What's new this fall and beyond for holiday rental partners

The holiday rental market doesn't stand still for long. Demand shifts quickly, traveller expectations keep rising and the pressure to drive occupancy while running efficiently never really let's up.

Staying ahead in a competitive market takes more than a great property — it takes the right tools. So this fall, we're launching a suite of new tools and enhancements for our Vrbo partners to help improve visibility, manage pricing more strategically, simplify payments and deliver smoother stays.

Shaped by conversations with partners over the past year, this release reflects the areas where the right tools can make the biggest impact — from standing out in search and filling gaps in the calendar to streamlining operations without compromising the guest experience.

Read on to find out what's launching, what it means for your business and how to get started.

Standing out in a competitive marketplace matters. Vrbo Sponsored Listings gives you a way to get premium placement at the top of search results, reaching travellers who are already searching for a property like yours.

The model is built around performance: Pay only when a booking is made, with clear reporting on performance. No upfront costs, no guesswork — just a no-risk way to test, learn and optimise over time. Partners in the pilot programme saw an average 49% booking growth and 39% revenue increase.¹

Getting started takes minutes. Whether managing a large portfolio or a single property, controls such as campaign scheduling, bid modifiers for weekdays or shoulder seasons and length-of-stay targeting make it easier to reach the right traveller at the right moment.

Pricing a holiday rental has never been one-size-fits-all. Some travellers will pay more for flexibility, while others are ready to commit early when the price is right. What the data makes clear is that promotions can directly influence booking decisions.

According to Vrbo's Built to Stay Report, promotions can influence both conversion and timing when travellers book a holiday rental.

The takeaway? Promotions aren't a race to the bottom — they're a pathway to the top. This fall introduces new ways for you to drive demand.

• Same-day bookings: Eligible partners can now opt in through Calendar Settings to start capturing last-minute demand without changing the rest of your property setup.

• Non-refundable rates: Coming soon, offer a lower-priced, non-refundable option alongside a standard refundable rate on the same listing. Travellers get more choice, while you gain more revenue certainty.

• Limited Time Offers: Coming soon, tap into major consumer shopping moments, like Black Friday and Spring Sale, with additional visibility through Vrbo-led promotional campaigns that put your listings in front of travellers who are ready to book.

• Vrbo Listings on Expedia Packages: Coming soon, holiday rentals will be bookable as part of an Expedia package alongside flights, activities and more. This gives you access to one of travel's most powerful conversion tools — travellers who plan and book their entire trip in one place.

Four tools, one goal: Fill empty nights and attract higher-intent bookings.

Cancellation policies are one of the first things travellers look at when comparing properties. If a policy feels too restrictive, the traveller may go elsewhere. The data backs that up: listings with a 5-day flexible cancellation policy drive nearly five times as many bookings, more than twice the booking value and a 34% higher conversion rate compared to those with stricter terms.³

To help close that gap, Vrbo is introducing two new policies that give travellers more confidence to book and help you stay competitive in a crowded market.

• Lenient (5-day): Full refund up to five days or more before check-in

• Day Before (1-day): Full refund up to one day or more before check-in

The booking is just the beginning. From confirmation to checkout, every interaction can directly impact reviews, repeat bookings and the overall traveller experience. New tools and improvements are making it easier for you to manage the entire process.

Welcome Guide gives you one place to manage the information guests need before arrival, including access codes, directions, check-in times, Wi-Fi details and house rules. Set it up once and that information is automatically shared with guests before arrival across web and app.

Inbox Scheduled Messages and Templates take more manual work out of guest communication. You can automate key touchpoints across the guest journey — from pre-arrival messages to post-stay review requests. And with new personalisation tags that pull details straight from the Welcome Guide, sharing the right information with guests is easier than ever.

Together, these tools don't just make operations easier — they make the guest experience more consistent. And consistency is what builds the kind of reputation that fills calendars.

The holiday rental market moves quickly. Staying competitive means having tools that help drive demand, simplify day-to-day operations and create better guest experiences.

These updates are designed to help you take action where it matters most: attracting the right bookings, managing operations more efficiently and creating smoother stays from search to arrival. Explore the tools highlighted here to see which opportunities make the most sense for your business today.