Air B&B and Abritel

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GillianF
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Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2012 12:06 pm
Location: Dordogne

Air B&B and Abritel

Post by GillianF »

If you use either/both of the above sites for your self catering property (as well as paid for advertising such as Chez Nous, OD etc.) can you say if they work well and what percentage of enquiries/bookings you get from them?

Also, how do you manage the damages deposit. We currently take a damages deposit with final payment six weeks before the holiday starts and refund it within a week (usually quicker) of the guests' departure - unless there is a problem. How would this work with Air B&B and Abritel?

Any advice, comment, thoughts are welcome.

Thanks.
la vache!
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Post by la vache! »

I gave up Abritel years ago, they didn't work for me and were very expensive (no discount for more than one unit).
I use AirBnB and am very happy with it. I've had quite a few French and Dutch guests, they have all been great. For short breaks as well as one week stays. I don't take a damage deposit so I can't help on that, sorry!
Hells Bells
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Post by Hells Bells »

Air BnB damage deposit can work two ways. Either ABB take a gurantee against a card which will be paid out if you make a claim against the guest, or you can take it on arrival.

If you have a listing with any other member of the Homeaway group, you may already have one with Abritel. I used to like them in the old days, as you could advertise for just 3 months at a time if you wanted to.
Dusty
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Post by Dusty »

HelenB is right (of course) if you are listed in OD, HA etc. you will also be on Arbitel, having said that we have never had an enquiry from Arbitel, thats despite getting a fair number of page views from them.
I was very keen on ABB earlier but have heard such horror stories regarding their focus on ensuring the holiday maker is kept happy at the expense of the owner that I have been put off, but we are getting increasingly desparate to find an alternative to OD so may have to give them another go!
Ondine
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Post by Ondine »

As many have mentioned you can set the security deposit amount on both AirBNB & Abritel/HA. Our T&C's are roughly the same as yours (pay in full incl. dep 6 weeks before arrival & reimbursement within 7 days of departure). I have noticed that some bookings through HA get charged a transfer fee when I reimburse the deposit to the departed guest. Its pretty annoying as it forces me to mention this disparity in the amounts in the email I send every guest once I have returned the deposit.

I find the french listing sites generate the most enquiries that lead to nothing. That may have to do with my level of french which is fine but not perfect. Over the last few months I have seen a shift from Abritel/homelidays to Airbnb for french enquiries. If you go down the AirBNB route get a good translation into French done to ensure that you are making your house as attractive to that clientele.

The key question you should ask yourself is who do you really want to target and market to. I find that most european nationalities have there own expectations & quirks and it is better to find your little niche and stick with that. This makes stuff like having the right telly channels, being able to converse with your guests, tailoring your offer to there needs alot easier. One aspect of France that isnt always discussed is there slow uptake of technology and new services. I have had countless conversations with potential french guests about my unwillingness to take cheques, pay on arrival or pay the security deposit in cash. I have probably lost a couple of bookings this year due to me standing my ground and not changing my payment options, but after many bad experiences I was fed up & said no more. Stuff like that wastes your valuable time & just gets annoying after a while.
Pixietoadstool
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Post by Pixietoadstool »

We only opened our gite at the end of July and we had approximately 50% bookings.

We put together our website, signed up with Abritel and also with AirBnB (not expecting much from the latter) - we charge more with AirBnB to cover shorter stays. In spite of this most of our business has come from AirBnB, some from our website and last of all from Abritel - only two stays booked with them and these were in high season. I am seriously considering stopping Abritel for this reason.

The only problems for me is my level of anxiety before and during people's stays - I am so desperate to get good reviews that it turns me into a lump of jelly. We had a bit of a nightmare with the last guests (electricity going off on NY Eve, lamp falling out of the wall and shower blocked up) but luckily I had left them a bottle of champagne that morning so they kindly left me 4 out of 5 - they were pissed off though! I have learned how to be terribly humble and apologetic (plus bribing with home made jams helps too!).

Pixietoadstool

www.le-rouquet.fr
Love not fear!
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