Monday, April 23, 2012

what are good questions for vacation rental/holiday flat?

We are considering a vacation rental apartment (holiday flat) for a Wed to Sat in Bruges this month. Definitely a last minute thing...





Do folks have suggestions on what kinds of questions we should ask when trying to pick one of these places?





Also, every once in a while I see a hotel review for Bruges where people complain about mosquitoes at night in their rooms. I assume the rental properties in Bruges will have no screens and no air conditioning, and so was wondering if there could be an issue with mosquitoes when we are trying to sleep.



Thanks.




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A good question, I think, except that Bruges is hardly known for having holiday flat rentals.



I have searched and found almost nothing, or not available.



Probably your only choice is www.ridderspoor.be



(also via www.vrbo.com/2551 ) , but then I think this is an excellent place.and price-wise it is does not get much cheaper than this in Bruges for ANY accomodation. Ask them if it has what you require.




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About mosquitoes: I live in Holland, not very far from Bruges and also in a watery area of town. I had ONE mosquitoe bite this summer in my home with open windows. but the summer has been cool enough at night to not open the windows much and the weather forecast is the same now (from Sunday at night down to 12 degrees C).




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dutchguy,



Thanks for the mosquito information, and also for taking the time to search for vacation rentals (holiday flats) in Bruges. I looked for them in Ghent and could not find ANY at all, except for one apartment style hotel. I did find several in Bruges, and most (as you said) were booked, except for 1 or 2 with whom I am exchanging email. If you know of anyplace to find listings for Ghent, I%26#39;d love to hear about it.




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I don%26#39;t think mosquitoes are a big problem in Amsterdam. Mosquitoes LOVE me and I%26#39;m here in Amsterdam in a flat and not one bite and we keep the windows open both day and night and are right near the Water. We have windows open both in the living room and in the bedroom and the flat occupies the entire floor. I haven%26#39;t even seen a mosquito during my stay except today in Muiden.





I don%26#39;t think there are any rental flats in Bruges. I%26#39;m headed there tomorrow and staying in a hotel.





But some good questions to ask rental managers are below:





- Which floor is the apartment on?





- Lots of natural sunlight or is it dark?





- What is the noise level like in the apartment?





- Is there air conditioning/heating/etc.?





- Is there a washing machine in the flat/building?





- Is there internet? Wi-fi?





- Is it on a busy street?





- What is the nearest bus line/metro line? How far away is it?





- How many apartments on the floor?





- Is there security in the building?





- How many sq. meters/feet is the flat?





- If there is a problem do they have someone that can assist during hours outside of the office?




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I have stayed several times in Bruges, in holiday homes - I have simply googled for holiday apartments Bruges. Many of them are small houses, but are still cheaper than hotel accommodation, and they are usually let independently by the owners, often via a %26#39;holiday rentals %26#39; site. Bruges does get very crowded in August, though, and you may find it hard to book a last-minute trip this month.



The owners have invariably been extremely helpful and friendly, and have answered any questions.



I%26#39;ve never suffered mosquito problems there, but have generally visited either in spring or September rather than August.



I don%26#39;t know how you are travelling, but if driving you should check for local parking - some places you can park kerbside, even in the centre, otherwise you may have to leave your car in one of the (plentiful) secured parking garages, at a reasonable daily fee.



I hope this helps.




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I don%26#39;t have a list of questions but I noticed people have mentioned the rentals are hard to find. I haven%26#39;t found that to be true and wanted to share vrbo.com as a source. There were several I wanted to rent on there but they were booked when I got around to booking. We got lucky by having one offered to us after checking with a B%26amp;B for availability. Since we were staying Mon-Fri they offered rental of a flat and I took them up on it. We%26#39;re leaving in just two weeks and I can%26#39;t wait!

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