When it comes to the vacations of the rich and famous, hotels are losing out to luxury villas, which provide elite services worth upwards of $28,000 per day. Private jets, helicopters, Ferraris, and a private staff of chefs, butlers and masseuses are just some of the services that can be provided, but privacy is still the true differentiator, as explained in “World’s 10 Most Expensive For-Hire Resorts,” an article published by Forbes Traveler. “Privacy has become the number one requirement for really wealthy travelers and you don’t get privacy in a hotel,” the article states. Travelers are also discovering that luxury vacation rentals “combine the intimacy of a private home with the luxury of a top hotel,” making any luxury rental the new vacation destination.

Luxury vacation rentals are not a new concept, but until now it has not been convenient for travelers to find these rentals. It has been even harder for owners of these properties to be convinced that their homes will not be rented and destroyed by a group of spring breakers.

Fortunately, with the creation of social networking tools and a host of other web 2.0 solutions, the vacation rental industry is gaining footing. At TheSociety.com, luxury vacation rentals can be easily browsed, while feedback mechanisms keep renters and owners honest. The Society is the most trusted community for luxury vacation rental listings on the web, and you don’t need to spend $30,000 per day to enjoy an exceptional rental home.

The other day a webinar (that’s a seminar on the web) titled, “Evangelizing Evangelists to Build a Business and Build Your Brand” was presented, explaining every aspect of evangelism—the process of of engaging people to believe in your product or idea as much as you do. At the Society, we are more passionate than ever about building our brand and helping others build theirs. Here are some helpful tips from the Webinar:

• “Brands are built intentionally, and the internet allows everyone to evolve their brands.”

• “Businesses must create avenues to allow people to spread the word.” You can make a conscious effort to develop your brand, by providing tools to make it easier for people to share and connect with each other. Tools would include social networks, profiles and the blog you’re reading now.

• “Define and grab a single concept and build on that. Pick It, Build It, and Defend It.”

• “Challenge people in high places that are restricting the ability of others to grow. Having a strong brand means upsetting some people.”

These tips are valuable for forging an online reputation. We are working hard to provide more online avenues to build brands within the vacation rental industry, and it was great to hear evidence in support of these efforts from some of the top evangelism experts.

Take a look at a sample Corporate Profile for a property manager here, and if you don’t yet have a profile on The Society, click here to begin building your online brand.

With the winter season upon us, and the holiday vacation season looming in the distance, we interviewed Jeff Progar, a Denver-based homebuilder and developer, who kindly let us pick his brain on luxury vacation rentals.

The Society: As a custom developer at Eagle Equity, what is your company’s building philosophy?

JP: As developers and builders of high-end custom homes, we focus on unique environments. The resort area is an obvious bet—they are a safe haven for developers and provide better odds than the standard suburban environment.

Could you elaborate on your philosophy of unique homes?

JP: Location is obvious—when we design and build a home that is a rental unit, we look to see if all the required conveniences are available. We see if it is close to town, on or near public transportation and within proximity to the primary resort activity. Size is a factor as well. We find that there is a high demand for larger homes coupled with low inventory. Finally, there are many design features that need to be incorporated into a “rental.” For example, no porous tiles or carpet on any major traffic area.

Is there a lot more to designing a rental home then there is to upgrading an existing home?

JP: Yes. For rental homes, we specialize in large luxury homes, which obviously means more people and the finest amenities. Larger groups require two dishwashers, prep and dish sinks, double washers and dryers, massive mudrooms for ski equipment and two or more master suites.

New studies from the 2006 June Mintel Report show that U.S. travelers are less inclined to travel during the winter season than at any other time of the year. When polled, participants cited household income and children as the main components of why their travel dwindled during the winter months. The poles also indicated that because of the normally excessive costs of the winter holidays, families are less likely to spend their money on travel. We are “at a time when discretionary income is on the decline for all but the top tier of households,” which makes travel the new luxury. The exception is found within higher income families, travelers over the age of fifty-five and gay and lesbian couples; these groups represent the majority of winter travelers.

Surprisingly, tropical destinations such as Mexico and the Caribbean are not the main hot spots for these winter travelers. Instead, the majority of Americans like to spend their holidays in America, citing the south and the west coast as their preferred destinations. On average, “winter holiday travel is falling in line with current travel trends, which includes a move towards more frequent short vacations.”

But even for the most minute mountain towns, winter is still the high travel season. The big Colorado resorts, such as Aspen, Breckenridge and Vail pull in such high amounts of travelers during the winter, that planning a vacation requires booking months in advance.

In order to raise their revenue, travel companies will have to cater specifically to the popular winter travel groups.

Luxury service and dining are no longer only for the wealthy. Top-notch accommodations are now the new way to travel, as proven in the excess of refurbishment that many golf and ski resorts have recently undergone

Beaver Creek, a luxury ski resort in Colorado, has been gradually icing itself into a glamorous resort, revamping spas and offering only the finest cuisine at its restaurants, as noted in Amanda Boyd’s article, Luxury at its Finest: Ski Colorado’s Beaver Creek. The town’s Allegria Spa, located at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek, “recently underwent a substantial renovation, adding 20,000 square feet in treatment rooms and additional exercise space,” making it the new ‘it’ spa in Summit County.

Golf resorts are also following in suit. Courses are now being designed as more of a work of art than just for sport. Carefully designed and constructed, golf courses now provide not only an athletic experience, but a tranquilly luxurious one as well. Clubhouses are filled with luxurious spas and five star dining accommodations, which are designed to calm any golfer after a frazzled day on the course. Confirming this statement, Jim Osborn writes in his article, Scottsdales’s Most Luxurious Golf Resorts, on how Arizona’s Orange Tree Golf Resort takes the term ‘clubhouse’ to the next level. The golf course offers “a variety of dining and entertainment choices, over 14,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space, a fitness center, a crystal clear pool amidst cascading waterfalls, towering palms and flower-filled gardens.”

Women are officially the new people to cater to in the online vacation booking industry. According to a survey by Marketing to Women in the June 2006 Mintel Report, 65% of women book online compared to the only 59% of men. TIA’s Leisure Travel Planning Study, stated that when considering travel for leisure or entertainment purposes, women are the ones who are most involved with the booking and reservation process.

Travel websites be warned, a view into the female psyche is now a must for revenue.

With thousands of rentals up and down the coasts and plenty in between, every traveler should consider staying in a rental when visiting Florida. According to Visit Florida, over 83.9 million visited this sun filled state in 2006. Scott and Mike, The Society’s Co-Founders, will add to that number this week. They are heading to the 2007 Central Florida Property Managers Association Annual Conference and Tradeshow this Thursday. If you’re in the area shoot Mike a note and learn more about The Society.

In a recent article published on CNN, Christopher Elliott explains why “Inn is out: 5 reasons to skip a hotel“. Hotels definitely have their purpose and place, but we agree: a hotel is not the optimal spot for a leisurely vacation. In the article, the 5 reasons are as follows:

• Lots and lots of room
• More privacy
• A better price
• You can go native
• Extra flexibility

Those are all great reasons, but don’t be fooled staying in a vacation rental or B&B or condo does take a little more work for the traveler. After all, you’re either working with a home owner or a property manager — not a billion dollar organization that has all the booking and reservation systems in place. Granted, many property managers now have sophisticated systems where booking on line and finding local information from an in house- concierge is possible.

If you’ve never considered a vacation rental, try it out. Go to our search page and inquire about a few spots.