In the last twenty years we have seen a huge rise in the number f people who are renting private spaces when they travel rather than booking hotels. I can remember back in 2013 when I was traveling through Europe with my good mate Javier Burillo and that was the first time that we looked into private accommodation because of the emergence of AirBnb that year. Private rentals have gone crazy in recent years and there are many reasons why they offer a far better way to travel than to stay in hotels, and these are just a handful of them.
Cooking
One of the biggest reasons that I enjoy staying in my own private place is that you almost always get a kitchen which means that you can save money on dining out. What I generally enjoy doing when I travel is to eat out once, or perhaps twice per day and then enjoy a snack which I’ve made at the rental on the other occasions. When you are staying in a hotel you don’t have this option and eating out is all that you can do, costly and at times, something that you may not wish to do.
Homely
I appreciate that for some, staying in a hotel gets them excited becasue they feel like they are really on holiday, but I enjoy that home away from home feel much more. There is just something nicer about coming home at the end of a long day experiencing things, and being able to relax in a living room before heading to the kitchen for a drink, and then walking to your bedroom. That homely feel really enhances the vacation for me.
Groups
When you are traveling as a group the only way to do things is with a big private rental, as hotel rooms would just break things up too much. This is not just about sleeping arrangements either, the communal and social side of traveling with a group is much better when you look to a private rental rather than a hotel. Gatherings, meal times and of course sleeping arrangements, all of which are made far better if you are in a private rental rather than a hotel.
Kids
Kids can be very demanding in terms of their requirements around sleeping and eating, and if you are traveling with kids then a private rental will always be the smartest move. Having a private rental just gives you that flexibility which you need, that a hotel cannot, and it does make traveling with children infinitely easier. Whether you need to make a quick snack for them, allow them to play whilst you are doing something else or even letting them have a nap and you still being able to enjoy yourself, having the private rental gives you way more scope to do these things than a hotel will.
Why not give it a try the next time that you go on vacation?
