Virtual tours can lead to more bookings. Learn various ways to add a virtual tour to your vacation rental listing so travelers can get a full view of your property.
Virtual tours
Used for
Setting traveler expectations
Benefits
Give travelers an immersive look into your property
Overview
Virtual tours go beyond images and videos to showcase your property — they create an immersive shopping experience for travelers. They also help to set traveler expectations, increase bookings, and make your property stand out.
Virtual tours use 360-degree images that create an interactive experience for travelers searching for properties. Unlike videos, virtual tours give travelers complete control to navigate your property themselves, exploring the features and amenities that matter most to them. Travelers can access the virtual tour from their desktop, mobile phones, or the traveler app.
Not only do virtual tours offer an interactive shopping experience, they also can reduce the time spent responding to questions about your property — which also shortens the time to book. And when travelers’ expectations are met, they’re more likely to leave a glowing review.
How it works
We work with our verified providers* to offer both self-service and full-service solutions for homeowners and property managers who want to create a virtual tour. Choose from our verified providers and tools below to find the option that meets your budget and needs.
To capture a virtual tour, homeowners and property managers will need to work with a third-party provider with professional equipment or photography services. There are four providers of virtual tour technology that currently integrate with our platform, so you can easily add a tour to your vacation rental listing.
*For international partners, virtual tours can be added from one of our preferred providers, but when publishing from a verified provider, they will need to use the vrbo.com (US site) link for their listing.
Full-service solutions
Hiring a professional can be a smart option for partners without the time or expertise to do it themselves. We work with the following verified providers and recommend their services:
SmartShoot
Work with SmartShoot to create a virtual tour and upload it to their listing. SmartShoot is a photography service that uses InsideMaps technology to capture a virtual tour of your vacation rental.
TruPlace
Property managers with multiple vacation rentals will benefit from a more custom approach to virtual tours. TruPlace is a network of professional property photographers that captures virtual tours, but they only serve hosts with 50 or more properties.
Self-service solutions
For partners who prefer to handle virtual tours themselves, there are many different services and tools that can create a professional interactive experience. Read more about our verified providers.
InsideMaps
InsideMaps sells equipment to capture virtual tours on your own — using your iPhone. The InsideMaps iPhone app works with the equipment to self-capture virtual tours that look professional.
Matterport
Property managers with multiple properties can use Matterport’s full-service photography and professional camera equipment to create their own virtual tours. Matterport is a virtual tour hosting platform that uses a subscription-based pricing model. Additionally, they have the Matterport Capture mobile app that can be used to capture virtual tours at no cost up front.
From your dashboard, visit “Edit property” then “Virtual tour”.
FAQs
A virtual tour is an immersive tool that enables travelers to experience an interactive view of your property. Unlike a video, virtual tours use a sequence of 360-degree images compiled together to create a simulation of your property. Virtual tours allow travelers to navigate through your property at their own pace, controlling what they see and where they go next.
To capture your virtual tour, you'll need to work with a third-party provider who can provide equipment or photography services. There are four providers who use virtual tour technology integrated with our platform so that you can easily add your virtual tour to your listing.
The details you share about your property - types of amenities, policies, proximity to popular destinations - are used when travelers narrow a search to find a vacation rental that meets their specific needs. The visibility of your property is helped when you provide more detailed information. Great photos and information about the area help travelers imagine their stay and prompt them to book. Keeping your listing up to date with photos and amenities will help you stay competitive.
Virtual tours help travelers decide if a property's layout will fit their needs. It's also a more immersive experience, and they can imagine themselves in the vacation rental.
Your virtual tour will appear on your property listings page in the photos section.
Our easy-to-use owner dashboard will be the primary location for managing your reservations, updating rates and keeping your listing up to date. Some partners choose to use a software provider to link our systems. They still log in to the owner dashboard to leverage our more advanced tools like MarketMaker and Boost.
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If you haven't found what you are looking for, visit our Help Center for step-by-step guidance on how to use our products.
Visit your local laws page in your dashboard for more information.
If you’d like to get involved or learn more about the policy landscape in your community, please reach out to GovernmentAffairs@Vrbo.com.
Integrated property managers use third-party or proprietary software that they have connected to our marketplace to manage their listings. Integrated property managers can manage thier listings directly from their software by an integration feed that automatically updates reservations, amenities, photos and more.
