Joe Talk

Option Me!

2011-11-10T23:18:00.004-06:00

Here is the situation for many families this year:

“Honey, I really would love for our family vacation to be in __________ this year, but our budget is probably not going to allow us to go there.”

Well, for some families and individuals they are not taking their vacations at all. I think we are all aware that the downfall in the economy has had a major impact on our lives. We all feel the proverbial pinch. Decisions to slice things in our yearly budgets are being made, and it goes without saying, “it ain’t getting any cheaper”.

I have said before, and hold this to be very true; a vacation is vital to your overall well being. The stress that you are feeling within the workplace, your everyday home life, your community, your school, (and I could rattle off several other things, but you get the point) weighs heavy on us all. Thousands and thousands of people tweet each day, “I need a vacation!” The British Medical Journal states that stress in the workplace can lead to Diabetes and Heart Disease. We all knew that stress led to weight gain, depression, bad decisions; but Heart Disease and Diabetes…….YIKES!

When you are slicing your yearly budget, you need to find a way to keep that vacation in there. Of course you need to exercise and eat right, but those always affect your relationship to yourself. Vacations affect your well being but also your relationship with another. It is vital to get away and be with friends or loved ones. You need to restore or grow relationships that diminish during our busy work weeks, months, and year.

So, I am going to give you the two words that might help you this coming year, “Option Me”.

What?

JoeOptions has a special feature, an “Option Me” button, which essentially puts you up for bid. You are auctioning yourself off to property owners.

You supply the following information: where you want to go, how much you want to spend, and when you want to go. JoeOptions’ search engine will compile all the properties that meet your criteria entered. Instead of having to search through all those properties (which of course you could do if you want), save time and click the “Option Me” button. This will then notify all the owners that meet your criteria.

Traditional rental listing sites can just add to your stress by trying to choose your rental. It can take several hours or in some cases days to finally choose a vacation rental. That process can lead to false hope. For example, you find a property your happy with, but the owner doesn’t have it available when you want to be there; or you find a rate that meets your budget, but you call and find out that was an incorrect rate listing. Who wants that extra stress? By choosing “Option Me”, you should only hear back from property owners who have the date you selected and are in your price range.

You will immediately begin discussions with interested vacation rental owners, who want you to stay at their place. It is very possible to have several owners competing for you! That is what “Option Me” does; it empowers you to make the right decision for your next vacation. Not only does it allow you to make the right decision, but the hard work in finding it is taken off your plate. Eliminate the wasted time of searching……..just click “Option Me”, and enjoy your much needed vacation.

There are times to hotel and times to home away

2011-11-03T16:46:00.000-05:00

There are times when it clearly makes sense to rent a hotel over a home and there are times when it makes sense to rent a home over a hotel.

There is a fundamental shift going on in the hospitality industry today. One factor for this shift is the excess capacity of second homes as the result of an overbuild the past 10 years. Another factor is with the current economic climate, property owners who would have never dreamed of "renting" their second home are now seeking to find rental income to offset carrying costs.

HomeAway, which is by far the industry leader today, has been acquiring all types of listing sites and most recently on-line reservation companies such as Escapia with a goal to consolidate and bring needed standards to the home rental industry. These new standards will be a positive for all homeowners whether they use HomeAway services or not. With the new Super Bowl ad this year, they are giving the home rental industry great exposure, yet attacking the hotel industry.

There is clearly a time when renting a home makes better sense and also other times when renting a hotel makes the most sense. Based on my travel, I use both hotels and rental homes depending upon the purpose of my trip. For example, I am traveling next week to Palo Alto to meet with Facebook and I am staying at the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco, which makes the most sense for me because I need to utilize the facilities for various business meetings that come only with a full service hotel. On the other hand, when I take my family to Colorado for the summer, when I combine business and pleasure, I clearly opt for renting a home which makes much more sense. A large home, with its kitchen, yard, living room and multiple bedrooms and baths, is just more conducive to the way a family wants to live on vacation.

The main challenge for the home rental industry is managing the expectations of renters about what they are receiving with a home before they arrive. This is a challenge as every home is unique. On the other hand, travelers typically know what to expect when renting a branded hotel since consistency is, after all, part of the brand. When you rent at Holiday Inn Express you know what to expect, and when you rent at the Ritz Carlton hotel room you know what to expect. It does not take long with a simple Google search of "renter reviews" to see how frustrated many people are. Most rental web sites charge property owners more for extra photos and videos. The result is fewer photos and videos, which means prospective renters have a harder time evaluation the property and making an informed decision..

So how should the home rental industry address this issue? It is simple - by allowing the owners of rental property the ability on a site to show as many photos, videos and links of their property and the surrounding destination that is necessary to effectively market their property.

People need to see photos of every room that they will walk into, enjoy and ultimately pay for. Furthermore, renters want to see photos and videos of the surrounding area and activities that they can enjoy while staying in the home.

JoeOptions allows Property owners to permanently profile UNLIMITED properties with UNLIMITED photos and videos for no charge. This allows every property owner to better represent his or her property. The result is happier renters!

No renter can know what they are getting if they can't see what they are getting. So if you are an owner, come profile your property at JoeOptions for no charge and shop for the right renters. If you are a traveler come enjoy our smart search and.... know before you go.

JoeOptions - Where Travelers AND Property Owners shop for each other.

Where travelers and property owners can shop for each other

2011-10-01T19:03:00.000-05:00

Like no one else, JoeOptions is organizing the Vacation Rental Industry around people. In 2010, the Vacation Rental Industry generated over $85 billion in revenue.

More and more people are gravitating every day to social sites like Facebook, Twitter and other emerging platforms. Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003, according to Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google. Facebook is adding 35 million new users a month to its existing 750 million worldwide users that share 30 billion pieces of content every month. On average, women spend one out of every six minutes on a social networking site. It took Twitter three years to amass 1 billion tweets and now there are 1 billion tweets every week. The reality is online web traffic is consolidating at a very rapid pace and it is no longer good enough nor will it be affordable to drive eyeballs to a static web site for any business.

When looking at the Vacation Rental industry as a whole, most websites are built on a traditional listing model whereby a property owner buys traffic through a subscription fee or through giving up a percentage of the rental revenue. Travelers search and dig among multiple property listings at no charge to find what he or she wants. In other words, the traveler Finds and the property owner is Found. There is absolutely nothing social about this model.

JoeOptions™ disrupts this traditional model by focusing vacation rentals around people and where they are online. Integrating with social media, JoeOptions now allows a traveler to not only go find properties, but also allows the property owner to go find travelers through easy one-click social media marketing tools. As a result, our proprietary platform provides owners with leads that have an interest in their specific property or in similar properties.

Property owners then only pay based on performance by purchasing the leads they desire, very similar to how one buys a song or an app in the iTunes store. There is no charge for owners to permanently profile their properties on our site and use our social marketing tools. Travelers use the site free of charge, and they can either directly contact the owner of a specific property, or “option” themselves to all property owners who meet their criteria.

Redefining the Vacation Rental Industry

2011-09-08T09:59:00.002-05:00

A Social Marketing Platform - Organizing Travel Around People

Like no one else, JoeOptions is organizing the Vacation Rental Industry around people. In 2010, the Vacation Rental Industry generated over $85 billion in revenue.

More and more people are gravitating every day to social sites like Facebook, Twitter and other emerging platforms. Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003, according to CEO Schmidt of Google. Facebook is adding 35 million new users a month to its existing 750 million worldwide users that share 30 billion pieces of content every month. On average, women spend one out of every six minutes on a social networking site and Facebook now accounts for over 25% of all online traffic in the world. It took Twitter three years to amass 1 billion tweets and now there are 1 billion tweets every week. The reality is online web traffic is consolidating at a very rapid pace and it is no longer good enough nor will it be affordable to drive eyeballs to a static web site for any business.

When looking at the Vacation Rental industry as a whole, most websites are built on a traditional listing model whereby a property owner buys traffic through a subscription fee or through giving up a percentage of the rental revenue. Travelers search among multiple property listings at no charge to find what he or she wants. In other words, the traveler Finds and the property owner is Found. There is absolutely nothing social about this model.

JoeOptions™ disrupts this traditional model by focusing vacation rentals around people and where the online traffic exists. Integrating with social media, JoeOptions now allows a traveler to not only go Find properties, but also allows the property owner to go Find travelers through easy one-click social media marketing tools. As a result, our proprietary platform provides owners with leads that have an interest in their specific property or in similar properties. Owners then only pay based on performance by purchasing the leads they desire, very similar to how one buys a song or an app in the iTunes store. There is no charge for owners to list their properties in our store and use our social marketing tools. Similar as with all travel sites, travelers use the site free of charge.

Just as Facebook is organizing the world around people, our mission is to further organize the Vacation Rental industry around people. Come visit us at JoeOptions.com

Travel Series - Honeymoons

2011-08-04T00:22:00.001-05:00

Travel Series - Destination Weddings

2011-08-02T21:57:00.002-05:00

Do you need a vacation? Let Property Owners find You.

2011-05-23T12:35:00.003-05:00

Like no other company, JoeOptions is a social marketing platform organizing Vacation Rentals around People. Just input where you want to go, how much you want to pay and when you want to go. You can then either browse through the results or simply push the big yellow "Tell Owners About Me" button so that your JoeBot can immediately notify Owners to come compete for your business.

When we say a Social Marketing platform, we don't mean just a place for for Property Owners to market their Vacation Rental. This is why we say we are organizing Vacation Rentals around People - and people are Owners and Travelers. So now, not only can a Property Owner market his property, but the Traveler can now market themselves.

With Property "Listing sites" like VRBO, Homeaway and Airbnb, the Traveler has one choice and that is to go search, review and then try to contact the owner and hope he or she gets back to you.

For a new additional way, please check us out http://joeoptions.com and log in via facebook to create your personal JoeBot.

What should I drink at the Beach?

2011-05-22T11:41:00.000-05:00

Many times when at a restaurant, the waiter shares what wine to drink with what food - Listen to our latest podcast with Scott Jackson on what wine & spirits go well with the Beach.

Vacation Rental Owners & Travelers Give Back

2011-05-19T20:44:00.020-05:00

Charitable donations are declining, and many of us are looking for creative ways to be charitable. JoeOptions has discovered Geronimo! - BOOK SPARE WEEKS, INCREASE BOOKINGS AND BE CHARITABLE? Now you can! JoeOptions suggests that you visit Geronimo! where generous vacation home owners and travelers come together!

HOW IT WORKS – Vacation rental owners donate spare weeks (off season weeks and last season cancellations), and when a property is rented, half (or in some cases all) of the proceeds go directly to the charities selected by the owner and/or renter. Can you say “win/win/win”? Owners increase their booking revenues by booking spare weeks, renters enjoy great deals, and charities benefit on each Geronimo! vacation rental reservation.

Geronimo! for Travelers

Get a great deal on a vacation and help your favorite cause. It’s that simple. Select your favorite non-profit on the Geronimo! homepage to get started!

Geronimo! for Property Owners

Donate ONE spare week to get started! You receive 50% of the rent while the rest goes to charity, or if you’re super generous, you can donate all of the rental proceeds. Geronimo! covers cleaning fees, taxes and management fees. Post one or more of your vacation homes and set your donation preferences (who will benefit, how much they will benefit), then promote your Geronimo! listing to those that have rented from you in the past. You’ve just discovered a new way to be charitable! Geronimo! is now doing some significant marketing on CNBC, FoxNews, Bloomberg and CNN through SiriusXM radio advertising, so your properties will get additional attention!

Geronimo! for Non-Profits

Geronimo! raises money for non-profits and provides a turnkey fundraising solution for non-profits. You simply provide a logo and tell them a little bit about your organization. Geronimo! handles all of the technology to build you a private label site, and they handle payments. Encourage current and potential donors to visit your private label site (powered by Geronimo! and branded OneSpareWeek) for the benefit of your non-profit organization.

Geronimo! for Property Managers

Geronimo! is a free way to market properties and expose them to a huge network of generous travelers. Do good with vacation homes and fill off season spare weeks and last minute cancellations for your owners. Your fees are paid in full (before any payments to non-profits). Geronimo! guarantees you the same fee percentage as you would if you had rented the property through any other means. Donate in advance or at the “last minute”.

JoeOptions encourages you to visit Geronimo! as a means to give back (and generate some extra income!). We suggest that you and your friends visit Geronimo! and join the Geronimo! movement today!

Boys of Summer

2011-05-18T16:23:00.008-05:00

As a kid, if I thought of summer, I thought about no school, swimming pools, and baseball. Baseball has always been a big part of my summers growing up. If I wasn't playing it, then I was going to be watching it. I remember one summer going to Dallas and staying with my grandmother. She was able to get us some front row seats by the visiting dugout. Well the visitors just happened to be the New York Yankees. As each one of those "Bronx Bombers" would come out and warm-up, we would just sit and stare. The Yankees first baseman was Don Mattingly, who is now the Manager for the L.A. Dodgers. He was in the middle of hitting 7 consecutive home-runs in a row, and the media was all over him. Could he hit another one out to tie the record? Well, he came out to loosen up before he went to the plate, and then he turned to speak to us, "How are you boys doing tonight?" Here we were 12 years old speaking to a famous player in the middle of a game with a Major League record at stake. We both said something back that must have sounded like broken English, because we were in half shock. Well, he walks up to the plate, and crushes one over the right field wall. As he comes back toward the dugout, he just gives us a thumbs up. It was a moment and a memory for a 12 year old that is engraved in my mind. Mattingly went on to break the record the next night. Several years later, I believe Ken Griffey Jr. broke Mattingly's record. Records come and go, but the memories never fade away.

Earlier this year JoeOptions decided to support one of our local community baseball leagues. The league was in need of sponsors, and we gladly took the opportunity to support a sport we love. We believe that making memories are an important part of life! We encourage going to a vacation spot that you have never gone to before, taking up a hobby or sport you have never participated in, or just doing something you have never done.
There is nothing better than watching young kids field balls, catch pop-ups, or deliver a crucial hit in the game of baseball. There were three kids on the team that had never played the game before, and in the end they got to experience an undefeated 12-0 season. There is a memory those boys want forget!
We just wanted to send a little "shout-out" to the JoeOptions.com baseball team. Congratulations kids, we were proud of you!

JoeOptions. A Social Marketing Platform organizing Vacation Rentals Around People

2011-05-03T15:42:00.064-05:00

Like no one else, JoeOptions is a social marketing platform organizing Vacation Rentals around People.

People are gravitating more and more every day to social sites like Facebook, Twitter and other emerging platforms. Facebook is adding 30 million new users a month to its existing 650 million worldwide users that share 30 billion pieces of content every month. On average, women spend 1 out of every 6 minutes on a social networking site. It is predicted that Facebook will soon account for 25% of all online traffic in the world. It took Twitter 3 years to get to 1 billion tweets and now there are over 1 billion tweets every day on Twitter.

When looking at the Vacation Rental industry, most websites are built on a model whereby a Property Owner must list a property and a Traveler must search to find what he or she wants. In other words, the Traveler Finds and the Property Owner is Found. There is absolutely nothing social about this antiquated model.

JoeOptions disrupts this traditional model by focusing vacation rentals around people, in addition to properties. Integrating with social media such as Facebook, JoeOptions now allows a Traveler to not only go search and Find properties, but also to be Found by Property Owners. Similarly, JoeOptions not only allows a Property Owner to be Found, but now allows the Property Owner to Find Travelers.

Just as Facebook is organizing the world around people, our mission is to further organize the Vacation Rentals around people.

If you are a Traveler, come build a JoeBot who will report to you daily what he has found and or tell owners you may be interested in their property.

If you are an Property Owner, there is no need to rent blindly by just receiving phone calls or emails from Travelers. Try a new way by creating a comprehensive property profile with unlimited photos & videos, social media integration and a real time dashboard of Traveler leads to choose from.

Also, you can join the engaging conversation at facebook.com/joeoptions, where we have the largest following in our industry with friends of our fans reaching over 18 million people.

For more detailed information, please send a message via twitter at twitter.com/JoeOptions or email us at info@JoeOptions.com.

Great Music at Orange Beach, AL

2011-04-27T07:07:00.004-05:00

Sometimes it is good to see what events may be happening around your summer vacation! This summer if you have planned a trip to the Orange Beach area, you may be in store for some fun music concerts. The Amphitheater at The Wharf will host several major concerts that you just might need to try and get tickets for:

May 14 - Beach Boys
May 21 - Kenny Chesney
May 29 - Lynyrd Skynyrd and ZZ Top
June 5 - Willie Nelson
June 19 - Def Leopard/Heart
July 14 - Jason Aldean w/ Chris Young and Thompson Square
July 15 - Yes/Styx

If you are unaware, The Wharf is an outdoor shopping area that also has a movie theatre, several restaurants, and can be a great family outing during the evening.
Search for you next Orange Beach, Alabama vacation property on JoeOptions today!

The Easter Bunny came with 8,000 Eggs

2011-04-24T12:35:00.003-05:00

Today, I watched 8,000 eggs get picked up in one minute here in Rosemary Beach, FL. I would recomend Rosemary Beach anytime of the year, especially during Easter since it is such a great time for family. There are concerts, Bocce ball tournaments, an Easter morning service on the ocean and the BIG EGG hunt. Here is a great video of the Eggs being consumed in 1 minute. Enjoy

Vail Valley Real Estate - Slifer Report

2011-04-18T10:11:00.001-05:00

We received the Slifer Report this week and were so impressed that we wanted to share it with all of you. It is a great tool for anyone who owns or is looking to own in the Vail Valley. Take a minute to read it and give us your thoughts. We hope you enjoy find it as informative as we have.

From Tom Vucich of Slifer Smith & Frampton Real Estate:

"The 2010 Annual Slifer Report, a comprehensive overview of the real estate market in the Vail Valley, is now available. This exclusive report outlines the market trends in each area. Vail Valley real estate in 2010 was up 67% over last year in total sales volume ending at $1.497 billion and there were 1,250 transactions which was a 33% increase over 2009." Learn more about the market and view the report today.

Gulf Spill Update: April 13, 2011

2011-04-13T21:08:00.002-05:00

The following is an update from Harris B. Williams, Esq.: OIL SPILL update regarding the BP FUND CLAIMS PROCESS:

I. Research on the Health of the Gulf

II. Gulf Spill Joint/Several Liability for BP's Co-Participants in the Deepwater Horizon

Oil Spill

III. Transocean Filing Deadline

IV. Do Claimants Want/Need Professional Representation?

V. Summary on Benefits of Professional Representation

( Research on the Health of the Gulf)

There have been a number of opinions given about how long damage to the Gulf of

Mexico will persist. Mr. Feinberg has given an opinion that nearly all will be well by

2012. The University of Georgia Marine Science Department reported in February that

their submarine studies from the sea floor, including 2,600 square miles around the

Macondo well site, showed that the oil that sank during the spill, some 4.9 millions

barrels, is not degrading as hoped and decimated life on parts of the sea floor. The

University of Georgia research was revealed at the American Association for the

Advancement of Science annual meeting in Washington, and contrasts with other studies

that show a more optimistic outlook about the health of the Gulf. (Fox News/AP Feb. 2011)

(Gulf Spill Joint/Several Liability for BP's Co-Participants in the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill)

A commission report from January opines that Halliburton & Transocean share blame

with BP in the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Rig and the catastrophic oil spill

that followed. A later report (DNV) opines that Cameron's blow out preventer (BOP) was

defective. Part of the significance of these findings is that BP's administrative scheme

requires release of all potentially liable parties, including the three mentioned above, for

the final payment phase. The putative co-defendants who share fault, based on prior

comparable mass disaster claims, typically contribute proportionate "liability shares"

based on percentages of fault to make a given claimant whole for their losses. This is the

context that many claims will probably require litigation workups.

(Transocean Filing Deadline)

As many of you know the Transocean filing deadline is April 20, 2011. With the deadline less than one week away it is decision time for those who have not yet filed or need to file. In essence, Transocean has invoked a 1851 maritime law in order to protect itself

against liability for the explosion. Notwithstanding that effort, Transocean, Halliburton,

Cameron, and BP, all will likely share financial responsibility in the catastrophe. Since

no one company wants to take the blame, it may be necessary for courts to decide who

is responsible. Filing a joinder against Transocean by the April 20th deadline ensures

that a claimant will preserve legal claims against all parties responsible and increases

the potential for financial recovery for oil spill damages. With the Transocean filing

deadline set for the one year anniversary of the oil spill, most claimants will want to file

in this proceeding which is set for trial February 2012. If a claimant later settles with

BP, a release of all parties, including Transocean will be required. So filing now in the

Transocean proceeding should preserve a claimants rights without materially affecting

the ability to take a settlement from BP at a later date.

(Do Claimants Need Professional Representation?)

While it is true that a claimant can attempt to file the joinder in the Transocean

Limitation of Liability proceeding for themselves, and information about how to do that

is available at the GCCF website, many claimants find this comparable to filing their

own lawsuit in court and prefer to retain an attorney on their behalf. In this regard, I have

spoken to many claimants who see the BP/GCCF claims process as becoming more of

a legal process; and there is frustration with the slow and protracted claims processing

in place at GCCF. It is notable that 85.69% of the claims that have been paid have

been a final quick pay which is only $5,000 for individuals and $25,000 for businesses.

These numbers do not begin to cover the loss that many individuals and businesses

have suffered due to these events. With the apparent emphasis on clearing the GCCF

spreadsheets of those who will accept less to sign off with BP, there may not be room

to pay fair value for final and interim claims that have been submitted. For example, in

Alabama as of April 12, the GCCF website statistics show that 11,346 interim claims

have been filed and only 706 have been paid. According to the Times Picayune, as of

April 10 there are still 65,000 interim claims to be paid. The Gulf Coast news media has

well covered the fact that the GCCF claims administrator Mr. Feinberg recently received

a pay increase from $850,000 to $1.25 million per month.

Other issues to consider include:

a) Being prepared in the event BP fails to fund GCCF, including a perspective on the other petro-chemical industry participants.

b) Awareness of state law and OPA claim statutes of limitation during administrative processing phases.

c) Evaluation of potential BP final offers in the context of potential recoveries against BP and up to 50 codefendants in the litigation process.

d) Advantages of dealing with experienced attorneys in this field including familiarity with opposing attorneys in potential settlement negotiations.

(Summary on Benefits of Professional Representation)

The claimants, by retaining legal counsel at this time, gain a number of benefits

including: 1) Forensic Accounting Support (in our case with our strategic partnering

CPA Firm). Forensic accounting seeks to maximize claim values by reference to

adjustments for recessionary baselines, growth modeling, projections for economic

recovery of affected areas, and business valuation analyses. Forensic accounting workups

are vital in the final claims administrative process with GCCF and beyond in potential

litigation efforts. In our case, this CPA group is available to collaborate with our interim

claims processing department. 2) Our group of attorneys have extensive experience in

dealing with mass disaster claims and, in fact, one of our attorneys was on the template

committee when the plans for GCCF were being drawn up. We have three decades of

experience in petro-chemical mass litigation including lead counsel role in the Texas City

Refinery Explosion Case 2005-2008 (which resulted in the development of a document

repository of a million pages of information and 200 corporate video depositions.)

Harris B. Williams

Law Offices of Harris B. Williams, PLLC

Sull' Acqua Building; Suite 100

147 Republic Street - Lost Rabbit

Madison, Mississippi 39110

Telephone: 601-707-3492

Facsimile: 601-510-1957

Mailing Address:

Post Office Box 13834

Jackson, MS 39236

email: harrisbwilliams@gmail.com

*also licensed in Alabama

Gulfcoastdisasteronline.com

1-888-795-9547

Facebook @ Gulf Oil Spill Claims Update

My Breckenridge, CO Trip!

2011-03-28T18:38:00.004-05:00

I love Breckenridge, Colorado! It is a cute small town, but has huge mountains. There is a great view. Going the first time was awesome! Skiing was one of the best things, and if I ever get the chance, I will definitely go back to those mountains!

Mary Patton Murphy, age 10

Beautiful British Columbia

2011-03-17T11:22:00.004-05:00

When you read travel information about places you have never been, the places always sound so spectacular, and why not, anyone can describe their area as a special, one of a kind travel destination. They can even call it the best place on earth. The funny thing is, all of those things are true about British Columbia. How can we say that and mean it? You can only find out by coming here, but we will try to describe some of the province to you now.

The common misconception about Canada is that it is cold. While this is true about most of the rest of the country, British Columbia actually has an incredible array of climates from desert in the Ossoyos region to temperate rainforest on the coast. The coastal regions of Vancouver Island and the province's largest city Vancouver as well as the Sunshine Coast and Gulf Islands all benefit from the temperate weather aided by the constant temperature of the ocean. Cities like Victoria and Vancouver don't normally get snow in the winter but in fact attract winter travelers from elsewhere who are trying to escape the cold of the other provinces. Amazingly, some of the Gulf Island, located between Vancouver Island and the Mainland, have Mediterranean climates similar to what you would find in some parts of Europe.

Places like Vancouver have the best of both worlds. Ski or snowboard on the North Shore Mountains in the morning, head down to one of the many Vancouver region's excellent golf courses for a round after lunch and then retire to the beach for some sun in the afternoon.

There are just so many things to do in BC you will never run out of ideas of what to do next. Sure, you can visit the big attractions elsewhere but that is not what BC is about. You have everything to choose from in BC. Like to shop, Robson Street in Vancouver is known internationally as a centre for fashion in the likes of New York and Paris. Like to ski, snowboard or snowmobile, BC has so many mountains to choose from but best of all, Whistler is just 2 hours from Vancouver. Voted the best place to ski in North America 10 years in a row if you haven't been, you don't know what you are missing! Like water sports like fishing or whale watching there are whole communities dedicated to providing you with the very best. BC even has great surf for surfers. Like to camp, hike or climb, BC has a huge network of parks from the easily accessible by car and RV to the most remote back country access there is something for everyone.

All in all, BC is the place to be this summer. Come and stay and see what it is all about.

Eric Hughes
Webmaster
Manager, Marketing, IT
Email: webmaster@emrvr.com

For Bookings please contact the main sales office at

Phone: 1-250-483-6790
Toll Free: 1-866-800-8880
Email: contact@emrvr.com
Website: http://www.emrvacationrentals.com (And make sure you tell them JoeOptions sent you!)

For Homeowner Relations please contact the Vancouver office at

Phone: 1-604-628-7300
Toll Free: 1-888-628-7330
Email: homeowners@emrvr.com (And make sure you tell them JoeOptions sent you!)

Travel Series- British Columbia

2011-03-09T13:30:00.002-06:00

Listen as we talk to Eric Hughes of EMR vacation rentals in British Columbia. Eric will tell our listeners about his surrounding area and why vacationers should think of visiting him.

Our trip to Oxford, Ms

2011-03-09T10:34:00.000-06:00

When we went to Oxford, and we got to see an Ole Miss basketball game. Before the game we ate at Ajax Diner, and then went to Rebel Rags. You might want to go there sometime, if you do I hope you have fun.

Mills Murphy, age 8

Travel Series- North Myrtle Beach

2011-02-18T12:57:00.004-06:00

Listen as we talk to Marcia Hanscome and Barbara Miller of Vacation Rentals of North Myrtle Beach. These two sisters have a passion not only for their business, but for every customer they come in contact with. Marcia and Barbara will tell us about their surrounding area and why vacationers should think of visiting them.

JoeOptions Rental Properties Map

2011-02-07T19:20:00.006-06:00

Take a look at all of the properties on JoeOptions with our new interactive Map! We are growing daily with properties from all over the world. We allow Property Owners to display UNLIMITED photos so you KNOW what you are renting! Where you go matters. Know before you go.

View Larger Map

Every renter needs a JoeBot. Stop Digging and Start Finding

2011-02-06T13:58:00.001-06:00

You've probably searched vacation real estate sites before, looking for the perfect place for spring break, summer vacation, or that ski trip you're determined to take.

You've also probably spent a lot of time building those searches, but don't find just the right place. So you go back the next day, and the next, and the next, doing those same searches and hoping to find a new listing that's exactly what you want.

For years we did that too, and we got tired of it! That's why we invented JoeBots at JoeOptions.

Search once, then assign your search to a JoeBot. He'll continually scan our database as new listings are added. If any of them meet your search criteria, he'll notify you immediately via email, text message, or both.

You can build as many JoeBots as you want - one for spring break, one for summer vacation, one for the ski trip... anything you like.

Your JoeBots will work all day and all night, as long as you want them to. You can even switch them off when you've found the place you want, and switch them back on next year when vacation time rolls around again.

With one click, your JoeBot starts searching our database using on the same criteria you entered the year before.

You need to register to use JoeBots, but registering is free and takes only a few seconds. Click here to register, then start a search and build a JoeBot.

Find Travel destinations with your personal Queue

2011-02-06T13:43:00.001-06:00

On most conventional property listing website searches, a user is forced to comb through what seems like an endless display of similar properties without having the option to save a particular property to review later. Furthermore, the user is left only with the option to bookmark an entire page and email the link to whomever they wish. This is repeated habitually and ends with a full inbox of links leading to similar webpages.

Many times a husband and wife end up physically swapping post it notes as they separately dig through unorganized property listings over many days.

At JoeOptions, we’ve created a “Queue” to eliminate wasted time and memory, which users find frustrating and redundant. Our Queue houses listings the user is currently considering and is altered and stored on site. Now the user can easily manage prospective properties on site and use their computer or smartphone memories as they wish.

Register today at JoeOptions for free to Stop Digging and Start Finding with your personal Queue.

Travel Series- Virginia Beach

2011-01-31T08:30:00.000-06:00

Listen as we talk to Lisa Roland of Sandbridge Realty in Virginia Beach. Lisa will tell our listeners about her surrounding area and why vacationers should think of visiting her.

Destination: Cape Cod, Mass

2011-01-30T11:59:00.002-06:00

You want to travel to one of the United States most historic places, without surrendering all that a vacation should be? Yep, the New England shore area where the Pilgrims first landed, better known as "The Cape". The pilgrims first landed on the tip of lower Cape Cod, but they felt like it was too sandy to live there. Now, that sand plays a major role in bringing people back here for vacation year after year.

"Cape Cod is the way life used to be, should be, and in many regards still is," says Joanne Logie, manager of New England Vacation Rentals, "Once you get here, you feel like you took a step back in time."

The natural landscape of Cape Cod hasn't changed much since the original settlers landed. As it still offers plenty of forest, dunes, beaches, and marsh. The homes on the Cape are virtually unchanged from when they erected almost a hundred years ago.

"We have a Cape Cod commission that has worked really hard to keep our towns, small town-like," mentions Logie, "Each town has a main street, library, local events, bike trails, road races, music festivals, and the beaches are voted some of the best in the world. It is not high-tech, but it is a simpler life. When you come here you really feel like you are on vacation."

The Cape Cod National Seashore is a must see while vacationing here. In 1961, President Kennedy signed the legislation that makes this what it is today. It is a 40-mile stretch of unspoiled sandy beach in Outer Cape Cod, with 559.6 miles of beautiful and also unspoiled coastline.

"There are hundreds of light-houses, which some people like driving from light-house to light-house," replies Logie, "We are famous for our seafood, in fact some people get their clamming license for the weekend. We just have cute quaint villages with that typical New England architecture. Most all the houses are that salt box cape style with natural shingles having pretty yards with beautiful landscaping."

Most of Logie's vacation rentals are in the Harwich area, which is around the "elbow" of the Cape. If you are looking for good places to eat in this area, she mentioned Ember and Ocean House, but she also stated there are many clam shacks to enjoy as well.

"Ice Cream! Cape Cod is super popular for Ice Cream," adds Logie, "All of it is homemade, and there is competition between the ice cream venues. There have been many traveling road-shows coming to Cape Cod to sample that ice cream. On any given night you can see the lines of people waiting to get ice cream."

For the baseball enthusiast, Cape Cod has the best summer league for current college baseball players all across the country. It offers a great family outing while staying on the Cape during your vacation.

"This is part of our lifestyle," Logie says, "Every little town has a baseball team. All the talent scouts from all the major league teams come to watch these players in the summer. It doesn't cost anything to go to the games, you can donate a dollar if you want. It is old-fashioned fields with old fashioned bleachers. The kids can meet the players on the field before the game starts."

Every town in the summer has their own music festivals, art shows, craft fairs, antique shows, and so many things for kids. The Cape is also a great vacation get-away for those that like to run.

"The Cape is also famous for road races." replied Logie, "Every weekend starting in the spring, all the way through the fall, you can find a race to participate in. They can be as small as 5k or up to half marathon. We have runners that book their vacations around these races."

If you want relaxation with an old-fashioned feel, book your rental today. In fact take a look at one of Logie's rentals: http://www.joeoptions.com/?p=view&prop=7481.