Overview

If you've never rented vacation property, you will be astounded to discover that you can rent property practically anywhere in the world. The list of properties is constantly changing, but below is a list of destinations with track records of providing suitable and varied rental properties.

Rental properties may include anything from a studio apartment to an authentic ancient castle. The largest segment of the market is villas or summer houses. Most are built at the shore, but there are still plenty to choose from in the mountains, on farmland or simply on a quiet suburban street.

United States Mainland

Choose any popular vacation spot throughout this vast country and there's a rental property available. Rent chalets in Colorado, condos in Florida or villas in South Carolina. There are mansions in Beverly Hills and desert compounds in Las Vegas.

Alaska

The 49th state has property nestled at the foot of mountains and at the coast. You just have to decide what you prefer in your backyard--moose or whales.

Hawaii

What's not to like about Hawaii? Not all islands have rental property, but the main destinations do. Look for the ultimate in luxury on Oahu, Hawaii (the Big Island), Maui, Molokai, and Kauai.

Puerto Rico

There are some truly magnificent villas available overlooking the sea.

Canada

All provinces have apartments, condos, or villas for rent.

Mexico

All your favorite locales offer rental property--Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas, Cancun, Ixtapa, Playa del Carmen, and Puerto Vallarta.

Central America

Costa Rica's cover as a little known but great vacation spot was blown years ago, so don't expect the great deals of the past. Some huge vacation homes have been built here and many are for rent.

Belize doesn't have the vacation notoriety of Costa Rica but should not be overlooked. This tiny, peaceful country has attractions such as world famous scuba diving sites and wildlife sanctuaries.

Racing to catch up with Costa Rica as a vacation destination are Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama.

South America

The image-conscious metropolis of Rio de Janeiro has several rentals available overlooking its famous beaches, and there are other vacation apartments and homes available throughout Brazil.

You can find property across the continent in Argentina, Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, Chile, Colombia, Falkland Islands, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay.

Africa

Marrakech, Morocco. The number of foreigners living here has blossomed in the last few years leading to a growth in tourism as the newcomers tell their friends back home about this area. You can live like a sheik in a Morrocan-style villa.

South Africa, despite its distance from the United States, continues to grow in popularity as travelers discover its diverse topography and cultures.

Old favorites are Kenya, Namibia and Tanzania.

Europe

There are vacation homes waiting for you along the cliffs of Mykonos Island in Greece. Or, perhaps you prefer Corfu.

France (Cannes, Cap-Ferrat, Nice, Paris, Provence, St. Tropez) has a wide variety of available rentals as does Italy (Florence, Milan, Portofino, Rome, Sicily, Tuscany).

Other European sites include Crete, Croatia, The Czech Republic, England, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Malta, Neverlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and Wales.

Middle East

If you don't think rental property is available the world over, just take a look at the places you can stay in the Middle East--Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Bahrain, Lebanon, Jordan, Libya, Iraq, and Israel.

Asia

There's more to Asia than China and Japan. Rent property in Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Turkey, Malaysia, Philippines, India, Taiwan, Nepal, and Hong Kong.

Indian Ocean

The Maldives, Seychelles and Sri Lanka are three possible stops where vacation rental property has been built.

Australia and New Zealand

Properties in Australia are usually located close to the country's beautiful eastern shore. There are also rentals that will put you closer to the Great Barrier Reef.

The Northland Bay of Islands has beautiful coastline property in New Zealand.

South Pacific Islands

Explore Balinese culture and design during your stay at one of Bali's many rental villas on the beach or in the mountains. Fiji has property on both its main island and secondary islands.

The Cook Islands and fabled Tahiti are other favorite South Pacific destinations.

Caribbean

Television personality Robin Leach owns a couple of villas in Jumby Bay, Antigua that are for rent.

Other Caribbean destinations with rental property include Anguilla, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bequia, Bermuda, Bonaire, Bowe Cay, Cary Island, Cayman Islands, Cistern Cay, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Mustique, Nevis, St. Barts, St. Croix, St. John, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Martin, St. Thomas, St. Vincent, Tobago, Tortola, Trinidad, Turks and Caicos, Union Island, Virgin Gorda, and Young Island.

Private Islands

For those desiring complete privacy or total control, nothing beats renting a private island. The islands are usually from just a few acres to several hundred acres in size and fully staffed. Employees are there to see to all your needs from meals to entertainment. While a staffer may have some degree of first-aid training, don't expect the island to be medically equipped to handle a severe health crisis. It may take some time to transport a injured vacationer to a fully-stocked medical facility.

Don't confuse renting a private island with renting a villa on a private island. If you rent a private island, you rightly expect to see only your personal guests on the island. But if you simply rent a villa on a private island, you won't control the entire island. There may be several villas for rent on the island fully booked with their own guests.