An image of a virtual tour on HomeAway.com from a holiday home in Seminyak Bali. — Photo by Vrbo

Singapore, - HomeAway®, a global leader in the holiday home rental industry, announced the launch of Virtual Tours in Bali.First launched in the U.S. in November 2018, Bali is the second market outside of the U.S. and the first market in Asia Pacific to offer Virtual Tours - a new proprietary product that seamlessly displays virtual tours of holiday homes on HomeAway. This customer-centric technological innovation allows homeowners and property managers to share a 360-degree walk-through of their properties with travellers. Travellers can visualise the property prior to their stay, setting their expectations and delivering a better stay experience. It also benefits homeowners with a proven record in increasing conversion.

Available on desktop and mobile web, HomeAway's approach to virtual tours is unique in the holiday home rental industry as the product is compatible with different types of virtual tours ranging from "DIY" tours filmed on personal phones and cameras to professionally captured footage from leading virtual tour companies like InsideMaps® and professionals like TruPlace®.

"Virtual reality has transformed the entire customer journey and experience," said Judith Davidson, Regional Director for HomeAway in Asia. "HomeAway is harnessing virtual technology for holiday homes in a way that has never been done before. As a priority destination in Asia, Bali will be the first market outside of U.S to offer Virtual Tours. The digital economy has opened up incredible possibilities for small-medium enterprises and independent property owners in Asia and we are proud to combine the brainpower and scale of HomeAway and Expedia Group to deliver even more value to our customers around the world through tools like Virtual Tours."

At the heart of HomeAway's innovation process is customer feedback - understanding and solving the needs, wants and requirements of travellers and partners. By listening to customers and understanding their pain points and joys, HomeAway is able to leverage on its technology and know-how to build solutions that help them solve their business challenges. Virtual Tours has proven to lead to an increase in conversion for properties than those without Virtual Tours. This is part of Expedia Group's framework of innovation which puts customers and partners at the centre of product development, and tailor solutions to their requirements.

"As a leading-edge agency aiming to deliver innovative solutions and maximum revenue for our villa owners, we've found having virtual tours on our listings to be a real game-changer," said Matt Simpson, a property manager in Bali. "Not only do they drive bookings through increasing desirability and trust by allowing clients to explore the property thoroughly before they book; they also enhance our profile as a company in being able to deliver cutting-edge solutions to our owners."

HomeAway is currently running a fully-funded and exclusive Virtual Tour programme for selected properties in Bali and displayed exclusively on the HomeAway site. The tool is being tested for its impact to conversion for homeowners and property managers.

Together with Virtual Tours, HomeAway has rolled out other new product features this year, including Trip Boards where travellers can invite their friends and family to save, comment and vote for their dream holiday home. All data-driven research and insights undergo user testing in HomeAway's state-of-the-art User Experience Labs for the best customer and partner experience.

Videos

Virtual Tours - The customer journey and virtual tours: HomeAway's first step into offering a more immersive experience

HomeAway's Vision- HomeAway envisions how the future in the travel and vacation rental industry could look like when virtual reality is applied

© 2019 HomeAway. All rights reserved. HomeAway and the HomeAway logo are trademarks of HomeAway. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

About Vrbo

In 1995, Vrbo introduced a new way for people to travel together, pairing homeowners with families and friends looking for places to stay. We were grounded in one purpose: To give people the space they need to drop the distractions of everyday life and simply be together. Since then, we've grown into a global community of homeowners and travelers, with unique properties around the world. Vrbo makes it easy and fun to book cabins, condos, beach houses and every kind of space in between.

Vrbo is part of Expedia Group and offers homeowners and property managers exposure to over 750 million visits to Expedia Group sites each month. To learn more, visit www.vrbo.com.

© 2019 Vrbo. All rights reserved. Vrbo, HomeAway, the Vrbo logo, and the HomeAway logo are trademarks of HomeAway.

Charlene Tan
PR Manager Asia
Vrbo