Home Over Hotel: Advantages of Booking a BeachBox Vacation Rental
There are a million fantastic reasons to take a trip to the Texas Gulf Coast. Laid-back, refreshing, and loaded to the brim with fun things to do, the Texas Gulf Coast is about as family-friendly as it gets. Miles of pristine sandy beaches. The clear, inviting waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The charm of historic downtown Galveston. The excitement of Pleasure Pier and the Strand. It’s hard to go wrong with a destination this right.
If you really want to ramp up the fun and create some unforgettable vacay memories, skip the generic hotel and rent a BeachBox home instead. There are so many ways that a BeachBox vacation home will elevate your holiday, expand your gulf coast experiences, and even save you a ton of money too.
Read on for some savvy insider advice on how to kick your Texas Gulf Coast vacay up a notch by booking a vacation rental.
Access to a Vacation MVP — The Kitchen
You might think that the sandy beaches, ocean waves, and gentle sea breezes are the best parts of a Texas Gulf Coast vacation. And you would be right— sorta. But we’re going to challenge that popular opinion and say that one of our favorite parts of a BeachBox holiday is the kitchen.
Hang on a minute. Did we say the kitchen? Yup. Allow us to explain.
When you stay in a hotel room, you’ll maybe have a tiny microwave and a mini-fridge. Maybe. In a BeachBox home — like The Walloping Whale or Hook, Wine, & Sinker — your family will have access to a fully-equipped, well-designed, streamlined kitchen. With a full kitchen at your fingertips, there’s no more hunting down a $4 coffee every morning, deciding on a spot for lunch that everyone can agree on, or shelling out big bucks every night for an expensive dinner.
Simply stop by the grocery store on your first day — or have the groceries delivered to your door — and stock up on your family’s favorites. Then, everyone has access to drinks, snacks, cocktails, coffee, and meals whenever they want. Sure you can still go out for a meal or a drink when the mood strikes (in fact, here are our favorite places for some great seafood or a happy hour cocktail). But, you’re not forced to eat out for every meal — which saves you tons of time, endless amounts of frustration, and stacks of cash.
Keep Your Crew Together
The whole point of a family vacation is to hang out together — exploring the area, enjoying the beach, fishing, paddle boarding, or simply relaxing. When you stay in a hotel room, there’s no guarantee that your rooms will be adjoining or even close together.
Plus, it’s a lot more fun to hang out on your spacious private porch overlooking the Gulf of Mexico (like this one at Westwind, shown above) than it is to perch awkwardly on a cramped hotel balcony. Renting a BeachBox means that your whole crew is effortlessly together, which lessens stress, promotes more opportunities for relaxation, and makes everyone happier. That sounds like an ideal family vacation to us.
Booking a big house like The Good Life where everyone fits can often save you a ton of money, too. Traveling with another family and splitting the cost of a home rental can be surprisingly affordable and makes renting out a luxurious estate right on the beach easily attainable. Contact one of our local agents to help you with the math.
Laundry and Pets and Parking — Oh My
We know, laundry isn’t the thing you want to be thinking about on vacation. But we all know the feeling of needing to do a load of laundry and not having access to a washer and dryer. The time-consuming search for a laundromat in a strange town, the hunt for quarters, then the sitting and waiting for your clothes to finish tumbling… all while you could be at the beach! So yes, we love having access to a full-size washer and dryer in our vacation rental home, and you will too. It also eliminates the need to pack suitcases that weigh a ton since you can wash clothes and re-wear them again during your trip.
One more major perk of renting a BeachBox vacation rental includes bringing along your furry family members and not having to leave them behind in a kennel. As pet lovers ourselves, we know that this not only saves a ton of money, but it also eliminates the worry and guilt of leaving your best friend behind.
You’ll also have tons of space to park in and around your rental home, so you’ll avoid the stress of searching for an elusive parking space and paying sky-high parking fees as well.
So Many Bonus Features
Renting a hotel room is a fairly standard transaction. You get a bed, a bathroom, a television, and maybe a small sitting area or a balcony. And that’s pretty much it. But with vacation rentals, the extra amenities are endless.
In some of our homes, like Gone Coastal (pictured above), you’ll have your own private boat dock for catching your dinner. Other homes like Beachy Blues have their very own tiki bars for hosting your own happy hour. There are also homes with private pools, sun-kissed porches, full beach access, and bonus living areas.
Book Direct and Save a Bundle
One more way to save a significant amount of dough is to avoid the big booking platforms and book direct with us. Give us a call or send us an email and partner up with one of our super-knowledgeable, incredibly helpful local agents who can guide you to your perfect home-away-from-home base for your next gulf vacation.
Take it from us — skip the boring hotel and book a vacation rental instead. We’re here to help you find your happy place on the Texas Gulf Coast.