The Nightly Rate: Daily Vacation Rental News
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Spain's Summer Rental Rates Jump 18.5% as Listings Shrink 11%
Short-term rental daily rates in Spain climbed 18.5% this summer as the number of active listings fell 11%, a squeeze tied to the country's license crackdown.
Vrbo Adds Pay-Later Booking, A Year Behind Airbnb
Vrbo now lets guests reserve a rental without paying upfront, matching a feature Airbnb rolled out last year to cut booking abandonment.
Wyndham Adds Vacation Rentals to Its Hotel Loyalty Program
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has rolled out Homes & Havens, a collection of professionally managed vacation rentals that members of its Wyndham Rewards program can now book and earn points on.
OTAs UpdatesGlobal
Airbnb Masks Phone Numbers, Cutting Off a Host Rebooking Tool
Airbnb will route calls and texts between large hosts and guests through temporary numbers, closing a channel property managers have used to move renters off the platform.
Occupancy, Not Rate Hikes, Drives US Rental Revenue Gains
Short-term rental revenue per available listing is running ahead of last year through the close of 2026, with more nights booked doing most of the work rather than higher nightly rates, according to Key Data.
RegulationsGlobal
Airbnb Sets November 20 Deadline for Checkout Chore Limits
Airbnb's restrictions on what hosts can ask departing guests to do take effect for any reservation booked from November 20, 2026, pushing turnover cleaning costs back onto hosts.
OTAs UpdatesGlobal
Airbnb Bans Long Chore Lists and Fees Added After Booking
Airbnb has tightened its Host Standards to cap checkout tasks and stop hosts from tacking on charges guests never saw before they booked.
RegulationsGlobal
Airbnb Narrows What Hosts Can Ask Guests to Do at Checkout
Airbnb has tightened its checkout rules again, cutting the chores hosts can require guests to do before they leave, and hosts say it is pushing cleaning costs back onto them.
OTAs UpdatesGlobal
Airbnb's Amex Exclusive Shuts a Door Vrbo Was Opening
Airbnb's exclusive short-term rental tie-up with American Express Travel also locks Expedia's Vrbo out of a wholesale booking channel it had only just started supplying.
Vacation Rental News by Region
View all US →Vrbo Adds Pay-Later Booking, A Year Behind Airbnb
Vrbo now lets guests reserve a rental without paying upfront, matching a feature Airbnb rolled out last year to cut booking abandonment.
Occupancy, Not Rate Hikes, Drives US Rental Revenue Gains
Short-term rental revenue per available listing is running ahead of last year through the close of 2026, with more nights booked doing most of the work rather than higher nightly rates, according to Key Data.
Amex Premium Cardholders Can Now Spend Hotel Credits on Airbnb Luxe
American Express has folded Airbnb's search engine into Amex Travel, letting Platinum and Centurion cardholders redeem their annual lodging credits on Airbnb Luxe properties for the first time.
Frequently asked questions
What is The Nightly Rate, and who is it for?
The Nightly Rate is a daily vacation rental news publication written for professional short-term rental operators and property managers. Each night it covers industry news and deals, OTA updates from Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, short-term rental regulations and licensing, market data on occupancy, ADR and RevPAR, and the technology hosts run their portfolios on.
What is a vacation rental, and how is it different from a long-term rental?
A vacation rental - also called a short-term rental (STR) - is a furnished home, apartment or cabin let to guests for short stays, typically fewer than 30 consecutive nights, priced per night and managed by the owner or a property manager. Unlike a long-term tenancy, it is booked through platforms such as Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo or a direct site, includes hospitality services like cleaning and guest communication, and is usually regulated as a separate activity with its own licensing, tax and night-cap rules.
What does OTA mean in vacation rentals, and which OTAs matter most?
OTA stands for Online Travel Agency: a booking platform that lists inventory from many hosts, takes the reservation and charges a commission. For vacation rentals the OTAs that drive most third-party demand are Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, with Expedia and Google Vacation Rentals relevant in some markets.
What are ADR, occupancy and RevPAR in vacation rentals, and how are they calculated?
ADR (Average Daily Rate) is accommodation revenue divided by booked nights. Occupancy is booked nights divided by available nights. RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Rental) is accommodation revenue divided by available nights, or ADR multiplied by occupancy.
What is a direct booking in vacation rentals, and why do hosts want more of them?
A direct booking is a reservation made through the operator's own website or channels instead of a third-party OTA. Hosts want more of them to avoid OTA commission, own the guest relationship and reduce exposure to platform policy changes.
How are vacation rentals regulated, and what rules typically apply?
Vacation rental (short-term rental) regulation typically covers registration or permitting, licensing conditions, annual night caps and tourist or occupancy taxes, with the specific thresholds set city by city and revised often.
What is dynamic pricing for vacation rentals, and how does it work?
Dynamic pricing adjusts a rental's nightly rate continuously in response to demand signals such as booking pace, competitor rates, lead time, day of week, seasonality and local events, aiming to lift ADR when demand is strong and protect occupancy when it is soft.