Once summer comes along, it seems as though everyone you know is running off to a fantastic rental that they lucked upon via a friend of a friend. You want in. But with all the online clutter, it’s hard to zero in on that rustic Cape Cod beach shack or chic Parisian pied-à-terre of your dreams.
Here at Remodelista we’ve done our share of vacation renting, from shoestring to more luxe. We look for places with local character that are thoughtfully pulled together inside and out. It’s a combination that’s elusive but not impossible to come by, if you know where to look (and if you’re careful to scrutinize the photos and details before signing on). Here are the rental sites that we turn to most often.
1. The Thinking Traveler
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2. Urlaubsarchitektur
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3. Unique Home Stays
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4. Landfolk
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5. Haven In
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6. Boutique Homes
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7. Welcome Beyond
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8. Landmark Trust
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9. Crabtree & Crabtree
For rental reccs, Margot goes to her friend Laura Jones, who lives York, England with her British husband (see her kitchen here) and “rents a roomy, well-situated house, every summer, for their far-flung family to gather,” according to Margot. Laura turned her on to Crabtree & Crabtree, good for holiday lets in the north of England. (“They have some lovely places,” Laura reports. “One of them, Milne Graden, is a collection of cottages on a riverside estate which is very present on Instagram.”)
10. Kip Hideaways
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11. One Fine Stay
Our group is of divided opinion about One Fine Stay (some of us have had good experiences, others not so great). That said, the site offers a wide range of luxury vacation stays in the main cities of New York, Colorado, California, Wyoming, and Hawaii, plus globally in France, Italy, Thailand, Spain, Indonesia, Mexico, and the Caribbean.
12. Kid & Coe
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13. Luci Stays
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14. Destination BCN
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15. Living Architecture
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N.B.: This post is a favorite from our archives; it originally ran on July 7, 2014, and we’re republishing it here with our new additions and updates for 2023.
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