Running gîtes all one is looking for is enough clients to fill the place. So for us it is about 24 bookings as some are for two weeks, and we also block out 8 weeks for our own holidays. It is not the sort of business where one has flexible capacity, so more demand is not very useful to us.
There are different models where Air could be more appropriate.
We pay €175 a year to be listed on 4 direct booking portals, with no extra commission. So far that has brought us the customers we need and the summer is often fully booked by end January. By not using Air our prices are lower than the competition, which also helps attract custom.
So we see no reason to pay several thousand in fees to them.
Interestingly I opt for the commission on Vrbo because most of my bookings are returners who come straight to me and pay my prices. So I’m only looking for one or two newbies each year and even then the smart ones do their research find me directly. So it’s not worth my while paying an annual subscription.
Vrbo have the spread - they advertise me in Europe (as well as the UK) via their translation engines (French, German, Dutch) and I don’t have to do anything and some of my guests like paying by credit card (which I don’t accept). I’m not thrilled by Vrbo’s practices (eg holding onto my guests’ money until my guests have moved in) but they bring me all I need without any additional effort on my part.
Everyone’s business model is different.
It’s good that yours works for you however the growth of Airbnb in recent years obviously works for many owners who use them.
If you’re into WW1 history, there are a ton of things to visit, some of them more or less macabre. The ossuaire at Douaumont springs to mind, obviously the remains of various trench lines, and a number of forts that formed the Maginot line, and the Bois Brûlé.
I seem to remember that Verdun was an OK town to wander around in, not big, but had enough towny interest for me at the time. Otherwise Nancy city centre, although it’s been a while. There’s a Madeleine factory in Commercy, you can try wine from the Cotes de Toul (vin gris, and red, maybe white too, not sure now) and of course the eaux de vie (mirabelle, poire, marc de raisin).
For a kids day out, there’s Parc Walibi, just north of Metz. If shopping is a thing, there’s Avenue des Marques outlet stores also in the suburbs of Metz.
Edit:
Parc Walibi is now called Walygator Grand Est Parc d’attractions
Avenue des Marques is called Marques Avenue Talange
@toryroo
If you have a trip to Luxembourg, don’t forget that many things are cheaper than in France. I know people who go regularly to buy cigarettes or tobacco. They say the customs aren’t too interested if you only buy one brand, as easily argued for personal use, if you have 4-5 sleeves of different brands & pouches of tobacco, also cigars, it’s much harder.
Hi, thanks so much for that info, I’m just looking and it seems that the town of Esch-sur-Alzette is the closest border do us, would that be the best place to get a train from? I’m trying to find out about parking.
I remember the huge Gîte de France book you could buy, before the internet. Tall and narrow, about 3 inches thick and with very thin fragile paper. We did touring holidays in France every year for several years just using that book.
Well you could get a train from Esch, not sure about the parking, you might have to pay. There should be a Park & Ride in the area as well where the parking will be free. Google Search is the site to look at for train timetables.
It would be best to avoid the rush hour in the morning because there is a lot of cross-border traffic. Almost half of the Luxembourgish work force consists of frontaliers and most of them are French.