Small villa rental agencies are not afraid of the big boys!

It seems that Expedia are taking over the VRBO and Home Away group for a mere 3.9 Billion dollars!! They have announced that from 2016 they will be implementing a booking fee that holiday makers will have to pay!

So not only are they charging huge fees to the property owners (costs have increased dramatically over the last few years) they are taking money from the end user as well.  The goal posts have been changing over the last few years, one must upgrade if you want your advert to appear..... one must accept immediate on-line bookings..... one must etc......


As the proverb goes can they have their cake and eat it?
It may sound like they are trying to "oust" the small family companies, but bring it on we say!

The larger they become the harder it will be for them to offer any real customer service, and how do you find the perfect villa amongst thousands of properties?

Our sentiment is "We want to plan your holiday the way your would plan your own".

South France Villas do not charge the client any booking fees, we also provide financial failure insurance at no extra cost offering peace of mind to our clients.

South France villas are celebrating 15 years in the holiday rental business and we thought we would share some of the changes we have seen over that time, our top 5 are:

1 - WI-FI, clients now wish to have high speed and free internet access on holiday and even on the beach, when we first started very few houses even had the internet!

2 - Bathrooms! We have a joke that the French want to know the size i.e. the M2 of a villa and the British and Americans want to know how many bathrooms and loos there are! Gone are the days of 2 or 3 families sharing a bathroom!

3 - Low cost airlines, Ryanair and Easy-Jet have opened up the Languedoc Roussillon area to the whole of Europe, there are now 5 airports in the region. With a flight time of less than 2 hours this can be more appealing than the 10 hour drive, with the added bonus of not having to pass through Calais.

4 - Credit Crisis, this had an impact for off season bookings, however July and August continues to be popular. So many people have happy memories of childhood family holidays in the South of France and want their children to also experience the unique French culture, however with a little more luxury than a tent or caravan and of course not forgetting the holiday essential WI-FI!

5 - Direct marketing sites, Owners Direct, Holiday Lettings and the like made a huge impact on the market place. However owners and clients are now returning to the more personal, specalised agencies like us, not just for the personal service but also after seeing the amount of scams that have taken place on the direct websites.

So if you are thinking of booking a villa holiday in the South of France maybe in the
Languedoc Roussillon, Cote d'Azur or Provence then you know where we are!

www.southfrancevillas.com

South of France 2016 - It is never too early to book your Holiday!

Are you thinking of going to the South of France for your 2016 annual holiday?

Maybe visiting the lavender fields of Provence, the sandy Languedoc Beaches or do you fancy shopping on the world famous French Riviera?

Loyal Francophiles know they have to book early to get the best villas and this year it seems to be earlier and earlier.  Almost all our villas are now taking bookings for 2016 and we even have a couple booked for 2017! 

 

South France Villas’ top 5 reasons why you should book early:

1. No settling for second best, get the villa that fits your exact requirements. For example, a villa with a heated pool, walking distance to a restaurant, or on the beach.
2. The Euro/Sterling exchange rate is good at the moment which will help when paying the deposit (30% is the norm).
3. Take advantage of the good flight and ferry deals.
4. Possible early bird discounts.
5. Peace of mind, no panic when the adverts start on Boxing Day! 

The 5 most popular requests we receive for Languedoc-Roussillon and Cote d’Azur villas are:

 

1. A villa near or on the beach. 
2. Walking distance to a restaurant, shops and of course no holiday in France is complete without a trip to the local Boulangerie!
3. Large family villas with plenty of bedrooms and enough bathrooms!
4. Villas with heated pools.
5. Privacy – Not overlooked.

  

 

What happens if I don’t book now?   

Don’t panic! If your dates are flexible then South France Villas should be able to find you something even at the last minute (we have just added a beautiful 7 bedroom Chateau with 2016 availability). We are adding new villas to our website on a weekly basis, so great deals can pop up.

 

South France Villas are celebrating 15 years in the business this year and we have a large collection of holiday villas either with a private pool or directly on the beach. We have something for everyone’s budget. All the team at South France Villas speak English and French, live, or have lived, in the area and are passionate about Le Sud de France!

If you are not sure which area of the South of France you want to visit then please do get in touch and we can talk through your wish list.

We want to plan your holiday the way you would plan your own.....

www.southfrancevillas.com