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CNN Live Today

Vacation Rentals

Aired August 11, 2003 - 11:46   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Check your calendar. Time is running out on paradise. Labor Day, the unofficial end of the summer vacation season, is fast approaching. But believe it or not, it's not too late to get a terrific deal on a summer rental house. So how does Bermuda sound? In fact, you might get a better price now that it's the end of the season. Looks absolutely fantastic to me.
All right. So, what do you look for in last-minute summer rental, and where?

Our guest has some great ideas for your getaway. Carolina Haberfeld is the executive director of "Departures" magazine, an American Express publication. she joins us now in New York, our bureau there, this morning.

Good morning to you, Carolina. Thanks for being here.

Boy, those pictures just about do it for me. I'm ready to pack up.

It is not too late to rent a summer house. Talk to us about why not.

CAROLINA HABERFELD, EXEC. DIR., "DEPARTURES" MAGAZINE: It's definitely not too late. And I can't believe how fast this summer has gone. But the time is now. You have about three or four weeks left. And they can be great things to do. I think that people are making their travel plans later right now. And, you know, partially because of the economy, partially because of the war, and partially because of the weather of the summer, at least in this region, has been so spotty that people did not get really, like, get in the mood until quite late in the summer. So there's a lot of inventory to be had now, and actually the prices are pretty reasonable.

COLLINS: Great, Carolina, sorry. Let's get right to it. I want to get back to those pictures of Bermuda. It's very exciting to me. You say Bermuda really is not all that far away. especially if you live on the East Coast.

HABERFELD: Bermuda is actually a great choice. I mean, everybody thinks about things like within driving distance. But the truth is, if you rent a house for a week or three weeks, you know, anywhere in between, it's worth going. Bermuda is an hour and 50 minute flight, which is really close. You can go to bermudagetaway.com. They actually offer a lot of different houses. I think with the increase in second home ownership, a lot of people have been putting their houses on the market, and so Bermuda is a perfect second home place, and so now they have a lot of inventory for people to go to. It's just beautiful there.

COLLINS: I am so sold.

All right, let's move on to Nantucket. Sounds like a beautiful place, too, and a favorite. A lot of people like to go there.

HABERFELD: It's funny, Nantucket's been a favorite, certainly for people from Boston, increasingly for people from the New York area. You know, these gorgeous beaches. It has a really wonderful feel to it. It's probably a little pricier than some of the other options. Maybe it costs about $5,000 a week for a house, but you have a lot of choices, and it's easy to get to. You can just drive there, although there are short flights also. And it's a great option.

And you know, renting a house for family can be less expensive really than staying in a hotel, because you have kitchen facilities, and you can cook your own food and not relying on eating out all the time. So it can actually be a very reasonable option for people.

COLLINS: Yes, we should let people know that that $5,000 a week of course is probably not just for one family. This type of place would hold about 12 people or so?

HABERFELD: Right. I mean, that could be a three or four bedroom house actually for that price, which means if you split the house with another family for the week, that's pretty reasonable, because your kids will be in one bedroom, and you will be in the other bedroom, and then your other family that you're with, and it really can totally work out as being very reasonably priced.

COLLINS: All right, let's move on to Cape May now. Why is this a good destination at this time of year?

HABERFELD: Cape May is gray, it's Victorian, it's right on the water, it has a lot of options. I think it's a less expensive option. It would run about -- a three-bedroom house is about $3,000. A one- bedroom house would run about $1,200. It's very easy to get to, and it has a great sense of community there actually. So I think it's a really nice option, also great for families.

COLLINS: Even though I just came back from vacation, the video that we are showing is killing me. This is good stuff.

HABERFELD: You want to go back.

COLLINS: Yes, I want to go back. And Hawaii -- what about Hawaii? Always a great place, isn't it?

HABERFELD: Hawaii is gorgeous. And it's just -- it has so much to offer, so much athletics to offer, you know, outdoor activities, not just necessarily lounging in the sun, it also has culture, and there's a lot to do. I think that's probably -- certainly for people on the East Coast, that's a longer commitment, because it's further to get to. But once you're there, it's easy. They take the American dollar, of course. It's part of America, so everybody speaks English. It just has a lot of conveniences to it, but yet, it's still completely exotic and totally different.

COLLINS: Yes, beautiful waters, that's for sure.

HABERFELD: Quickly, Carolina, just a few seconds left. Virginia Beach, I want to get to that one.

COLLINS: Virginia Beach is great. It's also a beautiful part of the country. It's right near Norfolk. It's very close to Charlotte, and it has these long stretches of beach. It can get crowded, but is can also be very affordable. Also a couple bedroom house probably costs around $,1200. It's really very reasonable.

I think the most important thing is you want to ask a couple of questions, you want to work with a reputable agency, you want to find out what comes with the house -- are linens included? Are the towels included? Is there a car included? Just make sure you know what you're getting.

COLLINS: All right, some excellent advice that we all get very excited about, vacation time. Carolina Haberfeld, executive director of "Departures" magazine. Thanks so much for being with us this morning. Thanks again, Carolina.

HABERFELD: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired August 11, 2003 - 11:46   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Check your calendar. Time is running out on paradise. Labor Day, the unofficial end of the summer vacation season, is fast approaching. But believe it or not, it's not too late to get a terrific deal on a summer rental house. So how does Bermuda sound? In fact, you might get a better price now that it's the end of the season. Looks absolutely fantastic to me.
All right. So, what do you look for in last-minute summer rental, and where?

Our guest has some great ideas for your getaway. Carolina Haberfeld is the executive director of "Departures" magazine, an American Express publication. she joins us now in New York, our bureau there, this morning.

Good morning to you, Carolina. Thanks for being here.

Boy, those pictures just about do it for me. I'm ready to pack up.

It is not too late to rent a summer house. Talk to us about why not.

CAROLINA HABERFELD, EXEC. DIR., "DEPARTURES" MAGAZINE: It's definitely not too late. And I can't believe how fast this summer has gone. But the time is now. You have about three or four weeks left. And they can be great things to do. I think that people are making their travel plans later right now. And, you know, partially because of the economy, partially because of the war, and partially because of the weather of the summer, at least in this region, has been so spotty that people did not get really, like, get in the mood until quite late in the summer. So there's a lot of inventory to be had now, and actually the prices are pretty reasonable.

COLLINS: Great, Carolina, sorry. Let's get right to it. I want to get back to those pictures of Bermuda. It's very exciting to me. You say Bermuda really is not all that far away. especially if you live on the East Coast.

HABERFELD: Bermuda is actually a great choice. I mean, everybody thinks about things like within driving distance. But the truth is, if you rent a house for a week or three weeks, you know, anywhere in between, it's worth going. Bermuda is an hour and 50 minute flight, which is really close. You can go to bermudagetaway.com. They actually offer a lot of different houses. I think with the increase in second home ownership, a lot of people have been putting their houses on the market, and so Bermuda is a perfect second home place, and so now they have a lot of inventory for people to go to. It's just beautiful there.

COLLINS: I am so sold.

All right, let's move on to Nantucket. Sounds like a beautiful place, too, and a favorite. A lot of people like to go there.

HABERFELD: It's funny, Nantucket's been a favorite, certainly for people from Boston, increasingly for people from the New York area. You know, these gorgeous beaches. It has a really wonderful feel to it. It's probably a little pricier than some of the other options. Maybe it costs about $5,000 a week for a house, but you have a lot of choices, and it's easy to get to. You can just drive there, although there are short flights also. And it's a great option.

And you know, renting a house for family can be less expensive really than staying in a hotel, because you have kitchen facilities, and you can cook your own food and not relying on eating out all the time. So it can actually be a very reasonable option for people.

COLLINS: Yes, we should let people know that that $5,000 a week of course is probably not just for one family. This type of place would hold about 12 people or so?

HABERFELD: Right. I mean, that could be a three or four bedroom house actually for that price, which means if you split the house with another family for the week, that's pretty reasonable, because your kids will be in one bedroom, and you will be in the other bedroom, and then your other family that you're with, and it really can totally work out as being very reasonably priced.

COLLINS: All right, let's move on to Cape May now. Why is this a good destination at this time of year?

HABERFELD: Cape May is gray, it's Victorian, it's right on the water, it has a lot of options. I think it's a less expensive option. It would run about -- a three-bedroom house is about $3,000. A one- bedroom house would run about $1,200. It's very easy to get to, and it has a great sense of community there actually. So I think it's a really nice option, also great for families.

COLLINS: Even though I just came back from vacation, the video that we are showing is killing me. This is good stuff.

HABERFELD: You want to go back.

COLLINS: Yes, I want to go back. And Hawaii -- what about Hawaii? Always a great place, isn't it?

HABERFELD: Hawaii is gorgeous. And it's just -- it has so much to offer, so much athletics to offer, you know, outdoor activities, not just necessarily lounging in the sun, it also has culture, and there's a lot to do. I think that's probably -- certainly for people on the East Coast, that's a longer commitment, because it's further to get to. But once you're there, it's easy. They take the American dollar, of course. It's part of America, so everybody speaks English. It just has a lot of conveniences to it, but yet, it's still completely exotic and totally different.

COLLINS: Yes, beautiful waters, that's for sure.

HABERFELD: Quickly, Carolina, just a few seconds left. Virginia Beach, I want to get to that one.

COLLINS: Virginia Beach is great. It's also a beautiful part of the country. It's right near Norfolk. It's very close to Charlotte, and it has these long stretches of beach. It can get crowded, but is can also be very affordable. Also a couple bedroom house probably costs around $,1200. It's really very reasonable.

I think the most important thing is you want to ask a couple of questions, you want to work with a reputable agency, you want to find out what comes with the house -- are linens included? Are the towels included? Is there a car included? Just make sure you know what you're getting.

COLLINS: All right, some excellent advice that we all get very excited about, vacation time. Carolina Haberfeld, executive director of "Departures" magazine. Thanks so much for being with us this morning. Thanks again, Carolina.

HABERFELD: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com