5 Vacation Rentals Business Success Stories [2023]
Vacation rentals host travelers for a short period. Often located in top vacation destinations, vacation rentals feature spacious rooms and a cozy lifestyle and are cheaper than booking a hotel.
Building or buying a vacation rental is a smart way of creating a passive income without much involvement in the business.
To make money through the vacation rental business, ensure a strategic location, often nearby attractions. Choose an area that is easily accessible and desirable all year round and create a beautiful space for your guests.
Stand out by optimizing the vacation rental listing online and featuring all available amenities.
Here are some real life success stories of starting a vacation rentals business:
1. Cardiff Vacations ($150K/year)
Julio Sanchez (from Cardiff) started Cardiff Vacations about 12 years ago.
My name is Julio Sanchez, and together with my wife Alison we are the proud owners at Cardiff Vacations. We own three beautiful vacation rentals in Cardiff by-the-Sea, California. The Penthouse, the Parkhouse, and the Seacottage have been in the family for quite some time. Alison’s parents have built the duplex, what is now the Parkhouse and Penthouse when they moved here as a young family back in 1978 and this is the home where Alison grew up.
Each year we welcome around 3k people. Only 2020 has been a bit slower on business due to the pandemic restrictions. Hopefully, next year will bring us some good news and business will be closer to normal.
2. Tiny Away ($3.54M/year)
Jeff Yeo (from New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania) started Tiny Away over 6 years ago.
Hi! My name is Jeff and I am one of the three co-founders of Tiny Away (a Big Tiny hospitality management subsidiary, which is also co-founded by us). The Tiny Away network includes a range of comfy eco-friendly ‘tiny houses’ for travelers seeking alternative and unique accommodation experiences. Having already grown to over 75 private locations across New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia & Queensland, Tiny Away offers adventurous road-trippers and weekenders the chance to immerse themselves in Australia’s, without compromising on comfort.
On average, we are taking in about $156,000 monthly in terms of rental revenue, not including the other streams of income, as Tiny Away is a subsidiary of Big Tiny which owns the entire tiny house ecosystem from designing to manufacturing, shipping, assembly, deployment, management, and after-sales service.
Learn more about starting a vacation rentals business:
Where to start?
-> How much does it cost to start a vacation rentals business?
-> Pros and cons of a vacation rentals business
Need inspiration?
-> Examples of established vacation rentals business
-> Vacation rentals business Instagram bios
-> Vacation rentals business Instagram captions
Other resources
4. StayFi ($960K/year)
Arthur Colker (from New York, NY, USA) started StayFi over 4 years ago.
My name is Arthur Colker and I am the Founder and CEO of StayFi. StayFi is a WiFi marketing and management company for professional short-term rental operators.
Here is an example of what one of our splash pages looks like that greets every guest in a vacation rental property:
Hey! 👋 I'm Pat Walls, the founder of Starter Story.
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