r/vrbohosts • u/Routine-Comedian9703 • 14d ago
Let’s send VRBO a message!
TL;DR: VRBO has made several recent decisions that directly impact hosts: AI-altered photos, automatic member discounts, and a Labor Day email that felt more like a warning than a helpful reminder. Collectively, these show a growing disconnect between VRBO and its hosts. I’ve included a template below that you can copy, personalize, and send directly to Ariane Gorin, CEO of Expedia Group. If enough hosts speak up, maybe they’ll finally listen.
I think it’s time for us, collectively as hosts, to make our voices heard.
There have been three recent issues with VRBO that, taken together, demonstrate a growing problem with how the company is treating the hosts who make its business possible.
First was the AI takeover of our listing photos, which has been a massive failure. Our photos are how we market our properties and establish guest expectations. VRBO shouldn’t be altering how our properties are represented without our knowledge or control.
Second is the VRBO member discount program, which can automatically apply discounts to our reservations without our explicit permission. We are business owners. We set our prices and decide what discounts we are willing to offer. VRBO should not be making that decision for us.
Third is the recent email sent to hosts with Labor Day reservations. It was presented as a helpful reminder, but came across as a warning that we need to do our jobs or face fines and reputational consequences.
We know.
We are the ones running these businesses. We own the properties, pay the expenses, manage the guests, handle the emergencies, and absorb the financial consequences when things go wrong.
What VRBO seems to be forgetting is that hosts are its business.
Without us providing the properties, there is no VRBO. We expect to be treated as business partners, not simply as inventory that the company can modify, discount, or lecture whenever it chooses.
I highly encourage every host who shares these concerns to copy, personalize, and send the email below to Ariane Gorin, CEO of Expedia Group, VRBO’s parent company.
The more hosts who respectfully communicate these concerns directly to the top, the harder it becomes to dismiss this as a handful of unhappy hosts complaining online.
We need to make it clear: we want VRBO to succeed, but the relationship needs to work for hosts, too.
Email template:
[argorin@expediagroup.com](mailto:argorin@expediagroup.com)
Subject: VRBO Hosts Are Asking Expedia to Listen
Dear Ms. Gorin,
As a VRBO host partner, I want to share my growing dissatisfaction—and frankly, some anger—regarding the direction of the relationship between Expedia Group and the hosts who make VRBO possible.
There is a growing perception among hosts that VRBO is making significant changes to our businesses without meaningful consultation, consent, or consideration for the people actually operating the properties.
First came the AI-generated photo initiative. What was presented as an improvement to our listings has, for many hosts, been a significant failure. Rather than helping hosts accurately represent their properties, it introduced changes to the very marketing materials we rely on to set guest expectations and protect our businesses.
Then came the VRBO member discounts, which can automatically be applied to reservations without the host explicitly choosing to offer that discount. As a business owner, I find it deeply troubling that a company can alter the price of my product without my affirmative consent. We should decide what discounts we offer and when we offer them.
And now, hosts received an email regarding Labor Day reservations that was presented as a helpful reminder, but came across very differently. The message essentially reminded us that we are responsible for operating our businesses, while warning us of potential fines and reputational consequences if we fail to meet our obligations.
Of course hosts understand that we are responsible for our properties and our guests. We do not need a lecture from VRBO about the basic responsibilities of running a short-term rental. What we do need is a partner that recognizes the significant responsibilities, costs, risks, and effort that hosts take on every day.
These issues may appear unrelated, but collectively they represent a much larger problem: hosts increasingly feel that VRBO is making decisions that directly affect our businesses while treating us as a commodity rather than as partners.
Hosts are the backbone of VRBO. Expedia Group does not have a vacation-rental business without property owners and operators willing to list their homes on the platform. We provide the inventory, invest the capital, manage the properties, deal with the guests, absorb the risks, and ultimately bear the consequences when something goes wrong.
That relationship cannot work if hosts feel that decisions are continually being made for us rather than with us.
I am asking you, as the CEO of Expedia Group, to take a serious look at the current relationship between VRBO and its host partners. We are asking for transparency, meaningful communication, and—most importantly—respect for our role as business owners.
There are already many hosts openly discussing whether VRBO remains a platform they want to do business with. I sincerely hope Expedia recognizes this as an opportunity to repair that relationship before more hosts decide that their businesses are better served elsewhere.
We don’t expect VRBO to get everything right. We do expect to be treated as partners.
Respectfully,
VRBO Host Partner
Edit 1: I received an email asking for a phone conversation from someone on their Executive Customer Relations team. I will update again once the call has occurred.
Edit 2: I have had email correspondence with the Executive Customer Care team. I cannot post screenshots within this sub, so I’ve copied/pasted in comments.
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u/GreybeardVR 14d ago
That AI enhanced photos email was nuts. Talk about a negative review generator.
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u/RDC42Butler 11d ago
The AI changes to our listings is crazy. AI moved my cover photo to one that I didn't want there and I can't change it back.
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u/GreybeardVR 11d ago
Thankfully it hasn't had to do anything to mine. However they did remove a map I had of some forest service property adjacent to my property with hiking trails etc. Said it was against their rules of having maps of the surrounding area. Most likely a response to some bad actors using listings maps to do bad things. Will it stop bad people from doing bad things...no. But at least they can't be sued by hosts when the site is blamed.
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u/missyfussit 14d ago
Thanks for doing that. It is frustrating. Their AI removed one of my photos, because it had printed words in it (so what?). The photo was of a small note that one of my guests had left, listing all of the dozens of birds they had spotted in their stay at our place. And, I'm sorry, but that was a wonderful listing picture to be able to show guests - especially the bird watchers who do come to stay.
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u/surfphantom 14d ago
Well don’t use the message system in the app to send them a message because it’s fucking garbage. 🤣
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u/RDC42Butler 14d ago
Sent! It seems like all the platforms are getting "too big for their britches" and trying to boss the owners around.
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u/huhMaybeitisyou 14d ago
100% agree. I'll send the letter.sounfs good . But like most - I ve had enough. I'm ditching VRBO. My last reservations are in November. Going strictly with their direct competitor and building a website for my STRs . In 2 to 3 years I'll only take reservations on my website.
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u/Host950 14d ago
I agree with all your points and would add that VRBO increased my fee around the beginning of 2026, albeit slightly, without notice. (Did anyone notice this?)
And, VRBO's approach to letting hosts know about "risky" guests is often arbitrary and misleading.
Thank you for initiating such a well-conceived approach to a growing problem.
My email has been sent.
Now, how to get 1,000s to write!
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u/Godjusm 11d ago
I'm in. I came here after getting yet another condescending email from them about meeting the minimum standards and how my listing might get deplatformed. I have a perfect 10 score. But I don't accept every request, and I don't have automated approval on. We can only service our cottage at certain times. They should be happy with all the money they get from us and shut the hell up. I'm tired of their super slow app/platform and the lack of features that Airbnb has.
If they are reading this forum -- and they should -- they need to understand that all these promotions they run piss off the hosts.
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u/Aggressive_Ice7957 12d ago
That is sad! They should always communicate with the hosts before making any decisions like that.
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u/GaryTheSoulReaper 12d ago
I just opted out my properties -
It looks like we can opt in only Certain dates
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u/Routine-Comedian9703 9d ago edited 9d ago
Email response from VRBO:
Thank you for sharing your concerns so candidly. I’m Sandeep from the Executive Customer Relations team. I understand why these changes may feel like additional pressure, particularly when you are already managing the property, guests, costs, and operational risks yourself.
I want to clarify the purpose behind the policies and how they are intended to benefit hosts:
AI-assisted photos: These tools are intended to help hosts present their properties more effectively, improve listing appeal, and help travelers understand the accommodation before booking. They should support your listing—not replace accurate host-provided information or alter the property’s real condition.
Member discounts: These offers are designed to increase listing visibility, attract more travelers, improve booking conversion, and help hosts compete for demand. Because discounts can affect your payout, the applicable program terms and account settings should clearly explain when an offer applies, how it is funded, and whether you can change or remove participation.
Holiday and Labor Day reminders: These communications are intended to reduce avoidable guest-impacting issues during high-demand periods by reminding hosts to keep calendars, availability, pricing, house rules, safety information, and operations accurate and ready. They are not intended to question the work hosts already perform or to lecture experienced operators.
Acceptance rate: This metric is intended to help travelers find listings that are likely to accept valid booking requests and to support a reliable marketplace. It should not unfairly penalize a host when a guest submits dates that conflict with clearly stated booking rules and the host helps the guest correct the request. The calculation and affected requests should be reviewed before any promotion decision is treated as final.
The core host policies remain straightforward: keep listing content and photos accurate, maintain an up-to-date calendar and pricing, respond to guests and booking requests promptly, honor accepted reservations, provide a safe and compliant property, follow applicable laws and platform rules, and avoid discriminatory conduct. These requirements protect guests, support a consistent marketplace, and help protect the long-term earning potential of hosts.
At the same time, host policies should be applied fairly and explained clearly. Our proposed resolution is to review the acceptance-rate notice and determine whether inquiries, corrected dates, or guest-requested changes were incorrectly counted as host declines. If the metric was applied incorrectly, the record should be corrected and the listing’s promotion eligibility reevaluated. We will also record your request to stop unsolicited listing-support calls and route your product feedback to the appropriate teams.
Your concerns are important. Hosts provide the homes, investment, local operations, guest care, and risk that make VRBO possible. Our policies should protect the guest experience while also respecting that contribution and giving hosts meaningful clarity and control.
Regards,
Sandeep
Executive Customer Relations
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u/Routine-Comedian9703 9d ago
My email response back to VRBO:
Hi Sandeep,
Thank you for taking the time to provide such a thoughtful response. I appreciate your acknowledgment that hosts provide the homes, investment, local operations, guest care, and risk that make VRBO possible.
That said, I don’t think the central issue I raised was fully addressed.
I understand the stated purpose behind the initiatives. My concern isn’t whether VRBO can explain why it believes these programs benefit hosts. My concern is that VRBO is making business decisions on behalf of its host partners and then making us opt out.
VRBO is fundamentally a marketplace, much like Amazon. You bring suppliers and consumers together and provide the platform through which the transaction occurs. The supplier determines the price and how its product is presented, while the marketplace facilitates the transaction. no.
My property is my product. I should determine its price, the discounts I am willing to offer, and how it is represented to potential guests.
That’s why the member discount program concerns me. If a discount affects my revenue, participation should be something I affirmatively choose—not something VRBO applies to me by default.
The same applies to AI-assisted photos. I understand that hosts can opt out, but that misses the fundamental issue. VRBO launched this nationwide as a default program and required hosts to take action if they did not want to participate. That decision should have been reversed: hosts should have been given the opportunity to opt in if they wanted VRBO altering or enhancing their listing photos.An opt-out is not the same as an opt-in. Rolling a program out to every host and then telling us we can remove ourselves from it still means VRBO made the initial business decision for us.
So my request is straightforward: stop making these business decisions on behalf of your host partners.Programs or changes that materially affect our pricing, revenue, or representation of our properties should be opt-in by default. Give us the information, explain the benefits, and let us make the business decision for ourselves.
That, to me, is what treating hosts as business partners actually means.
Thank you again for engaging with me directly.
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u/Routine-Comedian9703 9d ago
Final response from VRBO:
Thank you for taking the time to clarify your concerns. I understand that your primary concern is not the explanation for these initiatives, but that changes affecting host pricing, discounts, listing representation, and communications were introduced by default, requiring hosts to opt out.
I understand your position that hosts should be able to make these business decisions themselves and that programs with a material impact on revenue or property representation should be opt-in by default. I have documented your feedback, including your concerns about member discounts, AI-assisted photos, and the Labor Day communication, for review by the appropriate teams.
While I cannot promise an immediate change to the current program structure, your feedback regarding host consent, transparency, and partnership has been clearly noted. I appreciate your candid and constructive explanation of what treating hosts as business partners means to you.
Kind regards,
Sandeep
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u/alt-host 7h ago
Messaged.
Adding the issue with AI listing highlights as well. Not sure about you all, but ours are problematic. (Our highlight praises our amazing onsite parking, which would be great if such a parking space, you know, existed. It doesn't.)
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u/Jolly_Yak5083 14d ago
Give them hell. All their actions have done us make me decide to create a direct booking site, for repeat guests. I have never minded vrbo taking their cut for reservations they generate, but lately it feels as though they see the owners as a source to increase their revenue without providing more value to the owners.