Should you book a rental property or hotel for your next getaway?

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - — Most of your summer vacations are likely booked at this point, but why not look ahead to a trip in the Fall?

When starting the planning process, you may realize there is a lot to consider when it comes to where to stay and how to get there.

Sally French with NerdWallet says regardless of where you stay, travel is hitting records across the board.

“What NerdWallet has found is that people are certainly still price sensitive,” she says.

The personal finance company says the average cost of a hotel room per night is around $200 compared with a one-night stay at an Airbnb, which is $314.

Although, NerdWallet found the longer someone books with a host, the cheaper the nightly rate, dropping to $213 for a seven-night stay.

The price, French says, also changes when you add more people, “NerdWallet conducted a pretty extensive pricing study last year and found that typically Airbnb's are cheaper for larger groups.”

You should also consider what is offered because amenities and resort fees can change the overall cost for a hotel and cleaning fees can adjust rental properties.

“Airbnb actually introduced a toggle where you can say display the price including the cleaning fees [and you can see how the overall price changes],” French says.

All the travel is also bringing business to Warwick Travel Service Inc. in Newport News.

“Things are getting better for us. People are excited to travel, and people are ready to go, you know, plan big trips [and] not just something small,” says Emily Barker.

Emily Barker is a travel consultant who does a little bit of everything, but if you are deciding between a rental or a hotel, she can help best with the hotel.

“[People are thinking] let me go somewhere [and] have someone help me with that and then when they find out that there's no additional fees [when booking with our company] I think that's a perk for them too,” Barker says.

Barker says the biggest challenge this year is availability even more so than price.

“If you book now for 2024/2025, and a new price becomes available, we can rebook,” she says.

Back at NerdWallet, French says “be really flexible to have a backup plan.”

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