For those who don't recall Part 1, in that post, I discussed the WHO, WHERE and HOW of this kind of venture. Now, we address the "WHAT".
What? OK, it revolves around "What kind of property do I choose?" And this is largely a function of 1) personal taste; 2) sense of adventure; 3) income and/or net worth; and 4) budget and willingness to go well over said budget.
For the Nifty 50 adventure, we thought in terms of practicality and honed in on the cheapest accommodations for maybe 15 persons. But here's the catch: Europeans are not accustomed to something as rule-breaking as a "you fly, we buy" kind of proposition. Europeans are, to their credit, very serious about planning their holidays, and will do so well in advance of the date. So, here are my best practices:
1. Have a location or at least a region in mind. We were a bit loosey-goosey about this: anywhere in Europe as long as it's near the ocean or sea. Result? WIDE OPEN OPTIONS! If you have a drop-dead, must-have, nowhere else will do locale in mind, then stick with it. And then open up your options a bit further. If you are focused on the Côte d’Azur in France, expand your horizons: The Italian Riviera is just as lovely; the hamlet of Menton is a stone's throw from the Italian border, and well within 60-90 minutes by train to Nice, Languedoc and Luberon are awesomely charming and have much to offer. It took us a little while to narrow in on Italy, but the key moment was when Vivian said, "I've never been to Italy before." This, and my spouse's Italian heritage made it an easy choice.
2. Search well in advance (start 12 months ahead), but the real shopping doesn't start until 7-8 months before the event. My early inquiries were met with teaser price points and nebulous descriptions, no matter what the website: Airbnb.com, Homeaway.com, VRBO.com, etc. As we grew close to that 7 month point, we started narrowing down choices. But NEVER discount the "must have" parts of the rental property. And be prepared to bust your budget, especially if it's a once-in-a-lifetime event. More on that later. After numerous properties that were anywhere from 30-100 km from the beach, and toying with properties on freshwater lakes in the middle of Italy, I decided to do a "what the hell" search and stumbled upon this little gem (click on link). It was well outside our budget, but it was RIGHT. ON. THE. BEACH!! And in retrospect, it was the absolute perfect venue for our celebration.
3, Always maintain a sense of flexibility regarding the "must-have's." And be prepared to compromise with yourself and your partners in crime.
4. Search in Google for more obscure rental websites. They may not pan out for you, but you may
gather ideas about a property, about which you never before thought.
5. If sticking within a budget is key, you may have to compromise on the country. But let that be part of the adventure! There are affordable and beautiful venues in Eastern Europe, and in Portugal. Not everyone has the wherewithall to plant their flag on a Mediterranean beachhead, so keep those options open!
6. Be sure to research costs that are beyond the property itself! We found it necessary to rent a car, and that is a pricey thing. So if you don't want to rent a vehicle (they are always quite pricey in Europe--and that's because fuel is much more expensive there than in the USA), then focus on locales within a comfortable walking/busing distance from the property. But this will undoubtedly narrow the choices quite a bit, unless you are open to an urban vacation. Get an idea about how much basic groceries cost in your area of focus. Again, Google will be your best friend for this.
7. Develop a preliminary budget including the cost of the property, and then tack on 20%. Believe me, that's not an exaggeration. In fact, you may want to consider 30% above the budget to be more realistic.
8. If you are not willing to be adventurous in renting from an "untested" landlord, then look exclusively for rated properties. The one we rented outside of Terracina had several reviews, which was a source of comfort.
There it is. Best practices for "The What" of renting a villa. Well there is No. 9: KEEP AN OPEN MIND. I expected our villa to be a stand-alone property. It was, in fact, shared with another family (a wall seperated us and we barely interacted, outside of the prerequisite "Buongiorno" and "Buona Sera!" In addition, the property as advertised did not disclose that the kitchen was separate from the house, but that was actually a cool perk: breakfast, lunch and dinner in the great outdoors (with a roof over our heads). This is one of the things that made this experience one-of-a-kind.
If you have questions or need clarification on best practices, please leave a comment. I promise to answer you when I can! Happy house hunting!!
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