Vacation Rentals .... Ever Done It and How to Find One That's Nice.

We rent beach houses all the time along the shores of Galveston, Rockport, Corpus Christie and Padre Island. If they are anything like the ones in FL and you don't mind spending the money, then I suggest going for something more recently built, as it won't be so worn down by other renters. Find one in a less populated area. You don't need one with a private beach but see ifyou can find one that doesn't allow public access. I also recommend a porch big enough to dine on or for the kids to play on, and beach access by foot. As far as the house itself, you'll want one with full kitchen, housekeeping services and no carpet!

I've used VRBO a number of times and always had a good experience, no problems. Sometimes, property rental companies list homes on VRBO and I've used some of them with good results, too.

Renting directly with an owner on VRBO can get you a better place at lower cost since they don't have to pay a prop mgmt co. But since you are dealing with an owner, usually out of town, and not a professional, if there are any problems like a lock out, they may not get back to help you right away. My experience with owners is that they are nice, open-minded and flexible. And they expect you to be that way, too.

Property mgmt companies have more rules and are more rigid about them. But that can be good since they are clear about what you are paying for and what is expected of you, like putting out the trash or leaving a key deposit. Check with local real estate companies. Some of them do nightly rentals or can refer to you a company that does.

One way I begin my search in an unfamiliar area is to go online and find 3-4 property mgmt companies that do nightly rentals there. Since they have office hours and experiences reservationists, I call them by phone and ask to speak to someone for a consultation. I ask questions about the area, prices, neighborhoods and recommendations for a family with kids. This gives me a feel for that company, and it helps me narrow my search to homes and neighborhoods that will work for me. Then I can go to their website and read up on the houses they've recommended, and make a more informed choice.

VRBO has worked for us several times! You can put what criteria you are looking for and find places that way.

We have gotten places in Destin and Cape San Blast. The problem we have found with Destin is that there are so many huge sky scrapper condos, so houses on the beach were virtually impossible to find. But if you want a condo...it'll be easy to find some place.

We like Cape San Blast MUCH more than Destin. It was less touristy. And there was lots of wildlife. We spent our mornings and evenings watching dolphins play. On our morning walks we watched sting rays race along the shore. It was also a habitat for sea turtle breeding.

There are LOTS of ways to search and yes, it can get very overwhelming! One way we have searched (when we went to CO in 2008 ) was VRBO (vacation rental by owner) This brings up condos/homes for rent in the area you are looking.

Give that a try...and as you start to look, you'll find all kinds of other sites to navigate too...read other renters "reviews" to know if the place is good or not. Best of luck!

There are plenty of companies that do vacation rentals here in FL. I would pick a few homes that you are interested in and start reading the reviews from the people that have already stayed there. My area is filled with vacation rentals and most of the reviews are accurate.

Try a Google search for short term vacation rentals in Destin, FL.

Hi D.,

My husband and I took our three year old little boy to the Destin area last year for the first time and we loved it! I did a lot of research on Destin and all the surrounding beach towns. We ended up choosing to stay in Seaside - specifically at Watercolor Resort (which is down the street from Seaside). We flew Southwest Airlines to Panama City Beach and then rented a car - about a 30 minute drive.

We really liked the Seaside area as it's very quaint and so charming. It doesn't have the big highrises that Destin has - Seaside has adorable pastel colored cottages and beautiful homes. It also has a lovely town square with restaurants and shops. You'll probably pay a little more to stay in Seaside than you would Destin but we found that it was worth it.

We decided on Watercolor as they were offering a 50% discount at the time so we got a gorgeous room overlooking the ocean for $200 per night which included a delicious breakfast each morning. We also had free bike rentals daily which was a lot of fun! Watercolor is right on the beach and has several pools. If you'd rather stay in a cottage or house, I'd check out Seaside through VRBO.com.

We fell in love with the area and plan to make it an annual trip! I'm not sure when you're planning on going but I did hear the summer months are rather crowded and the wait times to get into a restaurant can be long for kids. Plus, the rates will be higher as that's their busy season. We went in October and it was beautiful weather, no crowds, no wait at the restaurants, etc. I think we're planning to go in the summer this year so we'll have to be prepared for it to be busier.

Thanks! L.

Check out VRBO.com. Stands for Vacation Rental by Owner. We've had good luck. Usually the pictures tell a good story of what it's like and the prices are really good. You can sort by the number of bedrooms and it goes from 2 all the way up to 7 or 8 bedrooms. We've found it to be a good way to save money on vacation since we buy all our own groceries. Of course, you then have to cook!

We have used www.resortquest.com with much success.

We also have successfully rented through www.vrbo.com or www.gretrentals.com or www.homeaway.com

Check out Resort Quest--they have rentals in Destin and everything we've rented through them has been awesome and exactly as pictured on their site.
Decide what you need: # of bedrooms, house or condo, pool, oceanfront, etc and let that help you narrow it down. Good luck!

We've also used VRBO and had success.