Vacation Rentals portal Homeaway Inc. acquired Paris-based Homelidays

One of the biggest names in vacation home rentals in the US and the UK, Homeaway, Inc. announced its acquisition of another huge vacation rental company, Homelidays SAS. Homelidays SAS is a Paris-based holiday rental site with more than 40,000 listings in its portfolio.

The acquisition of Paris-based Homelidays is the 12th acquisition of Homeaway since its inception in February 2005. Because of this acquisition, the home vacation rentals inventory of Homeaway Inc. surged to more than 360,000 vacation home rentals to cater to the travelers of the 118 countries they serve.

This will further mean that Homeaway is strengthening its position in the rapidly growing industry of vacation home rentals. Today, vacation home rental is already $48 Billion segment in the travel industry. Because of its continued popularity, many travelers in the US and the UK already prefer vacation home rentals to structured hotels.

The freedom and flexibility of vacation home rentals is making the traveling industry more sought after now than in the years that past.

Although the details of the deal between Homeaway and Homelidays is not disclosed, the news follows that Homeaway raised its equity from its record high $250 Million capital in November 2008. As a result of this, Homeaway is in the best position to fund strategic growth initiatives and thus, you can expect their portfolio to surge a bit more in the coming months, better service and wider array of choices to match your palate.

Homelidays is the second France-based vacation rental site to be operated by Homeaway. The first one being Abritel.fr., which was acquired in January 2007.

What does this acquisition mean to homeowners in the booming homeaway portfolio? It will mean greater exposure for the properties in France, Italy, Spain and Portugal. To add to this, Homeaway operates within its huge 360,000 properties worldwide the top two vacation home rentals in France, United Kingdom and United States, and the top vacation home rental site in Germany and Italy.

While it is best for homeowners within the homeaway portfolio, it is likewise best for the travelers of the 118 countries it is catering to. They have wider choices of private rental properties that will provide freedom, space, flexibility and convenience in their home away from home.

• Escapia published Update for Vacation Rental Industry  Wednesday, February 18, 2009
  Escapia Research™ recently published updates and reports on the vacation rental industry. These reports will help vacation rental managers understand the industry better and run their business well in this economically-challenged time. This data surely manifests that the market condition is down in general. By knowing this fact, managers will need to distribute properties in a manner that will not break the bank. Offering dynamic pricing and booking incentives to guests may help them market their products.
  
  
• Vacation Rentals portal Homeaway Inc. acquired Paris-based Homelidays   Sunday, February 15, 2009
  One of the biggest names in vacation home rentals in the US and the UK, Homeaway, Inc. announced its acquisition of another huge vacation rental company, Homelidays SAS. Homelidays SAS is a Paris-based holiday rental site with more than 40,000 listings in its portfolio. The acquisition of Paris-based Homelidays is the 12th acquisition of Homeaway since its inception in February 2005. Because of this acquisition, the home vacation rentals inventory of Homeaway Inc. surged to more than 360,000 vacation home rentals to cater to the travelers of the 118 countries they serve.