Yesterday, the state of Florida announced it was lifting the ban on short term vacation rentals after a lockdown of nearly two months.

That led to much excitement from Louisianians hoping to continue with their vacation plans with a trip to the beach.

Not so fast. There were stipulations placed on the re-opening of short term vacation rentals.

And in reading those guidelines, there seemed to be some details that were unclear to many of us.

We reached out to Maegan Sonnier, Owner/Director of Operations for Travel Machine in Lafayette to clarify some of the confusion.

"Basically, they are opening short term rentals, but Louisiana residents are part of the "hot spot" states. This means that all renters whose addresses are in Louisiana, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut must be staying for periods longer than 14 days," explains Sonnier.

"They must also adhere to quarantine restrictions, so they are encouraging tourism partners not to rent to guests from "high-risk" areas for the next 45 days."

Sonnier went on to say that the state plans to review the situation bi-weekly and the assumption is that these rules will become more relaxed in time. However, there is no certainty that anyone from Louisiana will be allowed to rent for less than two weeks in the next 45 days.

The silver lining is that Alabama has been open for a couple of weeks now and many vacationers are shifting their plans a little closer to home in areas like Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.

Regardless of your vacation destination, sometimes the most hassle-free thing to do is contact a local travel agent. They'll be the most knowledgable in regards to travel restrictions and where you can and can't go.

Sonnier says their storefront is closed to the public but the staff is working remotely and answering the phones to assist their clients in planning the vacation that we are all in need of.

 

Fun in the Sun South Louisiana Style

 

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