For our first newsletter of the year, I want to highlight two areas that remain central to our strategy: strengthening direct demand for your homes and delivering exceptional guest experiences that drive loyalty, repeat customers and 5-star reviews.
For our first newsletter of the year, I want to highlight two areas that remain central to our strategy: strengthening direct demand for your homes and delivering exceptional guest experiences that drive loyalty, repeat customers and 5-star reviews. January is our biggest booking month of the year, and our Reservations Sales team has been tirelessly fielding guest inquiries, reconnecting with past guests and pursuing every opportunity to make the most out of the high demand this time of year brings. With only a few days left in the month at the time of writing, we’re on track to surpass our monthly booking goal by at least 14%. This momentum is further supported by the launch of our Book Direct Day campaign, a three-week marketing push designed to inform guests on the benefits of booking directly with Gather. As third-party platforms continue to introduce higher fees and more restrictive policies, it’s increasingly important that we invest in channels where we control the guest relationship, pricing transparency, and booking terms.
Shifting from marketing to client service, I’m also proud to share how our teams performed during the festive season, traditionally one of the most demanding times of the year. Across December and January, our property managers and core Gather team handled more than 10,000 guest conversations, all while maintaining a remarkable 93% guest satisfaction score. Our holiday reservations also generated 256 new five-star reviews, boosting visibility and ranking on our booking platforms. We’re incredibly proud of this result and are carrying this momentum into the year as we continue striving to make every guest experience a positive and memorable one.
Thank you, as always, for your continued trust and partnership. And since we’re still in January (just), I want to wish you all a fantastic 2026 on behalf of the entire Gather team.
Andreea
CEO, Gather Vacations
Book Direct Day Email Campaign – Officially Launched
We have officially launched our three-week email campaign in support of Booking Direct Day, which takes place on Wednesday, February 4th. This campaign is designed to educate guests on the benefits of booking directly with Gather, while reinforcing the value we provide through our local expertise and on-the-ground teams.
The campaign includes three targeted emails:
Gather vs Airbnb – Sent January 22
Gather vs Vrbo – Sent January 28
Booking Direct Day Promo Email – Scheduled to send February 3, featuring a special incentive for guests who book on February 4th
Each email reinforces the core message that third-party sites like Airbnb and Vrbo are simply booking platforms that often come with added fees, higher overall rates, and stricter cancellation policies. Booking directly with Gather delivers a superior experience from start to finish. Guests enjoy our professionally managed homes, deep local market knowledge, and dedicated teams on the ground, often at a lower cost and with greater flexibility than third-party platforms.
This campaign is part of our broader efforts to drive direct demand and continue to position our brand as both guest-first and owner-focused.
Trip.com Onboarding Update
The eagerly-awaited Trip.com onboarding is officially scheduled to begin next week, with a projected go-live date by the end of February. This new channel partner is especially exciting given strengthening travel demand from Asia. Industry data shows that accommodation searches from Asian travelers to Hawaii increased by about 5% last year during peak planning periods, with notable interest coming from markets such as Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan and Singapore. Recent Hawai‘i visitor statistics also show that in the first 11 months of 2025 visitor arrivals from Japan increased about 2.8% compared to the year prior, with more than 70% of Japanese visitors returning to the islands, underscoring both rising demand and loyalty from this key source market. These trends underscore the growing role of Asian outbound travel in tourism demand and the opportunity Trip.com brings in expanding our visibility across the region.
Hawaii H1 and H2 2026 Occupancy Outlook by Market
As we look at how 2026 is shaping up, the data shows encouraging patterns across both halves of the year for short term rentals.
For H1 2026, we are seeing meaningful occupancy already on the books across all markets, particularly as demand continues to build closer to arrival. Many homes, especially for rates below $500/night, tend to book on shorter lead times, which means there is still a significant opportunity for additional pickup as we move through the peak booking window. This is especially true for H1, where booking activity historically accelerates in the weeks and months leading into Spring and Summer travel.
Looking ahead to H2 2026, occupancy is understandably lighter at this stage, which is typical this far out. We are already seeing early signals from guests who plan further in advance, while the majority of demand for the back half of the year is expected to materialize closer to arrival. This creates continued opportunity to optimize pricing and availability as demand patterns become clearer.
Across Big Island, Kauai, Maui, and Oahu, the current pacing aligns well with expected booking behavior. Stronger early H1 performance combined with healthy runway in H2 positions us well to capture additional demand over time, particularly as lead times compress and traveler decision making increases.
*The tiers displayed in the above graphs are based on Average Daily Rate (ADR). Core Tier includes homes with an ADR of $399 or less, Mid Tier includes homes with an ADR of $400–$749, and Upper Tier includes homes with an ADR of $750+.
Mid-Term Rentals Guest Check-Ins For H1 & H2 2026
Mid-term rental demand is heavily weighted toward the first half of the year, with H1 2026 showing strong, well established check-in volume. This early activity provides a solid occupancy baseline for the year.
Looking ahead to H2 2026, check-ins are lighter at this stage, however, early demand is already emerging, indicating a healthy cadence for additional pickup as lead times compress. As we inch closer to peak booking windows for H2 (Q2 and Q3), we anticipate to see a healthy pickup.
Overall, the check-in distribution aligns with typical mid-term booking behavior. There is strong H1 stability with growing opportunity in H2 as the year progresses.
**The tiers displayed in the above graphs are based on Average Daily Rate (ADR). Core Tier includes homes with an ADR of $349 or less, Mid Tier includes homes with an ADR of $350–$749, and Upper Tier includes homes with an ADR of $750+.
Mainland
H1 and H2 2026 Occupancy Outlook: California & Washington
California is pacing at a healthy cadence in both halves of the year, with 26.4% occupancy in H1 and 10.8% in H2. Washington is pacing at 10.5% in H1 and 4.2% in H2, which is consistent with its typically shorter booking window. Overall, California is showing earlier pickup than in prior years, while Washington continues to follow the normal booking pattern for the market.
Guest CSAT Over Festive Season
As always, Festive Season delivered one of the highest occupancy periods of the year, and we’re thrilled at how our guest-facing teams rose to the occasion! Across December and January, our Property Managers and Gather’s core team successfully managed over 10,000 guest conversations, and welcomed 1,481 arrivals to our properties.
What really sets this apart is how well our teams performed under pressure. Even with nonstop, high-volume demand, our Gather team finished the busy season with a 93% guest satisfaction score for December and January, as well as 256 new five-star guest reviews!
Achieving these results during the busiest time of the year speaks volumes. It shows our teams can deliver standout guest experiences at scale, right when it matters most.
We’re incredibly proud of this performance and thankful for the trust our owners place in us as we continue raising the bar for guest experience.
Owner Satisfaction Survey
Twice each year, we invite Gather homeowners to complete a satisfaction survey. The purpose of this survey is to gauge your experience in our partnership and identify opportunities to better serve you.
The survey is now open and consists of only a few brief questions. Your feedback is appreciated and will help inform our priorities as we begin 2026.
All 1099-MISC, 1099-NEC, and 1042 forms will be emailed directly to you via a secure IRS generated system link on or before 1/31/2026.
Note: These forms are not posted in the Owner Portal for security purposes.
Your 2025 Annual Owner Statement will be generated and published to your Owner Portal by 1/31/2026, and your 2025 1099 Summary Reconciliation will follow by 2/15/2026.
Resource Center
The Gather Resource Center is a comprehensive collection of articles designed to provide valuable information and help homeowners quickly find answers to common questions.
Owner Portal
The Track Owner Portal allows homeowners to view reservations, access monthly statements, generate reports, retrieve important documents like tax forms, ACH forms, and invoices.
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