Your hotel has kitchens or suites, but you're not on vacation rental platforms. Meanwhile, your competitors might be quietly capturing an entirely different market segment right under your nose.
Most hotel groups don't realize they're missing out on significant booking opportunities by ignoring Airbnb and Vrbo. Let's change that.
In this practical guide, I'll walk you through exactly how to research if your competitors are already on these platforms and what to do with that information.
Who Should Be Asking This Question?
Hotels with kitchens or kitchenettes are ideal candidates for Airbnb and VRBO. This includes:
- Hotel groups with extended-stay or suite-style brands
- Standalone properties with kitchen-equipped rooms
- Resorts offering units with more space or condo-style layouts
These units align perfectly with what vacation rental shoppers seek—space, functionality, and flexibility.
Why Hotels Hesitate (And Why That’s a Problem)
Two main factors are holding many hotels back:
1. Awareness Gap
Some hotel operators still assume Airbnb and VRBO are only for individual homeowners. That’s no longer the case. Hotels, branded resorts, and even multi-unit properties are already succeeding on these platforms. Just weeks ago, I spoke with a potential customer who thought Airbnb and Vrbo were exclusively for individual hosts. He had no idea his hotel could be listed there and generating millions a year in new, non-cannibalizing bookings.
2. Tech Friction
Hotel tech stacks weren’t built for vacation rental logic. Rate structures, cancellation policies, and content formatting often clash with platform limitations. Many revenue managers simply don’t have the time or tools to navigate the integration challenges.
How to Check if Your Compset Is Already There
Ready to do some competitive research? Here's exactly how to check if your competition is already capturing this market:
Step 1: Prepare Your Comp Set
Have a list of your competitive set ready with their addresses and locations on a printed google map. Your revenue manager should already have this defined
Step 2: Basic Search
Go to airbnb.com and enter your destination in the search bar. Don't enter any dates yet.
In Jetstream's experience, Guest Favorite listings receive three times (3x!) the search impressions and booking volume compared to regular listings.
According to recent data, the Guest Favorites badge now carries even more weight than Superhost status in driving visibility on Airbnb (source).
Common Technical Challenges (And How to Overcome Them)
1. Content Merchandising
Most hotel PMS and channel managers don't support the rich content feeds required by Airbnb and Vrbo. Hotels can create listings manually within these platforms, but connecting existing systems is challenging without specialized middleware. And on Airbnb and Vrbo, content is king.
2. Rate Plan Limitations
Vacation rental platforms only support one rate plan per listing. Hotels with multiple discounts, LOS pricing, or seasonal cancellation rules must simplify—or use a system that can automate that complexity.
The Fastest Way to Get Listed
If you discover competitors are already capturing this market, you need to move quickly.
The fastest approach is to work with a specialized partner like Jetstream who can have you live with polished content and proper rate code mapping in under three weeks.
For those going the DIY route, be prepared for a significant learning curve and manual processes.
Pricing Strategy for New Listings
Both Airbnb and Vrbo highly recommend discounting your first three bookings by 20%. Since you can't pay for higher placement, it's crucial to generate early booking momentum in the first 30-45 days.
Both platforms offer promotional tools that automatically apply this discount for new listings and remove it after the third booking. After establishing your presence, focus on long-term pricing strategies that incentivize extended stays.
Common Misconceptions That Hold Hotels Back
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“These platforms are only for beach homes and cabins”
Not true—condo-hotels, suites, and urban inventory thrive here.
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“Hotel listings won’t perform”
They will—if merchandised correctly and priced smartly.
Hotels have one advantage most STR operators don’t: multi-unit inventory. This makes it easier to generate reviews and build booking volume fast over traditional single-unit-per-listing inventory.
