--- name: borski/vrbo source: https://app.decimal.ai/s/borski-vrbo@1/SKILL.md source_sha256: fcfc3e13dbe4 --- # VRBO Search Search VRBO vacation rentals via Patchright and return whole-home / condo / cabin listings with pricing and booking links. VRBO is the natural complement to the Airbnb MCP for group and family stays — many mountain-town and resort property managers cross-list on both, but VRBO carries professionally-managed condos and cabins that don't always appear on Airbnb. **Requires Patchright** (undetected Playwright fork). VRBO sits behind **Akamai Bot Manager** — plain HTTP, standard Playwright, `@playwright/mcp`, and agent-browser all get a `429 Too Many Requests` ("Provisioned request rate has been exceeded") bot wall. Patchright passes Akamai's sensor and earns the `_abck` cookie. This is the same wall — and the same fix — as the chase-travel / amex-travel / southwest skills. **Must run headed (`headless=False`).** Akamai flags headless browsers. On macOS a Chrome window briefly appears. For background / unattended runs, use Docker (Xvfb provides the virtual display). **No login required.** VRBO search results are public — unlike chase-travel / amex-travel, there are no credentials. The persistent profile only caches the Akamai cookie so repeat searches re-challenge less. ## Prerequisites ```bash pip install patchright && patchright install chromium ``` Or use Docker (no local install, headed via Xvfb): ```bash docker build -t vrbo skills/vrbo/ ``` ## When to Use - Group / family stays where you want a whole home, condo, or cabin - "Compare Airbnb vs VRBO in " - Multi-bedroom rentals with separate rooms (the multi-person trip pattern) - Resort / mountain towns (Canmore, Banff-area, Whistler, Muskoka) where professional property managers list condos on VRBO that aren't on Airbnb ## When NOT to Use - **Completing a booking.** This skill finds rentals and returns links only. Do not attempt to complete a purchase. - **Hotels.** Use compare-hotels / serpapi / liteapi / the portal skills. - **Single rooms / shared rooms.** VRBO is whole-property only; for private rooms in a shared home use the Airbnb MCP (`private_room`). ## Usage ```bash # Local (pops up a Chrome window on macOS) python3 skills/vrbo/scripts/search_vrbo.py \ --dest "Canmore, Alberta, Canada" \ --checkin 2026-06-26 --checkout 2026-07-02 --adults 3 --json # Whole homes with 3+ bedrooms python3 skills/vrbo/scripts/search_vrbo.py \ --dest "Canmore, Alberta" --checkin 2026-06-26 --checkout 2026-07-02 \ --adults 3 --min-bedrooms 3 --json # Docker (headless host, headed browser via Xvfb) docker run --rm vrbo \ --dest "Canmore, Alberta" --checkin 2026-06-26 --checkout 2026-07-02 \ --adults 3 --json ``` ### Arguments | Flag | Default | Notes | |------|---------|-------| | `--dest` | required | Destination keyword, e.g. `"Canmore, Alberta, Canada"`. VRBO resolves it to a regionId server-side. | | `--checkin` / `--checkout` | required | ISO `YYYY-MM-DD`. Must be today or later. | | `--adults` | 2 | Traveler count. | | `--children` | 0 | | | `--pets` | off | Pet-friendly only. | | `--min-bedrooms` | 0 | Client-side filter (VRBO's URL filter is unreliable). | | `--limit` | 20 | Max listings returned. | | `--retries` | 4 | Akamai retry attempts (homepage warm-up → SERP). | | `--json` | off | Emit JSON to stdout (use this for orchestration). | ## Output JSON shape (with `--json`): ```json { "source": "vrbo", "extractor": "__PLUS_REDUX_STORE__ | dom:lodging-card | dom:anchors", "searchUrl": "https://www.vrbo.com/search?...", "count": 12, "listings": [ { "id": "1234567", "name": "Mountain-View Condo Steps from Main St", "bedrooms": 3, "bathrooms": 2, "sleeps": 6, "rating": 4.9, "reviewCount": 84, "priceText": "The current price is CA $312 CA $312 CA $2,184 total includes taxes & fees", "pricePerNight": 312, "priceTotal": 2184, "priceIncludesTaxes": true, "lat": 51.08, "lng": -115.35, "url": "https://www.vrbo.com/en-ca/cottage-rental/p1234567?..." } ] } ``` `extractor` tells you which layer produced the data. `__PLUS_REDUX_STORE__` is richest (bedrooms, coords, review counts); `dom:lodging-card` is reliable but thinner (the common case — names, prices, URLs); `dom:anchors` is a last-ditch id+url scrape — if you see that, the page shape changed and selectors need a refresh (file a P2 task). **Prices:** the SERP price string is parsed into `pricePerNight` and `priceTotal`. Verified against live data: VRBO's SERP **total includes taxes & fees** (`priceIncludesTaxes: true`) — `priceTotal` is the all-in for the whole stay, `pricePerNight` is the lead nightly rate. This satisfies the hotel-comparison standard's all-in requirement directly; still open the listing URL to confirm before booking, since a damage deposit or optional add-ons may not be in the SERP figure. ## Tests The pure logic (search-URL building, Akamai block/challenge detection, SERP price parsing, skeleton filtering, listing enrichment) is covered by stdlib `unittest` tests — no browser, network, or Patchright needed (the `patchright` import is lazy): ```bash python3 -m unittest discover -s skills/vrbo/tests -v # or: python3 -m pytest skills/vrbo/tests ``` 17 tests, no third-party deps. The browser-driven path (Akamai bypass, DOM extraction) can't be unit-tested without a live residential connection — verify it manually with a real search (see Usage above). The repo smoke test (`scripts/smoke-test.sh`) separately validates this skill's frontmatter and structure. ## Known fragility - **Akamai is IP-rate-limited.** Datacenter / CI / VPN IPs are frequently blocked even with Patchright. Run on a residential connection for best results. If every retry 429s, the script exits 1 with a clear message — that is an environment block, not a code bug. In practice a home/mobile/hotel-WiFi IP clears the wall, but *rapid repeat* searches from the same IP can start 429-ing — space searches a few minutes apart, and don't loop it in a tight batch. - **DOM selectors drift.** VRBO/Expedia revise their `data-stid` design system periodically. The extractor tries the embedded state blob first (most stable), then `data-stid` cards, then a generic anchor scrape. If `extractor` is `dom:anchors`, refresh the Layer-1/2 selectors.