The pandemic energized the already-booming vacation rental industry, with rentals surpassing pre-pandemic levels in 2021. For U.S. domestic travelers, Airbnb and Vrbo dominate the market, but when you're heading overseas, it might be time to look beyond those two sites. With short-term rentals in 140 countries worldwide, 9flats can help you find accommodations for your overseas trips.
What Is 9flats?
Launched in 2011, 9flats operates under the URL, 9flats.com. The site lists more than six million holiday apartments, flats, hotels and guest houses across the globe. The company is headquartered in Germany and originally launched with a focus on the European rental market, so it's a great resource for lining up accommodations for your European vacation.
Unlike Airbnb and HomeAway, you don't reserve your rental directly through 9flats. You choose your destination and 9flats gathers all the available bookings for that area, and then redirects you to the booking site to make the reservation.
Benefits of Using 9Flats
Whether you're reserving guest rooms in a hotel or a holiday home on a vacation rental site, fees are an inevitable part of the process. There are no fees to search through 9flats, but when you're redirected to the booking site for the property you choose and make your reservation, that site will charge fees and taxes.
So why use 9flats instead of going directly to those booking sites? With 9flats, you'll get a wide range of accommodations in each city, and from there, you can comparison shop to find the best rates. This means that even if you're visiting a North American destination like San Francisco or New York City, 9flats might work better since it allows you to get a quick glimpse of all the sites.
Cons of Using 9flats
Although 9flats claims it works with a variety of rental partners, the vast majority of search results redirect to Booking.com. Since 9Flats' search engine doesn't allow any advanced filtering, you're likely better off doing your search for a vacation home directly on Booking.com. There you can filter your search by property type and add must-have features like an outdoor pool or hot tub.
That lack of filtering is a huge negative with 9flats. Other sites make it easier to look for accommodations within a 5-minute walk of an attraction or those that have fitness centres or private parking. 9flats merely lets you specify a check-in and check-out date, the number of guests and the city you're interested in visiting. Even their partner, Booking.com, offers better search functionality.
With short-term rentals in 140 countries worldwide, 9flats can help you find accommodations for your overseas trips.
Listing Properties on 9flats
If you're a vacation rental property owner looking to list your private accommodation to reach a large number of people, 9flats can't really help with that either. The site redirects you to BestFewo.de to list your property, and the site isn't in English. Those who own property in popular destinations in Europe might find this a great option, but if your property is located anywhere else, there are better sites for listing your rental.
You can list your vacation rental on sites like Airbnb and VRBO, even if it's overseas. This will go beyond attracting those who use BestFewo.de to line up vacation plans. Make sure you promote your overseas property on social media to let friends, relatives and associates know that you have a rental property overseas that they can rent while they're traveling.
If you're looking for European rental properties, 9flats can be a great way to see what's available in certain cities at a glance. However, the search filters are limited, and you'll be redirected to partner sites for more information and booking. You might find Booking.com easier for filtering down to exactly the type of property you need.