to booking flights and accommodations. With Google searches for ‘beach rentals’ and ‘staycations’ having grown by more than 100% globally, the search giant combined hotels and short-term rentals into google.com/travel in 2021. The launch of Google Vacation Rentals via the ‘Vacation Rentals’ filter in 2023 now allows users to access short-term vacation rentals even more easily and provides property managers access to travelers worldwide.

How Does Google Vacation Rentals Work?

Strictly speaking, Google Vacation Rentals is not an online travel agency (OTA) like Airbnb or Vrbo. Unlike OTAs, Google does not handle the booking process directly, nor does it charge commission fees. Instead, it serves as a metasearch engine that displays vacation rental listings within Google Search, Google Maps and Google Travel to help travelers find accommodations that suit their needs.

When a potential guest searches for a vacation rental property in a specific destination, Google presents a dedicated Vacation Rentals tab that showcases relevant listings. These results include essential details such as:

• Property images and descriptions

• Nightly rates and availability

• Guest reviews and ratings

• A direct link to the owner’s website or a connected partner platform

Instead of processing the booking, Google redirects interested travelers to your direct booking website or an OTA listing that you’ve connected to Google. This allows property managers and rental owners to increase direct bookings, reduce OTA fees and have greater control over pricing and policies.

By leveraging Google Vacation Rentals, you can improve your property’s visibility, attract more potential guests and generate more bookings without relying entirely on third-party platforms.

Why You Should List Your Short-Term Rental Property on Google Vacation Rentals

Global exposure

The worldwide reach through search results and the use of Google by travelers can lead to you attracting more international travelers, broadening your customer base and increasing revenue.

Millions of travelers use Google Search daily to find accommodations and being featured in search results ensures that your rental is visible to a broad audience. This exposure increases your chances of attracting international travelers, expanding your customer base and ultimately boosting your bookings and revenue.

Better guest fit

When travelers search for vacation rental properties on Google, they can easily compare prices, amenities and availability before making a booking. This transparency helps you attract guests who align with what your rental offers, leading to higher guest satisfaction and better reviews. Well-matched travelers are more likely to have a positive stay, reducing cancellations and ensuring repeat bookings.

No fees

One of the biggest advantages of Google Vacation Rentals is that Google does not charge a commission for bookings originating from a Google Search. Unlike OTAs, which can take 15-20% of your revenue, listing on Google allows you to keep more of your earnings. This means lower costs for property owners and more competitive pricing for potential guests.

Operational control

By integrating your direct booking website with Google Vacation Rentals, you retain full control over your rental operations. You manage pricing, policies and guest interactions without interference from third-party platforms. This direct integration not only ensures a smoother booking process but also enhances the guest experience, encouraging more bookings and positive reviews.

By leveraging Google Vacation Rentals, you can maximize your rental’s visibility, secure direct bookings and grow your vacation rental business—all while avoiding high third-party fees and maintaining complete control over your property.

Google Vacation Rentals: Everything You Need to Know

The filters

The ‘Vacation Rental' meta-search on Google is a meta-search tool on the search engine that allows those looking for holiday vacation rentals on google to compare properties through the filters listed below:

• Location: Guests can opt to pick a country or narrow it down to towns and cities

• Date: To and from

• Number of travelers

• Price

• Guest rating

• Rooms: Number of bedrooms and bathrooms

• Amenities: Guests can pick from a list of amenities they prioritize such as kid-friendly, air-conditioned, free Wi-Fi, etc.

• Lodging type: Examples of lodging types include, houses, apartments, villas, etc.

This popular search engine this option is listed alongside the likes of ‘flights' and ‘things to do' giving vacationers the ability to plan their entire holidays by themselves.

The meta-search page

Here is a picture of what users can expect when using Google's Vacation Rental filter. In some regions, this may make vacation rental listings show as Holiday Rentals instead.

Above is a search for vacation rentals in Milwaukee. On the left is a list of properties (with information like the number of bedrooms, number of guests and pricing) based on the filters applied and on the right is a map of the properties throughout the city with nightly rates.

The property page

Unlike a listing on Airbnb, Google's design removes all the bells and whistles, giving users the information directly.

The landing page consists of:

• Overview

• Prices

• Reviews

• Location (The exact location is not provided due to Google's privacy policy.)

• About

• Photos

Each feature has its own tab that users can browse through before making key decisions.

How to List on Google Vacation Rentals

1. List through an OTA

Google allows you to connect through some OTAs like TripAdvisor. But this means you still have to pay that OTA's commission fee.

2. List directly

You can list directly with Google if you manage over 5,000 properties.

3. List through a connectivity partner

With a Google connectivity partner, you can easily connect Google vacation rental listings for your chosen listing to Google Vacation Rentals.

Maximize Your Property's Visibility and Profitability with Google Vacation Rentals and Hostaway

Google Vacation Rentals is a unique platform for property managers to own vacation rental properties and gain international exposure and a new revenue stream. The lack of a fee and the ability to direct traffic to your direct booking website makes it an even more profitable option. With the leading vacation rental software platform and Google connectivity partner Hostaway, you can quickly and easily build a vacation rental website and connect it to Google Vacation Rentals, while enjoying the operational streamlining and seamless connectivity of the property management platform.