• Determine What Type of Lodging You Want

• Find Travel Lodging on eBay

• Buy Travel Lodging with Confidence

Determine What Type of Lodging You Want

Determine What Type of Lodging You Want

Luxury hotels, budget hotels, bed & breakfasts, and vacation rentals each have their own benefits. Decide what kind of lodging accommodation best fits your needs.

Check into a hotel

You'll find a wide range of lodging options, including great deals on quality hotel rooms and lodging packages from well-known brands, such as Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton , and Westin on eBay.

When you stay at a fine hotel, you can expect privacy and a variety of luxurious touches, from whirlpool tubs to beautifully manicured grounds. You can order room service for a romantic evening in, or have the concierge arrange an evening out with reservations at a hot restaurant or tickets to a popular show.

Look at amenities and locations before booking a hotel. You'll want to make sure the surrounding area has enough restaurants or privacy to fulfill your vacation fantasies. Also look for complementary Internet access and free local phone calls.

Cozy up to a bed & breakfast

Find outstanding bed & breakfast deals in great locations as diverse as Mendocino, Lake Tahoe, Maine, Ireland, and Jamaica on eBay. Bright and airy B&B rooms often have a theme and eclectic decorations, and the price of your stay includes breakfast.

Staying at a bed & breakfast is a great way to meet new people. Although B&Bs usually don't have a concierge, the owners usually work on-site and will happily tell you about local attractions. Some B&Bs with attached restaurants even offer room service.

Bed & breakfasts often require a two- or three-night minimum stay.

Rent a vacation property

Families, people who want a long-term vacation, and people seeking complete privacy should consider a vacation rental. Vacation rentals typically have multiple rooms, a kitchen, laundry facilities, and amenities such as a TV, VCR, and stereo -- all the comforts of home. You'll likely have to book a minimum stay of at least a week.

You can find vacation rentals, ranging from apartments to fully-equipped houses, in California, Florida, Hawaii, France, the English Riviera and all points in between, on eBay. Make sure the seller provides a 24-hour contact number in case of plumbing problems or in case you have questions about household amenities.

Compare lodging options on eBay

Use eBay's Feedback system to compare sellers, hotel properties, and bed & breakfasts. While there is always a modicum of risk in booking a room or home you haven’t seen up close and personal, eBay helps ease your mind with its member Feedback, which is comprised of comments and ratings by eBay members who have already experienced the services of the seller.

Check the seller's member profile by clicking on the feedback score next to their User ID, or by using the view feedback request form. For example, if a Mendocino bed & breakfast received 289 positive comments in the past 12 months and has no neutral or negative comments, you know other buyers had a positive experience.

Stay flexible

Price is the most attractive feature of the lodging offered on eBay, with greatly discounted accommodations and packages. Flexibility is the key because not all lodging packages will be available on exact dates. However, with a little planning, you can find the right place to stay at the right price for your budget.

Find Travel Lodging on eBay

Find Travel Lodging on eBay

Once you know what type of lodging you want, go to the Travel portal, click Lodging, and start searching for item listings on eBay.

• Categories: The Categories list on the left side of each page will help you narrow down your listings by item type. You'll find links for Bed & Breakfast, Hotel, Vacation Rentals, and Other.

• Keyword search: Search eBay listing titles for specific words. For example, if you want to find a vacation rental near Disney World, type "vacation rental Disney World" (without quotation marks) into the Search box. Click "Search title and description" to expand your results. Visit eBay's Search Tips page for more tips on searching with keywords.

If you can't find exactly what you want, try shopping eBay Stores, tell the eBay Community what you want by creating a post on Want It Now, or save a search on My eBay and eBay will email you when a match becomes available.

Buy Travel Lodging with Confidence

Buy Travel Lodging with Confidence

Before making your purchase, make sure you know exactly what you're buying, research your seller, and understand how eBay and PayPal protect you.

Know your purchase

Carefully read the details in item listings.

• Figure delivery costs into your final price. If you spend a lot of money, make sure the seller will insure the item when it ships.

• If you want more information, ask by clicking the "Ask seller a question" link under the seller's profile.

• Always make sure to complete your transaction on eBay (with a bid, Buy It Now, or Best Offer). Transactions conducted outside of eBay are not covered by eBay protection programs.

• Never pay for your eBay item using instant cash wire transfer services through Western Union or MoneyGram. These payment methods are unsafe when paying someone you do not know.

Know your seller

Research your seller so you feel positive and secure about every transaction.

• What is the seller's Feedback rating? How many transactions have they completed? What percentage of positive responses do they have?

• What do buyers say in their Feedback? Did the seller receive praise?

• Most top eBay sellers operate like retail stores and have return policies. Do they offer a money-back guarantee? What are the terms and conditions?

Buyer protection

In the unlikely event that a problem arises during your transaction, eBay and PayPal are there for you.

• Pay safely with PayPal: PayPal enables you to pay without the seller ever seeing your bank account or credit card numbers. In fact, PayPal protects buyers 100% against unauthorized payments from their accounts. Plus, with PayPal Buyer Protection, your purchase can be covered up to $1,000.

eBay Security & Resolution Center: Visit the Security & Resolution Center to learn how to protect your account and use eBay's quick and efficient resolution tools.