February 15, 2013 - Early booking numbers for vacation rental homes on Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket listed with WeNeedaVacation.com are up over 16% over the same booking period last year. This increase continues the upward trend over the past 4 years, including a 26% improvement over 2011, 53% over 2010 and 66% over 2009.
The rise in bookings is evident in both the spring and fall "shoulder" seasons as well as the high-season summer rentals: springtime bookings up 16.3%, summer 15.9%, and fall 19.6%.
In terms of price bands, relatively modest homes listed under $2,000/week have so far enjoyed the greatest increase in bookings at 18.7% over last year; homes listed in the $2,000-$3,000/week range are up 15%; those in the $3,000-$4,000/week range are up a more modest 12.2%; and those listed at over $4,000/week are up as much as 15.2%.
Another trend apparent on the website in the past 3 years is that vacationers are booking earlier. During the 2009 and 2010 seasons, vacationers appeared more hesitant and less willing to commit to a vacation rental until closer to the season. WeNeedaVacation.com believes this is yet another indication of growth in consumer confidence and a reason to be cautiously optimistic for the remainder of the 2013 rental season.