Endless Vacation Rentals: an alternative to the hotel room | Travel Research Online

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Endless Vacation Rentals: an alternative to the hotel room

The economy is in a decided slump. The dollar is dwindling against most world currencies. Yet, consumers are still traveling; but, more and more often they are looking for more value for their travel dollar. One of the largest growing segments in the travel industry is apartment and villa rentals. And for agents looking to offer quality properties and value to their clients, Endless Vacation Rentals® may be just the answer.

Endless Vacation Rentals® is a subsidiary of Wyndham Worldwide, one of the industry giants.  With obvious inventories from Wyndham Worldwide network, they also have strategic partnerships to offer homes, resorts, hotels, and villa rentals worldwide – over 200,000 vacation rentals in 100+ countries.

Last week, I was speaking with Richard Ruff, Senior VP and General Manager of Endless Vacation Rentals® and I was very surprised (maybe even shocked) to learn exactly how far this company reaches—particularly in Europe where the dollar is being hammered. They have access to properties managed by Wyndham European Home & Villas, Novosol, Holiday Cottage Group, and Cuendet Italian Villas. With Italy being such a popular destination for the past several years (and looking forward to 2009), Endless Vacation Rentals® is a “must check” for any agent. In addition to a large presence in Europe, they have a huge presence in US, Canada, Mexico and most Caribbean islands.

While the bulk of their rentals are designed for one week or longer stays, they are working on a program that will allow your clients to book certain properties for as few as two nights. It is not available yet, but definitely in the works.

Of course one of my questions was about agent support; and Endless Vacation Rentals® does indeed support agents with generous commission levels. They have been around for four years and currently have about 20,000 agents registered with them and that number is growing.  To register, visit http://travelagents.wyndham-vacations.com/ and get started. The booking engine is very simple and displays real time availability and once logged in, it is a three step process to secure your client’s lodging. It can’t be any simpler. It is also a great resource if you just need to research a property or a particular area. If you have a problem, or need a little more information, the company provides call center support with trained vacation guides to handle any questions you may have.

When I asked Richard what it was that set Endless Vacation Rentals® apart from either a traditional wholesaler or a timeshare provider he explained their marketing campaign. “Our marketing campaign is to ‘Vacation Outside the Box’, with a typical hotel room being the box. What sets us apart is the wide selection of properties. We are a one stop shop and cover more areas in Europe than most. And the bonus for the value conscious client is that most of our accommodations come with one or more bedrooms and usually kitchen facilities or a full kitchen. This is a huge value to families and friends traveling together. And for the agents, what sets us apart is the wide selection of properties that they can book online with real time confirmation.”

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