Vacation Rental Success

Vacation Rental Success

Heather Bayer aka @CottageGuru

Episodes 668
Avg. Duration 50m
Activity Highly Active
Apple Rating 4.7 (211)
Since Feb 2013
Latest Episode Jun 2026

Outreach Signals

Open to Sponsors Features Guests

Publishing Details

Schedule
Weekly
Format
Episodic
Consistency
100%
Hosting
rss.libsyn.com

Contact & Outreach

About This Podcast

Heather Bayer, author of Renting Your Recreational Property for Profit, former CEO of a highly successful cottage rental agency, and a popular blogger, hosts the Vacation Rental Success podcast. With many years experience of owning and managing multiple vacation rental properties, Heather brings her knowledge and views on every aspect of the business, together with interviews with vacation homeowners and industry experts. Heather has appeared as a guest on CTV Canada, CBC Radio, Rogers TV, and Chex TV and is frequently interviewed on real estate and travel topics by magazines and daily newspapers.

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Recent Episodes

VRS667 - Two Ways to Make More Money This Year: Private Chef Upsells and Smarter AI Use

Jun 10, 2026 56m

This Episode is Sponsored by Lodgify If you have been thinking about building your own direct booking channel and reducing your reliance on the OTAs, Lodgify is worth a serious look. It brings your…

VRS666 - The Seven Deadly Sins of AI in Your STR Business

Jun 03, 2026 44m

This Episode is Sponsored by Lodgify If you have been thinking about building your own direct booking channel and reducing your reliance on the OTAs, Lodgify is worth a serious look. It brings your…

VRS665 - Bionic Not Robotic: Steve Schwab on AI, Integration, and Community

May 27, 2026 54m

This Episode is Sponsored by Lodgify If you have been thinking about building your own direct booking channel and reducing your reliance on the OTAs, Lodgify is worth a serious look. It brings your…

VRS664 - Building Two Businesses With a Small Team and a Smart AI Habit

May 20, 2026 53m

This Episode is Sponsored by Lodgify If you have been thinking about building your own direct booking channel and reducing your reliance on the OTAs, Lodgify is worth a serious look. It brings your…

VRS663 - Building the Foundations Before the AI Storm Hits

May 13, 2026 44m

This episode is sponsored by Lodgify, the all-in-one vaction rental platform that will help you start, manage and grow your short-term rental business. You get your own professional booking website.…

VRS662 - The Guests You Don't See Coming

May 06, 2026 48m

This episode is sponsored by Lodgify, the all-in-one vaction rental platform that will help you start, manage and grow your short-term rental business. You get your own professional booking website.…

VRS661 - The Year He Stopped Growing and Built Something Better

Apr 29, 2026 58m

This episode is sponsored by Lodgify, the all-in-one vaction rental platform that will help you start, manage and grow your short-term rental business. You get your own professional booking website.…

VRS660 - Values First: Why What You Stand For Shapes Everything AI Does Next

Apr 22, 2026 54m

This episode is sponsored by Lodgify, the all-in-one vaction rental platform that will help you start, manage and grow your short-term rental business. You get your own professional booking website.…

VRS659 - AI Safety for Short-Term Rentals

Apr 15, 2026 40m

This episode is sponsored by Lodgify, the all-in-one vaction rental platform that will help you start, manage and grow your short-term rental business. You get your own professional booking website.…

VRS658 - Who We Are, What We Do, and Where We're Headed

Apr 08, 2026 47m

This is a reset episode. After months of working behind the scenes, Heather and Mike Bayer come together to do something they have not done for a while: reintroduce themselves, take stock of where…

VRS657 - When the Calendar Looks Full But the Business Is Bleeding with Sarah Stahl

Apr 01, 2026 53m

High occupancy is not the same as a healthy business. That's the thread running through this conversation with Sarah Stahl, VP of Marketing at Lake.com and founder of short-term rental marketing…

VRS656 - How STR Businesses Are Using Claude for Smarter Marketing and Better Workflows

Mar 25, 2026 52m

In this episode, Heather sits down with returning guest Jodi Bourne to talk about how short-term rental professionals can use Claude in practical, business-building ways. Rather than focusing on AI…

VRS655 - The Shift from Collecting Prompts to AI That Actually Knows Your Business

Mar 18, 2026 30m

In this solo episode, Heather explores one of the biggest shifts happening in the AI space right now: the move away from relying on prompt libraries and toward building systems powered by context. A…

VRS654 - VRNation, Education, and the Next Chapter of the Vacation Rental Industry

Mar 11, 2026 46m

In this episode, Heather Bayer sits down with Heidie Henriksen, Executive Director of VRNation, to talk about how the organization is helping to strengthen the short-term rental industry through…

VRS653 - The Authority Shift: What AI Agents Mean for STR Leaders

Mar 04, 2026 37m

We're at a genuine turning point in how AI is being used in the short-term rental industry - and the language we use right now really matters. In this episode, I unpack the difference between two…

VRS652 - Structure Before Speed: The Smarter Way to Bring AI Into Your Business

Feb 25, 2026 31m

AI is no longer a curiosity in our industry - it's becoming a priority. In this first episode of a new AI-focused solo series, Heather steps back from tools and prompts to explore something more…

VRS651 - Trust, Conversions & The Direct Booking Mindset

Feb 18, 2026 48m

What makes a guest trust your website enough to enter their credit card details? That's the question at the heart of this conversation with Amber Knight from Bookings Cloud - and it's one every…

VRS650 - Amber Hurdle – Keeping the Human in the Loop: Building a Strategic AI-Driven Brand

Feb 11, 2026 56m

Amber Hurdle is back for her fourth appearance on the podcast - and once again, she's lighting up the conversation with her bold, insightful take on branding, leadership, and the evolving role of AI…

VRS649 - Sewn in Soil and Spirit – Designing Guest Experiences with Heather Dunwoody - A Book Direct Day Special

Feb 04, 2026 51m

On this very special Book Direct Day, I'm thrilled to welcome Heather Dunwoody to the podcast for a deeply resonant conversation about the why behind what we do in this industry. Heather isn't just…

VRS648 - Lead Better, Clean Smarter: The Coaches and Consultants Behind Vacation Rental Growth

Jan 28, 2026 51m

In this special episode from our Training Series, host Heather Bayer is joined by Brittany Blackman (Discover Freedom) and Sean Kemper (ETI Solutions) - two powerhouse professionals who are bringing…

Frequently Asked Questions

How many episodes does Vacation Rental Success have?

Vacation Rental Success has published 668 episodes since February 2013, covering topics in Business, Investing.

Is Vacation Rental Success still active?

Vacation Rental Success is currently highly active with new episodes weekly. Average episode length is 50m.

How do I contact Vacation Rental Success for sponsorship or guest appearances?

Sign up on Grep.FM to access contact details for Vacation Rental Success, including email and social media links.

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