Adding and Changing Photos

Show people how nice your vacation rental is with photos! Photos allow interested travelers to see what your vacation property looks like. Also, adding good-looking photos to your listing is probably the single most important thing you can do to increase your number of inquiries and bookings.

There is NO ADDITIONAL FEE for the first five photos (on listings created or renewed after 1/31/08), and VRBO.com incorporates the photos of your vacation rental into your existing listing page. When you have photos on your listing, the Index page for your property location displays a camera icon next to your listing, so travelers know they can see your property before they click on your listing.

NOTE: Listings with more photos will appear higher on the location index page, and MORE PHOTOS mean MORE EXPOSURE for your listing. See Moving Up the List for more details.

Q: Can I upload my digital photos?

A: Yes. You can logon to your account and upload your photos at any time. From the Home Page just click the link for the Members Area. After logging into your account, choose the listing to edit, and then click the NEXT button on each page until you get to the Photos page (or click the Photos link at the top of the page while editing your listing). As you upload each photo, it is immediately added to your listing. Within one to two weeks, our photo staff will review your photos after you have uploaded new images to ensure that the photos on your listing are of the highest quality. Unless there is a problem with your photos, we will NOT notify you when we review or edit your photos.

Q: Does your photo staff really review every photo?

A: Yes. Our Photo Department manually reviews each and every photo we receive to ensure that your photos are published with the highest quality. Photos are first reviewed for copyright, content, and quality. If photos require it, they are enhanced by correcting color, exposure (brightness and contrast), straightening, cropping, and sometimes even air-brushing (to remove smudges, for example). Finally, each photo is given a feathered edge, and VRBO watermark. All photos are compressed and optimized for the web. The result is clear, bright and beautiful photos that look great on your listing and still download quickly for fast viewing.

Q: Am I allowed to use photos from other VRBO listings?

A: No. Due to copyright laws, we are not allowed to use photos which do not belong to you unless you get written permission from the person who owns the photos.  If you upload photos from another VRBO listings, they will be deleted from your ad and you will be asked to send replacement photos.

Q: Can I add my personal website URL or other text to my photos before uploading?

A: No. Please do not upload photos with URLs (web site addresses) or other text. The text will either be removed by our photo editors, or the photo will be deleted and you will be asked to supply a replacement photos. A label or arrow digitally added to the photo which points to or  identifies your property is OK.

Q: What about photos with date stamps on them?

A: Please send photos WITHOUT date stamps. In some cases, we can crop the photo or remove the date stamps, but it is a time-consuming process.

Q: I don't have digital photos. Is there an extra charge if I mail photographs to VRBO.com for scanning?

A: Scanning is the process of taking your printed photographs and converting them to digital format. There is no extra charge for us to scan photos being placed on a NEW listing. We also do not charge for scanning of photos being ADDED to an existing listing (for example, if you currently have five photos and are adding three additional photos, there is no charge.) 

Since scanning is a manual, time consuming process, if you send us photos which are to REPLACE EXISTING PHOTOS on your listing, we charge a $3 fee for each photo scanned. To avoid being charged a scanning fee, the best method is to upload DIGITAL photos.

If you do need us to scan your photos, please send us only ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS. Please do NOT send us photocopies, brochure, postcards, slides, negatives, photos cut from magazines or printed on a computer printer. Photos should be no more than 4 x 6 inches. Panorama photos can be slightly longer; however, some cropping may occur due to space limitations.

Please write your VRBO listing number on the back of the photos. WARNING: Please be careful when using ink to label the back of your photos. Use a BALL POINT pen and press very LIGHTLY. Please ensure that the ink is dry before stacking the photos. (We have frequently received photos that are damaged when the wet ink from the back of one photo has smeared on the front of another.)

Q: If I send photocopies, brochure pictures, postcards, slides, negatives, photos cut from magazines or printed on a computer printer, can you scan the images for me?

A: Sorry, but we can't.  Please send original glossy photographs only - ones that you photographed yourself or have had someone photograph for you. Photocopies are vastly inferior to the original photos and will not reproduce properly - the colors will not look good and the images will appear with "bands" or very grainy. Brochures, postcards and magazines are copyrighted material. Due to copyright laws, we cannot copy these materials.

Q: Can you return my photographs after they are scanned?

A: We will return your photos if you include a self-addressed stamped envelope. For non-US members, we will return your photos if you include a self-addressed envelope and an additional $3 US to cover postage costs.

Q: Can I use collage photos? (multiple images on one photo)

A: Collage photos will no longer be accepted. VRBO.com feels that such tiny images do not project the best possible impression of your property and potentially confuse travelers more than informing them. Moving forward, we are phasing out their use. If you currently have a collage photo on your listing, consider replacing it with a single, more detailed image, or add additional photos to your listing. The benefits of additional photos are described on the Moving Up the List page.

Q: Is there a charge to ADD photos to my listing?

A:Listings created or renewed after 1/31/08 include five photos, and there is no additional charge for these first five photos. (Listings created before 1/31/08 include three photos in the base rate.)

Q: Can I have more than five photos on my listing?

A: Five individual images are provided with your listing page created or renewed after 1/31/08. However, you can add up to 11 extra photos, for a total of 16. If your listing was created before 1/31/08, your basic rate included three photos, and you can add up to 13 additional photos. Viewers will be able to see the additional photos by scrolling down your listing.

The cost for each extra photo is $24 US per year (Sorry, no discount available for extra photo charges.) If you have not yet paid for your new or renewing listing, you will be given the choice of how many photos you want to display when you pay for the ad. If you have already paid for your ad and it is NOT your renewal time, please upload your photos or mail your photos with the form below. We will bill you the prorated amount after your photos are added.

Q: How can I move my listing up higher in my city/location?

A: The more photos you have on your listing, the higher your listing will appear within your city/location. Adding more photos to your listing can increase your exposure and number of booking by moving your listing up the list. Due to the number of listings that are taking advantage of this program, VRBO is not responsible for verifying that photos have been received. Please only select and pay for the number of photos you are ready to send. VRBO will not be able to offer refunds on photos that have been paid for but never sent to us.

Q: If I add my photos and later decide to change one or more photos, is there an extra charge?

A: There is no extra charge for replacing photos unless you ask us to scan the photos for you. You may upload your digital photos online at any time and there is no charge.

Q: The photos on my VRBO web site turned out so good, can I copy them to my personal site or give permission for others to copy photos from my VRBO listing?

A: No. VRBO.com modifies your photos after they are uploaded, including the addition of the VRBO.com watermark. This means that the MODIFIED photos on your VRBO.com listing are copyrighted by VRBO.com. See http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-fairuse.html for details. VRBO.com does not hold a copyright to your original photos. Only the photos modified by VRBO are copyrighted by VRBO.

We recommend that you use the original photos that you sent to use rather than our copies for you personal site OR for advertising on additional sites. We do not hold a copyright to your original photos, we do however hold the copyright to the modified photo posted on the VRBO site and to any derivative works. The law reads "Only the owner of copyright in a work has the right to prepare, or to authorize someone else to create, a new version of that work." See http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-fairuse.html for details.

Q: Can I delete photos?

A: Due to billing issues, deleting photos is something customer service must take care of.  Please e-mail webmaster@vrbo.com, letting us know which photo(s) to delete, and we will take care of this for you.

Q: How important is it to have photos on my web page ad?

A: Adding good looking photos to your web page ad is probably the single most important thing you can do to increase your number of inquiries and bookings. Ads with photos will typically get two to three times as many inquiries as ads that do not have photos.

If you are requesting us to scan photos for which there is a charge, or if you want additional photos for which there is charge, you will be automatically billed via email within 24 hours of when the photos have been added. You can make payment online via credit card or follow the instructions given in your emailed invoice to pay via mail, phone or fax.

If your listing is brand-new (not yet paid for) or it is time to renew your ad, please check your online invoice to calculate your price for extra photos.

To send us your photos via US Mail, please print and include the following form when submitting your photos:

Vacation Rentals by Owner (VRBO.com, Inc.) Photo Form

The VRBO Webmaster