Finding an Ireland Vacation Rental Online

Booking a vacation rental through a website takes a certain leap of faith – you’ve never seen the property, except in photographs, and you’re relying on someone else’s description of it to decide whether you want to call it “home” for a little while. And to make things even more confusing, if you just do an online search for “vacation rentals in Ireland” you’ll end up with pages of results and no indication of which websites are better than others.

To help you sort through the chaos, I’ve compiled a short list here of some of the vacation rental websites that I happen to think are useful. They don’t all have the same number of properties offered, but they do each have their benefits. What I’d suggest is that you check each one out for yourself to see which ones you prefer. Then, when you’re ready to book a vacation rental in Ireland you won’t have to hunt through all the hundreds of search results to find a website you like to use – you can go straight to the ones you’ve already tested and found helpful.

I’ve included a brief note about each of these websites so you can see why I’ve got it on my list – you may not agree with my assessments, and that’s okay, because you’re going to see for yourself which of these sites you prefer. And if you’ve got experience with one of these websites – or your favorite site for Ireland vacation rentals isn’t featured here – be sure to leave a comment below and let me know about it!

• Vacapedia – This site may not offer the most vacation rentals of any of the websites here, but it’s well-organized with properties listed by region and then by city, so you can get as specific in your search as you want.
• HomeAway – What I like about this site is the ability to choose different features that are important to you, above and beyond a location. You can browse based on the number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, and even the property style.
• BootsnAll – This site doesn’t have regional listings, so you’ll need to know at least a few cities you want to look in, but the number of properties offered is great, and there is something for all budgets.
• VRBO – VRBO stands for Vacation Rental By Owner, and that’s what these are. Some are properties managed by agencies, but the vast majority are private homes listed by their owners on this site. The variety is excellent, with properites in all price ranges all over the country.
• Great Trips Unlimited – This site specializes primarily on Ireland and the UK, so they’ve got that going for them. What they don’t do are budget accommodations – these are luxury rentals in castles and manor houses.
• Dream Ireland – This website lets you choose a type of vacation first, or a certain requirement for your vacation home (pet friendly, wheelchair accessible), and then gives you results based on that. You can also search the usual way, by location.