Southern Living: The Most Common Mistakes People Make When Booking A Hotel, According To Travel Experts
Eric Goldreyer, CEO of Savvy and 30-plus-year travel and hospitality industry veteran, was quoted in a recent piece on common vacation booking mistakes. Eric weighed in on the hidden costs and friction that come with booking through online travel agencies, noting that OTAs act as intermediaries that can slow communication and complicate cancellations or issue resolution, and that nightly rates rarely reflect what travelers actually pay once platform fees, taxes, and service charges are added in.
MSN reports that travel costs have risen 26.3% since 2019, yet over half of Americans are still planning multiple vacations this year. The shift: travelers are getting smarter about where they spend. MSN spotlights Savvy, a direct booking marketplace with over 150,000 professionally managed properties, as a go-to solution for travelers prioritizing transparency, reliability, and direct communication with hosts. No platform markup. No middleman. Just a clearer path to the stay you actually want.
Yahoo Finance reports that a new Savvy survey of more than 1,000 U.S. travelers found 77 percent plan to take a leisure trip this summer, even as rising accommodation costs reshape how they book. Nearly half expect to spend more on lodging in 2026 than they did last year. The response: travelers are booking earlier, comparing prices more carefully, and going direct. CEO Eric Goldreyer put it plainly. "When a family saves three or four hundred dollars on a booking, that's real money. Another night, something they almost skipped, a meal they'll talk about for years. That's the whole point of Savvy."
Woman's World identifies direct booking and pricing transparency as the defining travel trends of 2026, and Savvy is named as the platform leading the shift. As hidden fees and platform markups continue to frustrate travelers, more people are skipping traditional booking sites and going straight to professional property managers. Savvy is built for exactly that: verified hosts, clear pricing, and no platform markup at checkout.
Go World Travel Magazine featured Savvy in a firsthand account of a family vacation to Kauai. The verdict: booking a three-bedroom condo through Savvy saved the family $800 compared to Airbnb or VRBO. Direct booking, professional hosts, and no platform markup meant more budget for the trip itself. As the writer put it, "a huge bonus."
Business Insider covered Savvy's bold response to the Airbnb vs. VRBO billboard rivalry, reporting that the Austin-based startup placed its own billboard near VRBO's headquarters to drive home one simple message: no fees. Founder Eric Goldreyer was direct about the strategy. "What customers really care about is saving money on their stay." Savvy lists only professional property managers with five or more properties, so travelers get a consistent, accountable experience every time. "We want to know if our guest gets there at 11 p.m. and the Bluetooth lock goes out, there's a professional they can call."
Event Marketer covered Savvy's unforgettable SXSW activation: a full funeral procession through Austin's South Congress Avenue, complete with a hearse, police escort, jazz marching band, and pallbearers, all in honor of T.H.E. (Thomas Henry Edward) Middleman. The two-day spectacle put platform fees on notice. No middleman. No service fees. Just a very public burial.
Skift spotlights Savvy (formerly bnbfinder) and its real-time price comparison tool, showing savings of hundreds — sometimes thousands — of dollars on the same property versus Airbnb. The difference comes down to one thing: direct booking. Because Savvy connects travelers directly with professional property managers, guests skip the Airbnb service charge entirely. In one example, a six-night stay at the W South Beach came in $2,397 lower than the same property on Airbnb.
USA Today identifies platform markup as one of the biggest gotchas in vacation rental booking. Savvy CEO Eric Goldreyer explains why: "Hosts often raise their rates to cover service fees they too are being hit with from sites." Savvy (formerly bnbfinder) is built around the alternative. Direct booking, professional property managers, and no platform markup added at checkout.
Authority Magazine calls Savvy CEO Eric Goldreyer "a business leader shaking things up in his industry." The reason is simple. Goldreyer built Bedandbreakfast.com into the world's largest B&B directory, co-founded TurnKey Vacation Rentals before its acquisition by Vacasa, and now leads Savvy (formerly bnbfinder) with the same conviction: travelers deserve professional hosts and transparent pricing. "People are sick of being gouged by fees and disappointing hospitality experiences," he says. "My goal is to show both hosts and guests that there's a better way."
Daily Beast featured Savvy (formerly bnbfinder) in its roundup of the best waterfront vacation rentals, highlighting a standout Folly Beach, South Carolina property available on the platform. The reason it made the cut: direct booking, professional property managers, and savings of up to 20% compared to traditional platforms.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution spotlights bnbfinder (now Savvy) as the transparent booking platform for travelers tired of service fees. By connecting guests directly with professional property managers, Savvy eliminates platform markup so travelers pay less and hosts keep more.
Forbes called it "a direct challenger to the status quo." bnbfinder (now Savvy) eliminates the platform markup that inflates prices on Airbnb and VRBO, delivering savings of 15-20% on professionally managed properties. Carl Shepherd, co-founder of HomeAway, put it plainly: vacation rental marketplaces shifted from connecting travelers with great properties to "charging travelers big percentages on the properties that pay them the most." Savvy is shifting that advantage back.
