Last-Minute Short-Term Rentals Could Help in Soft Markets

Last-minute travel sites have traditionally gained ground during challenging economic times.

Priceline's now-defunct Name Your Own Price feature, which enabled travelers to place a bid on a hotel, flight or car rental, gained ground during the Great Recession of 2007-2009. So did Expedia's Hotwire, which offered discounted rates on hotels and cars, and only revealed the identity of the supplier post-booking.

In the current economy, property managers, including Vacasa, Sonder, Evolve, and AvantStay, have announced layoffs because of soft demand and excess supply. And last-minute vacation rental site Whimstay has announced discounted inventory deals with Booking.com, Wyndham and Expedia/Vrbo in 2024.

Whimstay announced last week that an Expedia Group/Vrbo partnership will furnish Whimstay with up to 250,000 new listings. The partnership, which is slated to be implemented during the third quarter, enables travelers to access discounted rooms and homes on Whimstay, particularly when they book within 30 days of the stay, according to Whimstay.

An Expedia Group spokesperson said "discounts are at the discretion of the owner and are not a requirement. If an owner decides to extend a discount to Expedia, that discount is also reflected in the inventory we offer to our B2B network. Whimstay has the ability to filter the type of inventory they want to offer their travelers."

So there won't be 250,000 new Expedia/Vrbo listings on Whimstay at any given moment, but they will be there when the homeowner feels the need to lower rates to get guests in the home.

Discounts for Last-Minute Bookings

We took a look at some of the deals Whimstay was offering, and the amount of discounts — or a lack of discounts — varied.

For example, a 3-bedroom vacation rental in Frisco, North Carolina at Wind in the Willow 624 for a September 1-4 stay was $182 cheaper on Monday on Whimstay ($1,191) versus Booking.com ($1,373), including taxes and fees.

A booking Monday for a July 21-27 stay at a 7-bedroom home on a private island, Buck Island, Hilton Head, South Carolina, was $680 cheaper on Whimstay ($20,554) versus AvantStay ($21,234).

But last-minute discounts — or the lack thereof — can be hit or miss, so it's always important for travelers to comparison shop.

Whimstay on Monday was offering a 2-bedroom home at 987 Inverness Village in Palmetto Dunes in Hilton Head, South Carolina for a July 21-July 27 stay for $2,323, including taxes and fees.

However, Relax Rentals had the same home on the same dates for $424 cheaper at $1,899.

The Whimstay Proposition

Whimstay is going after price sensitive travelers, including Millennials and Gen Z, it says.

"On average, guests save nearly 25% and over $200 per booking with Whimstay," the company says, on reservations made 30 days or less before arrival.

Whimstay gets its inventory from property managers looking to offer rooms at discounted rates rather than seem them go empty. Property managers tend to offer these deals on third-party sites rather than openly offering them on their own sites, and thereby diminishing the attractiveness of their retail rates.

Whimstay's homes are located in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

Expedia said Whimstay uses Expedia's Rapid API tool, which gives B2B partners access to its lodging supply at "competitive rates."

Whimstay raised $10 million in equity financing earlier this year from unidentified investors.

The company claimed 400% year over year growth despite "industry headwinds."