Direct Booking vs. Airbnb and VRBO: Pros, Cons and How to Start
What platforms do for hosts, what direct bookings offer, and how to start taking direct reservations without double bookings or tax surprises.
By Andrew Long-Kettenhofen · · 5 min read
Most short-term rental hosts start on Airbnb and VRBO, and for good reason: the platforms bring the guests. Over time, many hosts add direct bookings through their own website to cut fees and build repeat business. Here’s how the two compare.
What the platforms do for you
- Demand: millions of travelers searching every day. This is the hardest thing to replace.
- Trust: reviews, verified profiles and a familiar checkout.
- Payments and some taxes: they process payments and, in many places, collect and remit certain lodging taxes.
- Support and protection programs: help when something goes wrong, with limits and conditions you should read carefully.
In exchange, they charge fees on each booking, and they own the guest relationship.
What direct booking gives you
- Lower fees: you pay card processing and the cost of your website and booking software instead of platform fees.
- Repeat guests: past guests can book again with you directly, and they’re often your best guests.
- Control: your own policies, your own pricing, your own brand.
The tradeoffs: you need to bring the traffic, handle payments and damage deposits yourself, and remit lodging taxes that platforms might otherwise collect.
How to start taking direct bookings
- Begin with past guests. They already trust you. A simple website with photos, details and an availability calendar goes a long way.
- Sync calendars. Export your direct bookings as an iCal feed into Airbnb and VRBO, and import theirs, so nothing double-books.
- Get the money right. Use a reputable payment processor, collect a deposit, and have a written rental agreement and cancellation policy.
- Handle taxes. Register for and remit the lodging taxes that apply to direct stays where you operate. In Arizona that means transaction privilege tax.
- Make it worth it for guests. A small direct-booking discount or perk gives guests a reason to book with you rather than the platform.
A balanced approach
For most hosts, it isn’t either/or. Keep the platforms for reach and new guests, and grow direct bookings for repeat guests and referrals. Even moving a fraction of your nights to direct adds up over a year. Keep the guest experience identical either way: the same cleaning standard, the same communication, and the same guidebook.