Europe for rent

October 07, 2004
More Americans are discovering that a better and cheaper way to savor Europe is to actually live it: shopping, eating and sleeping just like the natives, in a rented vacation home.

There are more than a million properties available across Europe, according to the U.S. travel-services giant Cendant, and plenty of firms that broker them. Rentals not only offer more space, they usually cost less than comparable hotel rooms.

In Tuscany, for instance, it's rare to find a decent room for less than $150 a night for two in the high season, but you can book a Saturday-to-Saturday stay in a pleasant apartment for $700 or less. More spartan places start at $500.

And the economics of rentals get still more enticing for families and groups of friends, especially when you do some of your own cooking.

Unlike a cramped hotel room, which all but pushes you out the door, the right rental invites you to milk the moment. After awakening to crowing roosters, you can throw open the shutters and watch the mist burn off the fields as you sip your coffee. Later, when you're finally ready to catch the guidebook highlights, it won't seem like a forced march.