Reflecting on 2025 and Looking Ahead to 2026
As we begin 2026, we want to take a thoughtful look back at 2025, a year that required adaptability, strategic decision-making, and a continued focus on long-term value for our homeowners. While the travel industry experienced headwinds toward the latter part of the year, Altez Vacations remained focused on strengthening the fundamentals of our business: distribution, visibility, service quality, and local relationships.
Throughout 2025, we made meaningful investments in expanding and diversifying where and how your properties are marketed. This included new integrations with premium and loyalty-driven travel platforms, deeper collaboration with existing OTA partners, and increased visibility through direct and professional booking channels. These efforts were designed to reduce reliance on any single source of demand while positioning your homes in front of high-quality, well-aligned travelers.
At the same time, we continued to deepen our roots in the Sarasota and Siesta Key communities, through leadership, sponsorships, chamber involvement, and a new downtown office location, ensuring that Altez Vacations remains both locally grounded and professionally connected. Internally, we strengthened our team, enhanced owner services such as Home Watch and linen programs, and laid the groundwork for additional offerings, including long-term property management.
This update provides a comprehensive overview of what we accomplished in 2025 and how those initiatives directly support performance in 2026. It also outlines our priorities for the peak season ahead, and the steps we are taking to protect occupancy, revenue, and property care in a changing booking environment.
As always, our goal remains the same: to be proactive stewards of your homes, trusted partners in your investment strategy, and consistent advocates for quality, transparency, and long-term success.
We recognize that this update is lengthy; however, our intent is to provide a thorough review of 2025 alongside a clear outlook for 2026. Moving forward, we plan to share updates more frequently, allowing for shorter, more concise communications that highlight key progress and anticipated outcomes. In addition, we will begin distributing regular market updates to keep you informed on performance trends and forward-looking market conditions.
2025 Highlights:
Expanding Our Distribution & OTA Integrations
Throughout 2025, Altez Vacations strategically expanded its distribution footprint to ensure owner properties receive maximum exposure across premium, luxury, and professional travel channels.
Marriott Bonvoy – Homes & Villas
Altez Vacations is excited to announce our integration with the Marriott Bonvoy Homes & Villas program, providing access to more than 200 million Marriott Bonvoy members worldwide. Guests can book select homes using loyalty points, positioning Altez as one of the few Sarasota-area managers with this premium distribution advantage.
Wander.com
Wander specializes in selling a differentiated, high-quality vacation rental experience that combines the comfort and space of private homes with the consistency and service of luxury hotels. Wander’s target market comprises affluent and quality-seeking travelers, including families, leisure vacationers, remote workers, corporate groups, and repeat guests, who are willing to pay a premium for consistency, reliability, upscale amenities, and personalized service.
Google Vacation Rentals
Google Vacation Rentals functions as a powerful commission-free metasearch engine that displays short-term rental listings directly in Google Search, Google Maps, and the dedicated travel interface, helping capture high-intent traveler traffic earlier in the booking journey without relying solely on traditional Online Travel Agents. Google Vacation Rentals boosts visibility to millions of Google users, increases direct bookings with no platform commission, and strengthen brand credibility while expanding beyond the limitations and costs of other listing channels.
Haven (HVN)
Stay HVN (stayhvn.com) is a premium B2B vacation rental marketplace and distribution channel that connects professionally managed homes, villas and one-of-a-kind private residences with high-value travelers and travel advisors seeking elevated residential stays that combine the comforts of home with hospitality-grade service. The platform partners with property managers and owners to list their premium inventory, then distributes those listings through a global network of professional trip designers, corporate travel planners and curated travel partners, exposing properties to guests who book stays with longer lead times, higher spend and lower cancellation rates.
Capital One Travel
Capital One Travel is primarily a credit-card-linked travel booking portal that allows eligible Capital One cardholders to book flights, hotels, rental cars and, increasingly, vacation rentals with curated benefits and rewards directly through its online platform. Capital One members can book their travel through integrated partners of Hopper.com and Rentals United.
Continued Partnership Integrations
Airbnb & VRBO
Altez Vacations continued close collaboration with Airbnb and VRBO throughout 2025, maintaining strong ranking performance and visibility. Approximately 36% of 2025 bookings came from Airbnb, 25% from VRBO and 35% from Altez Vacations. In 2025, Altez Vacations maintained an average review score of 4.8+ across platforms. We continue to hold Airbnb Superhost and VRBO Premier Host status.
Airbnb Luxe
For select properties, Altez Vacations is now integrated with the Airbnb Luxe program, opening exposure directly to Airbnb’s exclusive luxury travel program. Only 25,000 properties worldwide have been accepted into this program, and Altez Vacations is honored to currently have 7 listings within this program.
Airbnb Pricing Structure Changes
At the end of October 2025, Airbnb implemented a platform-wide change to its host fee pricing structure, eliminating the prior split between host and guest service fees. Under the new model, Airbnb now charges a consolidated host fee of 15.5% of the gross reservation total, assessed directly to hosts. In response, Altez Vacations has adjusted its Airbnb pricing strategy to largely offset the impact of this increased platform fee while preserving booking competitiveness. Altez Vacations will continue to pass through only the standard 3% Airbnb processing fee to owners for reservations originating on the Airbnb platform, consistent with our commitment to transparent and owner-aligned pricing.
Realtor & Travel Advisor Partnerships
Partnerships with realtors and professional travel advisors continue to be a foundational component of Altez Vacations’ growth strategy and a meaningful driver of qualified bookings. These relationships extend our reach beyond traditional online travel platforms and position our properties in front of clients who value professional recommendations, trust, and service continuity.
Local Market Engagement & Community Presence
Throughout 2025, Altez Vacations continued to prioritize deep, intentional engagement within the Sarasota and Siesta Key communities. We believe that strong local presence is not just good for brand visibility it directly impacts owner performance through referrals, partnerships, and long-term trust.
Leadership & Representation
Our CEO, Kara Altice-Montes, continues to serve on the board of the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce. Her ongoing leadership role ensures that Altez Vacations has a seat at the table in conversations that shape local tourism, business development, and community initiatives. This involvement keeps us closely aligned with evolving local priorities and creates meaningful opportunities for collaboration and visibility.
Chambers, Tourism & Local Partnerships
In addition to the Siesta Key Chamber, Altez Vacations remains actively involved with the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce and Visit Sarasota County. Through these organizations, we collaborate with other hospitality providers, local businesses, and tourism leaders to promote responsible growth and increased awareness of professionally managed vacation rentals. These partnerships also generate referral traffic and reinforce Altez Vacations as a trusted, locally rooted operator.
Community Events & Sponsorships
In November 2025, we once again participated in the Siesta Key Crystal Classic Sand Sculpting Competition, one of the most well-known and enduring events on Siesta Key. Altez Vacations has been a proud sponsor of this event for nine consecutive years, and it continues to provide valuable exposure, community connection, and goodwill.
We are also sponsors of the Siesta Sands Live podcast, affiliated with the Siesta Key Sands newspaper, further extending our reach into local media and community storytelling.
Downtown Sarasota Office Presence
In May 2025, Altez Vacations relocated to 128 South Pineapple Avenue in downtown Sarasota. This move was intentionally designed to increase walk-in traffic, improve accessibility, and place our team in the center of Sarasota’s business and visitor activity. Since opening, the downtown office has enhanced brand visibility, supported direct guest inquiries, and strengthened relationships with residents, visitors, and local partners.
Team Growth Supporting Local Strategy
We also strengthened our internal team in 2025 with the addition of Reservations Manager Rochelle Ward, whose extensive background in travel and travel advisory services has enhanced both guest service and professional booking relationships. Her role supports our broader local strategy by ensuring responsiveness, expertise, and continuity across owner and guest interactions.
Services Recap & Expansion: Supporting Owners in 2026 and Beyond
As owner needs continue to evolve alongside market conditions, Altez Vacations remains focused on providing flexible, reliable services that protect your property, support performance, and offer continuity regardless of how you choose to use your home. Our service model is designed to meet owners where they are today while creating optionality for the future.
Core Short-Term Rental Management
The foundation of our business model is full-service short-term rental management company, including marketing, reservations, pricing strategy, guest communication, housekeeping coordination, maintenance oversight, and compliance support. While many of these services are familiar to our owners, we continue refining our operational processes to improve responsiveness, consistency, and guest experience across the portfolio.
Home Watch Services
In response to both seasonal occupancy patterns and owner feedback, Home Watch services have become an increasingly important offering. We provide scheduled weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly property visits designed to monitor condition, identify issues early, and ensure homes remain well-maintained during periods of lower rental activity or owner absence. These services offer peace of mind and help protect long-term property value. Please inquire regarding pricing if interested.
Linen Rental Program
Our linen rental service ensures consistent, high-quality linens across guest stays. By managing linens centrally, we are able to maintain quality standards, reduce wear on owner-owned items, and improve operational efficiency. This program supports a more consistent guest experience and contributes to stronger reviews and repeat bookings.
Preparing for Long-Term Property Management
Looking ahead to 2026, we are actively preparing to introduce long-term property management services. We recognize that some owners may explore long-term leasing as market dynamics shift or as personal needs change. Our goal is to provide a seamless option for owners who wish to remain with Altez Vacations while transitioning between rental strategies—ensuring continued care, oversight, and local management expertise.
As we move into 2026, we will continue evaluating additional services and enhancements that add practical value, improve operational efficiency, and strengthen our ability to serve as a long-term partner to our homeowners.
Looking Ahead to 2026
As we move into 2026, our focus is on execution, adaptability, and continued stewardship of your investment in a market that is stabilizing but evolving. While demand is returning, guest behavior has shifted, and our strategies are designed to respond to those realities in real time.
Marketing Enhancements & Property Visibility in 2026
Altez Vacations is continuing to refine and expand our marketing approach to reflect how guests are searching, evaluating, and booking vacation rentals today. With shorter booking windows and more last-minute decision-making, our focus is on clarity, authenticity, and visibility, ensuring your property stands out quickly and confidently across all channels.
Expanded Use of Video & Visual Clarity
In last part of 2025, we started a marketing campaign that prioritized short, casual video walkthroughs of our properties. These one- to two-minute walkthroughs provide guests with an authentic view of the property layout, flow, and feel, complementing professional photography and helping listings stand out in competitive search results. Where supported, these videos have been featured directly on Airbnb and VRBO listings and leveraged across social media channels.
We have found that these short-from, informal videos have led to a direct increase in engagement and exposure across social media and OTA platforms. As a result, our goal for 2026 will be to increase our video content featuring highlights of our properties and related experiences.
For larger and more complex homes, we are beginning to integrate the use of 2d and 3d floor plans within listings. Floor plans help guests understand scale, bedroom configurations, and shared spaces an increasingly important factor for group travel and higher-end bookings.
Stronger Social Media & Direct Visibility
We will continue to invest in social media as a discovery and engagement channel, with a particular focus on Facebook and Instagram. Our goal in 2026 is to further grow audience engagement, highlight properties and local experiences, and convert social interest into direct inquiries and bookings. Owners are encouraged to follow, engage with, and share our content, as this directly supports broader visibility for the portfolio.
Driving More Direct and Professional Bookings
In 2026, we will continue to invest in channels that support direct and relationship-driven bookings. This includes the development of direct booking tools on our website for realtors and travel agents, expanded loyalty-based partnerships, and ongoing optimization of Google and credit-card travel platforms. These channels allow us to attract higher-quality guests while reducing long-term dependency on any single platform.
Continued Investment in Quality and Guest Experience
Maintaining strong review scores, repeat bookings, and premium guest experiences remains central to our strategy. In 2026, we will continue enhancing listing quality through improved visuals, floor plans, video walkthroughs, clear communication, and consistent Altez Diamond property standards.
Staying Transparent and Proactive
Finally, we are committed to keeping owners informed. In the coming months, we will share additional insights on market conditions, booking trends, and performance expectations so you can make informed decisions with clarity and confidence.
As always, our approach is deliberate and long-term. We are focused not just on the next booking, but on sustaining performance, protecting your asset, and positioning your property, for continued success in 2026 and beyond.
Thank you for your continued trust in Altez Vacations. We look forward to building on this momentum throughout 2026.
