owners direct - good?

[littleomar]

trying to find a villa in spain. some really nice ones on here - and really cheap compared to the company we used last time. is there a catch?

tia

I have used them a few times and mil uses them at least 4 times a year. Never had any problems with the villas or the service

We use them regularly and have never been disappointed. You are booking direct with the villa owner, not with a company so I suppose you could say there is a risk attached to handing your money over to a person rather than a company with ABTA protection. Also, many dont accept credit card payments so you dont have that protection either.

That said, its a risk we have taken a number of times and have never had a problem.

Owners direct is simply an advertising site. The booking is with the owner. There will be good owners and not so good owners, the trick is to tell the difference.

My advice is to ask questions and see how quick you get answers, and whether the answers are the ones you want. Don't forget that you can phone as well as e-mail.

IMO anyone who hasn't replied within 24 hours should be forgotten about.

Also use other resorses to check up on the properties, trip advisor is one but there are others. See how long they have been advertising on the site (bottom left hand side of the ad) as well. Anyone that has been there for more than a coule of years is likely to be resonably good.

Check out the owners own website (link next to the enquiry form) IMO anyone without their own site is not likely to be very proffesional.

Happy searching.

I have also used holiday lettings too. Not sure of the web address but might worth googling

so far the standard of accommodation has always been far better via owners direct than it was with the large holiday agency in pembrokeshire - who provided me with a filthy and poorly maintained place that took 2 people 3 hours of cleaning to get to a mediocre state.

booking via an agency gives no guarantees either.

I've just used it for the first time so we will see... However for my protection I asked for a UK address and a landline number of the owner and even looked up the address on Google to see if it looked "respectable" before I sent deposit. I suppose a certain amount of trust is required on both parts (the owner is allowing a complete stranger to stay in their valuable property!) but Owners Direct is a site that people I know have used with no problems.

Google maps is a good idea. It can show things like whether there really is a pool.

Not sure about asking for a UK address though, not all owners live in the UK, many live in the country of the property (France, Spain etc) In fact I personally prefer that as I feel those that are renting out their own second home tend to be less professional than those running a business.

I've just booked for this summer with them so I hope they're ok. Looks amazing online and all correspondence has been quick and v professional.

thanks for all the tips. i checked out the owners' own website and talked to them today. yay holidays.

Mmmmm I think I prefer a UK based owner as at least I'm familiar with the legal system if it all went wrong

I've used them many times, and with no problems, but I do always choose a UK based owner.

I advertise my villa with Owners Direct and provide a UK landline and mobile number as well as email address. When people want to book, they get a booking form with my address on and the option of sending a cheque to that address or paying by bank transfer.

We've used them a few times for places in Portugal and France and have been very happy.

The reviews by previous holiday makers are often useful and, also, you can see how long someone has been with the website/company so that can feel a bit more reassuring.