What Professionals Need from Lodgings

When you’re traveling on a business trip, there are two primary goals to remember. First, naturally you need to be able to perform the work tasks set out for you when the trip was planned. Working with a client, partner, or another branch of your business will require the vast majority of your focus during the day. However, in order to do this, you’ll need to fall back on the second goal which is achieving relaxation wherever you’ll be staying. Ideally, you’ll be able to get a little extra work done at the end of the day writing reports and preparing for the morning and then successfully unwind so that you get the best possible rest before the next busy day of business, travel, or both.

The Rise of Airbnb and Vacation Rentals

Airbnb comes from what has been coined as the Sharing Economy. The online service connects people with spare rooms and homes to people who need to rent a room in the area, a practice that gained the term “Vacation Rentals”. This has become astoundingly popular in a friendly low-key sort of way. Many people, especially younger professionals, clearly enjoy staying in a cozy residential space much more than a stay in a professionally impersonal hotel room. While many vacation rental rooms and homes are kept private, clean, and well stocked with hospitality items, there are also a very wide selection of unique circumstances ranging between messy attic lofts, goat ranches, and pristine unused houses.

The reason Airbnb and other vacation rental services have becoming so popular with professionals is because, unlike a hotel, a private Airbnb home is completely private. There are no crying babies two rooms over, herds of teenagers running and giggling down the halls at 3AM, or housekeeping to worry about. Not only do you have a better chance at total peace and quiet for work and relaxation, you also have everything you need including a kitchen for professionals who prefer to cook for themselves rather than live on take-out while traveling.

Vacation Rental Pros

• Cozy, beautiful, and unusual locations
  • Some of these booking sites are unique, in a variety of environments a hotel simply can’t offer
• Literal Bed and Breakfast
  • For professionals who like company and warm breakfasts, some room owners delight in sharing a huge morning meal with their guests.
• Entire Furnished Units
  • Many sellers own entire apartments and homes that they don’t personally live in and instead rent steadily through Airbnb. These are often professionally cleaned between stays. They also frequently keep the bathrooms and kitchen stocked with greater consideration than a hotel suite and much more affordable.
• Competitive Prices for Clean Rooms
  • Vacation rental owners can afford to charge less than standard hotel prices. Where you would be hard pressed to find a clean hotel room with a kitchen for less than 60 dollars a night, this is an easily met price on Airbnb for a private apartment or small home in your destination city.

The power of the sharing economy vacation rental business is undeniable, so much so that many hotels are getting nervous about this new trend stealing a great deal of their regular business. Of course, this is only the first half of our two-part article on how to choose the right lodgings for your next busienss trip. Join us next time where we’ll talk about the pros and cons of hotels and the cons of vacation rentals, of which there are modest few. If you’re interested in more sharing economy news or are looking for a great opportunity to rent out or find a parking spot, contact us today!

The post Sharing Economy Vacation Rental is the Right Lodging Choice for Your Next Business Trip? (Part 1) appeared first on ParqEx.

The best thing about peer-to-peer rentals? They are typically offered for much cheaper than the corporate alternatives. Additionally, many of the rentals acquired through the sharing economy offer something more than you might get from a big corporation. Whether that means a better view, a closer parking place, or a car with all the bells and whistles, this is a major bonus for you as a customer.

For these reasons, putting the ever-growing sharing economy to good use on your next vacation is something you should seriously consider. After all, who doesn’t appreciate paying less for a room with a bigger bed, or shelling out money for a rental car knowing they are helping out an individual instead of an enormous company that doesn’t know they exist?

So where should you take your money when you hit the road? Here are four of the very best peer-to-peer rental companies for travelers. Next time you’re ready to see a new part of the world, be sure to check them out.

Airbnb

Likely the most well known of the peer-to-peer rental companies, Airbnb (pronounced “AIR bee inn bee”) gives home owners the opportunity to rent out unused houses, apartments, and rooms to those looking for short-term rentals. Whether you need a room for a couple nights or an entire month, you are sure to find something on Airbnb.

Feeling nervous about renting from a stranger? No worries! Airbnb has set up a place for past customers to leave their review of a particular rental and renter. Be sure to read all reviews thoroughly to avoid unexpected surprises and you will be good to go!

Couchsurfing

Like Airbnb, Couchsurfing offers homeowners a chance to rent out unused space. However, Couchsurfing differs in that the space being rented is usually only a couch or bed. This means the homeowners are usually in the same house as the travelers.

For some this may seem like an awkward situation, but for others it is perfectly acceptable, and considering the fact that Couchsurfing is absolutely free, it is definitely something worth considering.

Turo

If you will be flying to your destination, you will likely need a rental car to get you from point A to point B. This is where Turo steps in.

This peer-to-peer car rental platform connects car owners with those in need of a rental car in cities all over the United States. This mean you can rent a car—which is likely sitting around unused most of the time anyway—for less money and from somebody who can really use the cash.

Turo is definitely set up to be a win-win situation for everyone involved, making it a truly wonderful business.

ParqEx

You know that rental car we mentioned above? Well, if you are visiting a big city, you will probably have trouble finding a place to park it. ParqEx has come on the scene for just this reason.

When using ParqEx, travelers just like you are able to choose from and rent a variety of convenient parking places all over the larger cities of the US. However, these parking spots aren’t just any parking spots. Instead, these parking places are owned by individuals—just like you and me—who simply don’t need to use the spot at the current moment.

Because these individuals own parking places in busy cities, they are able to share with those in need and make a bit of extra cash while they’re at it. This mean they get some spending money, you get an affordable and convenient parking spot, and the spot gets some much-needed use. What could be better than that?

Interested in learning more about how the sharing economy can help you? Please contact us today at ParqEx.

The post 4 Peer-to-Peer Companies to Use on Your Next Vacation appeared first on ParqEx.