Websites To Visit

In each of the destination reviews, I suggest local agencies for rental bookings. But let's be real, you'll often get better prices by negotiating directly with the owner of a vacation rental, rather than using a middle-man.

While I don't recommend renting over Craigslist (the lack of any sort of fee to make a listing has made this site appealing to con artists), the following direct to owner websites have good reputations and offer a decent amount of oversight. Since each has different listings, it's a good idea to scour a few before settling:

• FlipKey (www.flipkey.com), a TripAdvisor company.
• Owner Direct Vacation Rentals (www.ownerdirect.com)
• VRBO (www.vrbo.com)
• Rentalo (www.rentalo.com)
• HomeAway (www.homeaway.com)
• Rentvillas.com (www.rentvillas.com), a rental agency, not a direct-to-owner site, specializing in Europe and the Caribbean. Key feature: it introduces you to past renters, so you can ask questions)
• ABetterStay.com (www.abetterstay.com), a new site that handles only professionally-managed properties)
• Untours (www.untours.com), a bit different than the others, in that it provides an on-site contact. This person gives you an orientation on the area when you arrive and is available throughout the course of your stay to help with questions and any problems that might arise.)