Shows / Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Welcome to Vacation Rental Scale-Up, the essential podcast for vacation rental managers and short-term rental operators. Hosted by industry expert Thibault Masson, we bring you the latest insights and strategies to elevate your business. Key Topics: Strategy Insights: Stay ahead with strategies from major platforms like Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking. Market Trends: Get the latest market data and trends from the US and Europe. Tech Innovations: Explore new vacation rental technology, from AI to…
Episodes
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Late Bookings, OTA Growth and 2027 Planning With Sally Henry of KeyData
Owners pushing you to cut rates because next week is still open? Late bookings have lower average rates mainly because smaller, cheaper homes are the ones…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb's new house rules: the questions managers are asking, and what we found
No more washing dishes before checkout? Guests might be celebrating. But for Airbnb hosts and property managers, the bigger question is: Who decides what's…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Will Vrbo’s new rate parity clause kill your direct booking strategy?
Are you risking your Vrbo listing by offering discounts on your own website? Property managers and hosts could face listing removal or penalties on Vrbo if…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How Guests Find Your Airbnb Now: New AI Search and Friends’ Maps
The Airbnb 2026 fall update changes how guests find your listing in two main ways. First, guests can now speak or type what they want in their own words, like…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How AI Helps Rental Managers Find, Pitch and Keep More Owners
Owner acquisition used to be a one-to-many business: one message, one landing page, one pitch, sent to everybody on your list. Brooke Pfautz argues that…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Europe's New Rule: The Cure Can't Be Bigger Than the Disease
Two European decisions landed roughly 48 hours apart, and on the surface they have nothing to do with each other. Google removed the vacation rentals section…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb is Investing $250 Million in Building Homes and Ranking Cities
For a decade, cities have blamed short-term rentals for taking homes off the market. Airbnb has played defence the whole time. On 14 September, it changed tack…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb Cuts Host Fees to 6% But How Direct Is the Booking?
Airbnb is offering select hosts a new “Direct Booking Link” with a much lower 6% or 10% host fee. The question is: if Airbnb still processes the booking and…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Why Wall Street is Betting Big on Airbnb’s 15.5% Host Fee Mode
When Airbnb shifted operators to a single 15.5% host fee, many short-term rental managers assumed a simple price markup would keep their revenue neutral…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Why shoulder season needs a full team reset, not just a price cut
Shoulder season isn't summer on a dimmer switch. It's a reset, and this episode treats it that way. Jay Whiteley, who runs revenue, marketing, and distribution…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
The Airbnb Experience deal with Tripadvisor Viator explained in Screenshots
I booked a trip to a small village in Alsace, and once I was in, I started paying attention to what Airbnb was actually selling me. The homepage had a car…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb's Best Quarter in Years. Hosts Paid For Part of It.
Airbnb just reported 3.6 billion dollars in revenue, nights booked up 10%, and raised guidance for the rest of the year. On paper, one of its best quarters…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
4 Easy AI Workflows for More Time, Visibility, and Impact
Guests have stopped opening fifty tabs. They open one AI prompt — family of four, two kids under ten, beach, four days, this budget — and book from the…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How to Turn AI Search Visibility Into Actual Short-term Rental Bookings
How do you make sure that when ChatGPT recommends your short-term rental, the guest actually clicks "book"? 🤔 While everyone is racing to get surfaced by AI…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
I Plugged My Pricing Tool Directly Into Claude, Here's What Happened
Most revenue tools still make you log in, click through, and cross-reference before you get an answer. This episode tests what happens when you skip all of…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
What Every Vacation Rental Host Can Learn From Vrbo's Latest Campaign
Vrbo's newest ads, Magician and No Chef, are the ones getting all the buzz right now. Big spend, big view counts, the full spotlight moment. 🎬So why bring up a…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
What Airbnb Truly Earns on Every Reservation You Fulfill
Airbnb just promised Wall Street it would extract more money from every single booking this year. Yet, your platform fees aren’t going up, and your payouts…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
The 5 Levels of AI Automation for Property Managers
Should you build your own custom AI workflows, or wait for your software vendors to roll out their updates? In this episode, Thibault Masson sits down with…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb, Booking.com, and Vrbo Are All Moving Toward Pay-to-Play. Here's the Full Picture.
The rules of organic search visibility are undergoing a major shift. For years, professional operators have structured their businesses around strict…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
The 2 Hidden Risks of Airbnb’s New Cancellation Add-On
Airbnb’s new "risk-free" cancellation policy might guarantee your payout, but it could be silently draining your operational budget. 🛑💸 In this episode of the…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb Just Hired booking.com’s Top Hotel Executive. Here's What That Means for Your Listings.
Airbnb just made two major corporate moves that signal an aggressive expansion beyond traditional short-term rentals: they poached Booking.com’s top hotel…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Are These 3 Hidden Revenue Leaks Costing Your Short-Term Rental Portfolio?
Your dynamic pricing strategy might be flawless—but bad listing photos, inflexible cleaning fees, and over-promised owner estimates are silently destroying…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How Airbnb’s New AI Algorithm Decides Who Gets Booked
Airbnb's 2026 Summer Release just rewrote the rules of how guests discover, evaluate, and book your property. 🛑📉With this update, Airbnb hasn't just rolled out…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb May Soon Guarantee the Lowest Price, But Only on Hotels
If Airbnb guarantees the lowest price on hotels, how will your short-term rentals compete? 🛑📉 On May 20th, Brian Chesky is dropping the Summer 2026 Release…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Will Europe's Fuel Crisis Send a Wave of Guests to Your Holiday Let?
✈️ Jet Fuel Crisis, 20,000 Cancelled Flights, and a Domestic Travel Boom — Which Side of the Line Is Your Portfolio On? Jet fuel prices have doubled and…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb Summer Release 2026: 7 Predictions for Hosts and Property Managers
Airbnb’s Summer Release 2026 is almost here. What could Airbnb announce — and what should hosts and property managers be watching? In this episode, Thibault…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb's AI Strategy: What's Hidden in the April 20th Terms Update
In February 2026, Airbnb quietly updated its privacy policy. On April 20th, every host and guest will be asked to accept it — or lose access to the platform…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Why Your Revenue Manager Can't Do It Alone Anymore
Revenue management isn't broken — the model around it is. For years, dynamic pricing was the answer. But when your owner relations team is stuck in email, your…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Beyond the Bed: What Airbnb's Car Service and Dinner Party Reveal About the Platform's Future
Airbnb made two announcements this week that didn't make many headlines — but together, they reveal exactly how the platform's lifestyle ambitions are…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Surviving The May 2026 EU Short-Term Rental Regulation Deadline
May 20, 2026, is circled on every European property manager's calendar. It's the official deadline for EU Regulation 2024/1028—the law that forces booking…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Vrbo’s Reliability Playbook: Building the Ultimate Airbnb Alternative
Are Airbnb and Vrbo becoming the exact same platform? If you look deeper than the recent launches, the answer is a resounding no. While Airbnb is prioritizing…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How AI Is Changing the Way Guests Plan & Book Travel
AI is becoming the new front door to travel discovery. In this episode, Thibault Masson (Founder of Rental Scale-Up / RSU by PriceLabs) is joined by David…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb’s Pay-to-Play Visibility: The Start of a Loyalty Program?
Is Airbnb quietly testing its own loyalty program? Some hosts are now seeing an offer: Provide a 20% discount, and Airbnb will boost your visibility and…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
10 Takeaways from Airbnb’s Q4 2025 That Could Impact Your Revenue
In this episode, we break down the 10 biggest takeaways from Airbnb's Q4 2025 earnings call and what they really mean for professional short-term rental…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How to Break the 200-Unit Bottleneck: Lessons from GuestReady’s Spain Deal
Many property managers don’t fail — they stall. And for a lot of STR operators, that stall happens around 100–200 units. In this episode, we go inside…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How to Get More Bookings on Airbnb by Optimizing Listing Quality, Not Cutting Prices
In this episode, we break down how Airbnb actually rewards quality listings — and why many professional operators lose bookings even in strong markets…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Before You Drop Prices: How Listing Quality is Costing You Airbnb Revenue
Register for fee workshop: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/1317691874899/WN_T9XsB0s0TUSk2tQA4c50ww If your Airbnb bookings are slowing down, your…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
The Death of Search: Does Google UCP Make Booking Platforms Redundant?
Is the "click-through" era of travel over? For twenty years, platforms like Airbnb and Booking.com have been the indispensable gatekeepers of the industry. But…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
2026 Vacation Rental Trends: How Travel Is Becoming More Selective
Vacation Rental Trends 2026 didn’t start in 2026.In this episode, Uvika Wahi of RSU by PriceLabs breaks down the most important vacation rental and trends…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
The 2025 Short-Term Rental Year in Review (Top Stories That Matters for 2026)
Across articles, podcasts, webinars, and industry conversations throughout the year, the same topics kept resurfacing. And when that happens, it usually means…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
World Cup 2026: How Demand Is Showing Up Early Across Host Cities
World Cup 2026 demand is already showing up in the data ⚽📈 — but not evenly.Some host cities are seeing early booking spikes, others are moving slowly, and…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Before You Finalize 2026 Plans: The Pricing, Demand & Supply Clues You Shouldn’t Ignore
If your 2026 planning is already underway, this episode gives you a final data check before you lock in your strategy. In the final RevLabs × Rental Scale-Up…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How Smart Operators Pivot: Mid-Term Stays, New Markets & What Works
In today’s episode, we dig into a question more and more property managers are asking: Do you pivot to mid-term rentals—or expand into new markets? Regulations…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Lake.com’s AI Strategy: Making Waterfront Rentals Easier to Find
AI is rewriting how guests discover short-term rentals — and Lake.com is building for that future. In this episode, we sit down with David Ciccarelli…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Build Your 2026 Airbnb Strategy Using 2025’s Biggest Signals
Airbnb’s 2025 updates weren’t random; they were signals. Signals about how the platform will operate in 2026… and what professional hosts will need to do to…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Hotels on Airbnb Are Here: What This Means for Short-Term Rental Managers
Airbnb just made one of its biggest strategic moves of the year: hotels are now officially part of the platform. In this episode, we break down how hotels are…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Where Guests Are Really Booking in 2025: Smarter Alternatives to Airbnb and Vrbo
In this hour-long episode, we explore where guests are really booking in 2025, and how professional short-term rental managers can build a smarter channel mix…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How Expedia is Using AI to Turn Instagram Inspiration into Bookable Trips
In this episode of the Vacation Rental Scale-Up Podcast, we explore Expedia’s new AI Trip Matching feature, a tool that lets travelers send a Reel to Expedia’s…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How Google’s New AI Mode Can Reshape Guest Discovery and Trip Planning
Google just launched its new AI Mode, and it could completely change how travelers discover, plan, and book trips , all without ever leaving Google. 🌍💡 In this…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How a Hybrid Franchise Model Helped a Property Manager Focus on Hospitality
In this episode, Uvika Wahi from RSU by PriceLabs sits down with Michael LeClerc, Founder of SkyRun Vacation Rentals, Park City, Utah, to explore how the…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
AI Trip Planning on WhatsApp? Here’s What It Means for Property Managers
Yes, WhatsApp can actually plan your next dream vacation!In this episode, I test GuideGeek (by @Matador Network) inside WhatsApp, from destination ideas to…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Perplexity Travel for Vacation Rentals: How AI Is Powering Trip Search
Travel discovery is changing, fast. AI is starting the trip conversation, shaping what travelers see first, and even guiding them on where to stay.In this…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
How Property Managers Can Adapt to Airbnb’s Host-Only Fee Without Losing Margins
Airbnb is rolling out a global host-only fee model for all PMS-connected listings. It affects pricing strategies and margins for property managers everywhere…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Vrbo Listings to Gain Wider Visibility With Expedia’s Global Network
@vrbo is about to get a LOT bigger. 🚀Expedia just announced that Vrbo listings will no longer be limited to Vrbo.com or the app. Instead, they’ll show up…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb Host Fee Change: Keep Your Earnings Intact with the right markup
Airbnb’s latest update is shaking things up for hosts and property managers: the Airbnb Host Fee Change. PMS-connected hosts are moving to a 15.5% host-only…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
What the Data Says (and What the Experts Do) to Keep Occupancy Strong in Shoulder Season
The summer rush is over, and the 2025 shoulder season slowdown is here. Guests are booking later, staying fewer nights, and cutting budgets more than ever. For…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Airbnb Host-Only Fee at 15.5%: What It Means for Property Managers
Airbnb has officially ended the split fee model, moving to a new 15.5% host-only fee in the U.S. This change means property managers and hosts will see new…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Vrbo’s 2025 Pivot Toward Last Minute Deals and Flexible Trips
Vrbo is shifting gears in 2025. With U.S. travel growth slowing and guests watching every dollar, Vrbo is responding fast, launching aggressive promotions…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
Why Airbnb Is Courting Inns, B&Bs, and Boutique Hotels Again
Airbnb is shifting gears — and fast. In its latest strategy update, CEO Brian Chesky confirmed that the platform is going aggressively after B&Bs, boutique…
- Vacation Rental Scale-Up
PriceLabs Now Officially Recognized as a Booking.com Connectivity Partner
With this new direct integration, you can now connect your Booking.com listings to PriceLabs without needing a PMS. Dynamic pricing comes to Booking.com. That…