A couple of weeks ago, a friend emailed me looking for an affordable, short-term apartment rental in Rome for an upcoming trip. Then just yesterday, another friend mentioned she was having trouble finding a house to swap in Manhattan for a particular week this summer. In both instances, I recommended a travel resource many people might not consider: Craigslist.
In case you don't know, Craigslist is a community-based website that was started in the Bay Area waaay back in the dot.com heyday. Think of it as a virtual coffeehouse bulletin board where you can find everything from job listings, real estate, used items for sale...even a quickie pickup. Posting on the site is free in most cases.
Craigslist in San Francisco became so popular that there are now local Craigslist sites in more than 120 cities around the world. And here's why that's exciting news for travelers everywhere: Craigslist has specific listings for both vacation rentals and housing swaps in each of the cities it serves.
In my first friend's case, I sent him to check the Craigslist Rome site for vacation rentals. My second friend searched the Craigslist NYC site for housing swaps, and also posted her own house to see if she could entice anyone in New York to make a swap. Remember, as with any online transaction, exercise caution when using Craigslist to find a short-term rental.
Say goodbye to sterile chain motels and overpriced hotels. With a little work and some luck, you could find yourself sitting pretty in your very own rental apartment or house on your next vacation.
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