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Dear Editor,
 Together with my husband, Marcus and friend Randy Bonds we purchased our first piece of real estate in Playa del Carmen over two years ago. We were desperate to find someone to manage and market our property in our little vacation destination. Through trial and error and not much luck at all, we decided instead to embark on what would become our craziest adventure to date; pack up, move and do it ourselves.
 From our “plush” home in Scottsdale Arizona we packed up all of our belongings, said good-bye to our friends and family and headed south to Playa del Carmen, Mexico to open our first international real estate and property management company. Now with over 50 properties in Playa del Carmen, a wonderful manager and a staff of over 15, BRIC International LLC has become the leading property management company in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
 At the time, however, despite having no contacts, no Spanish language ability whatsoever and only one property to rent (our own), we were desperately looking for our break. We found our advantage in advertising with your HomeAway network. Over the course of 6 months we had so many people asking us to manage their properties, that we actually turned a lot of business away because we could not get staffing fast enough.
 Through our advertising on HomeAway (which is the only advertising we do), we receive an unbelievable amount of inquiries and subsequently maintain higher than average occupancy rates for our owners.
Marcus and Kristin Roehmer
Dear Laura,
Imagine sleeping in a cabana with the sliding door open in Hawaii. Waves are crashing against a rocky shore. Then during the day, you can walk a few feet to a private cove to swim with sea turtles. This is the real Hawaii where you get to meet the wonderful Polynesian people who live far from the glitz of Waikiki.
 Then imagine staying in a guest room with a private entrance on the windward side of Oahu. You have all the comforts of home, along with a beautiful swimming pool, that you only have to share with the gracious young couple who owns the house. You walk to a sandy beach, and there isn't another person in sight – because it is only accessible to locals and savvy vacationers like you.
Now think about the fact that we found both of these pearls on VRBO for less than $100 per night.
That is just the beginning.
We have stayed in a two-bedroom house on a very old working farm in Ireland just outside Waterford. That cost less than $400 for a week.
That same vacation we took advantage of low airfares that are unavailable in the US, $35 each from London to Cork and about the same from London to Venice.
In Venice we paid a little more – $119 per night for a 3 bedroom 2 bath apartment, less than 20 yards to the Grand Canal, and 100 yards from the Rialto Bridge.
 We have stayed in a 2-bedroom Cottage South of London with easy access by train for less than $500 for a week.
Most recently, I took a Golf vacation with my son in Scotland. We stayed in a 2-bedroom apartment, overlooking the Irish Sea with the lighthouse at Turnbury in the distance outside our living room window. The best part was we were walking distance from 4 different golf courses and the train station. With our ScotRail passes, we were able go to St, Andrews, Canoustie and spend hours exploring Edinburgh. That stay was less than $500 for 10 days.
There are two ways to find deals like this and we have done it both ways. First plan months in advance. Be flexible about your destination if you want to find the very best deals. Plan on spending several hours in front of the computer contacting VRBO members for availability.
The second way is to book at the last minute. Even in the most popular destinations you can find cancellations and when the time gets close, renters are often willing to reduce the price to get the booking.
There is hardly a week that goes by that I don't recommend VRBO to friends and the people I do business with.
Sincerely,
Ken Leonard
Forney, TX
 I've used your site three times for vacation rentals in Hilton Head. I've been very pleased with the whole process! The postings are very informative, the owners have all been very accomodating and easy to work with, and most of all, the villas we have rented were fantastic! I recommend your site to everyone I know, either for finding a vacation rental or for posting their own rentals!! I am hoping to purchase one of my own in 2007 and will be putting my property on here. Thanks!! Great SITE!!!
Belenda Hatch Brown
Thanks so much for the newsletter! I just love your site and so far all the owners that I have rented from.
Stephanie Sousa
Great newsletter - keep up the good work!
EM
Dear Sirs:
 I was very surprised and happy to see your advertisement on-line. We were introduced to VRBO over three years ago and have nothing but wonderful things to say about it.
Our first rental was in Sun River, Oregon last May. I had found out about VRBO the year before when I stayed with my college reunion girlfriends, one of whom had found the home through VRBO.
I rented last May for another "girlfriend" reunion, and the home was exceptional!
I rented a home in La Paz, Mexico this past June for my husband's 60th birthday through VRBO. We stayed two weeks and another couple was with us for one of those weeks. We had an incredible time...fishing, eating, swimming in the pool  and relaxing in the Jacuzzi. Aero California was not in business at the time, so we had La Paz practically to ourselves.
I will be renting through VRBO for a home next summer. We will be taking our 13-year-old grandson on his 13th Birthday Trip. We have seven grandchildren and they each get a 13-year-old trip and a 16-year-old trip. I'm researching that now and am leaning towards a Mexico trip...not sure exactly which part, yet.
Thank you so much for this wonderful service.
Sincerely,
Patricia A. Getz
 Hi from Debbie in Tualatin, Oregon. This summer we took the family to Europe and South Africa, and found great flats from VRBO for Paris and London. The locations were awesome, the flats were compact but worked great for our 2 teen sons and us. Both were two bedrooms.
Only thing we would recommend to other travelers is if you are going in the hottest time of summer to France, for example, find out how many fans come with the flat, or if there is air. There was an above average heat wave in July, 2006 in Paris when we were there.
We walked each morning 3 blocks to one of the best open markets in Paris!!! It was a lifetime trip for my family and we highly recommend checking out VRBO for lodging.
Debbie Wightman
We had the best vacation in years! Rented a house at the California Delta - only an hour from our house - had the best vacation ever! Thanks VRBO -- couldn't have done it without you!
Lisa West
HomeAway Traveler – What a great idea. This allows people the chance to see the actual areas they may choose to rent.
Nanci Olgren
HI,
 I just wanted to let you know that my husband and I used VRBO to organize a five week holiday in the Rockies this past fall and had great success with our 'homes' along the way.
We live in Peterborough Ontario, and were travelling with friends from Formby England, who flew to Calgary airport on September 8, 2006 (we had driven from Ontario to meet them). We took them to our VRBO condo in Canmore and they were thrilled to have a luxourious 2 bedroom condo to use for a week as we explored the Banff/Lake Louise area.
And thrill of all thrills, we had a huge snowfall on our last night, and woke to a breathtaking winter wonderland like they had never seen.
From Canmore we visited Virginia City, Montana, Yellowstone Park, and went on to Utah, where we had another great condo in Park City. The view from our window was marvellous, and we were situated in a shopping area, so it was actually very convenient.
The parks in Utah are not to be missed - they are so awesome. On then to Las Vegas for three nights and then Flagstaff for our last condo, which was newly decorated and convenient to everything we needed.
We finished the five week holiday with the Albuquerque Hot Air Balloon Festival and this was an amazing spectacle of over 600 balloons rising in the early morning with the mountains and sunrise as backdrop.
What a fabulous trip, and the condo/homes we rented helped us have a very relaxed and great holiday.
Thank you VRBO!
Mary Rawlings
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