amivac.com

February 15, 2026

What Amivac.com is and what it’s used for

Amivac.com is a French-focused vacation rental platform where travelers look for short-term stays—houses, apartments, villas, chalets, gîtes, and similar “holiday lets.” The site positions itself as a long-running marketplace (it references operating since 2005 and “more than 20 years” of activity) and highlights a broad catalog spanning France and international destinations.

Functionally, Amivac sits in the same broad category as other rental marketplaces, but its setup is a bit mixed: some listings are “direct” (you contact the owner/manager) and others use online booking flows. On its homepage, Amivac explicitly distinguishes between direct-contact listings (talk to the owner, agree on terms) and “instant booking” partner offers with online payment and faster checkout.

What you can find on the platform

Amivac emphasizes variety: city apartments, seaside homes, ski-area rentals, countryside gîtes, villas with pools, and even some more unusual stays. The browsing experience is very France-first (regions like Bretagne, PACA, Corse are promoted prominently), but the platform also claims inventory in dozens of countries.

A practical implication: you’ll see a mix of property types and booking styles in the same search results. That matters because the “rules of the stay” (how you pay, cancellation terms, what documentation exists) can differ depending on whether it’s a partner/instant-booking listing or a direct owner listing.

How booking works on Amivac

Amivac’s guest help content describes three common interaction types:

• Instant booking: you complete the reservation immediately.
• Binding booking request: you submit a request and the host accepts or rejects it (the help content notes hosts are strongly recommended to respond quickly, but it can take up to 48 hours).
• Inquiry: you message the host through Amivac; the booking itself does not happen automatically.

The platform’s own marketing message also states that with “direct” ads you contact the owner and discuss the stay, while instant booking partner offers provide speed and online payment.

This is the first thing to be clear about as a traveler: you’re not always buying the same product. Sometimes you’re using Amivac as a listing directory and messaging channel. Other times you’re using it more like a transactional booking site.

Pricing, commissions, and payments: what’s actually different here

On the traveler side, Amivac claims transparent prices and “no additional commission fees” for users in the direct-contact model. That doesn’t mean a stay is automatically cheaper; it means Amivac isn’t necessarily adding an extra checkout fee in that pathway (owners can still price how they want, and there can be deposits, cleaning fees, etc.).

On payments, Amivac’s guest guidance (where accessible via search results) leans toward standard, traceable methods—credit card, check, bank transfer—because those give proof of payment, especially if there’s a dispute. It explicitly warns guests to avoid high-risk transfer methods like Western Union/MoneyGram or sending cash.

That advice is important because it reflects a reality of mixed marketplaces: when you’re paying a host directly (instead of a platform-managed payment), you need to be more careful about evidence, identity, and the paper trail.

Cancellations and policies: who controls what

Where people often get frustrated is cancellations. A recurring point in Amivac’s public responses (including on review platforms) is that Amivac is a platform connecting hosts/managers with travelers, and that cancellation/modification conditions are defined by the listing owner/manager.

Separately, Amivac’s guest-help snippets state that Amivac and HomeToGo do not charge cancellation fees themselves, but partners may. In other words: fees and refund rules can come from the host, the partner channel, or the specific terms you accepted at booking time. So you have to read the listing’s conditions, not just rely on a general platform promise.

Who owns Amivac and why that matters

Amivac was acquired by HomeToGo (a large vacation rental marketplace and metasearch player) from Groupe SeLoger. Coverage of the deal describes Amivac as a significant French vacation rentals brand and notes it encompassed multiple marketplace sites under separate brands.

Industry reporting also frames this acquisition around strengthening HomeToGo’s subscription model and expanding its footprint in France. Practically, users sometimes notice changes after acquisitions—new platforms, migrated listings, different support workflows—which shows up in some older review narratives about site transitions and support wait times.

Hosting on Amivac: the subscription angle

Unlike marketplaces that primarily monetize via per-booking commission, Amivac is associated with subscription-based listing services for owners and agencies (this is discussed in multiple industry sources).

Amivac’s host help content explicitly references subscription plans over 12 or 24 months and highlights what’s included: listing one property, an admin interface, photo limits, calendar/rates management, guest contact, stats, and SMS notifications for new requests.

If you’re a host, that pricing model changes your calculus. You may care less about “platform commission,” and more about lead quality, inquiry volume, and whether the subscription delivers enough bookings to justify the fixed cost.

Reputation signals and common complaints

Amivac’s Trustpilot profile shows a relatively low rating (around mid–2 out of 5) with hundreds of reviews, and a distribution skewed toward 1-star experiences. It’s not a definitive measure of “legit vs scam”—review platforms tend to over-represent dissatisfied users—but it’s a useful signal for what can go wrong in practice.

From visible excerpts, common themes include:

• Confusion about who is responsible (host vs platform).
• Refund disputes tied to cancellation terms.
• Support responsiveness concerns.
• Fraud attempts in the broader vacation rental ecosystem (not unique to Amivac, but users often discuss it in the context of marketplaces).

None of that automatically means you should avoid the site. It means you should use it the way you’d use any mixed marketplace: verify the listing, keep a paper trail, and don’t treat “platform” as the same thing as “property manager.”

Practical tips if you’re booking through Amivac

1. Identify the booking type first (instant booking vs request vs inquiry). It changes how payment and confirmation work.
2. Read the listing’s terms carefully, especially cancellation and refund rules—those usually govern what happens.
3. Use traceable payments and avoid cash-like transfers. If you’re asked for Western Union/MoneyGram, treat that as a serious warning sign.
4. Keep everything in writing inside the platform messages (and save confirmations). If there’s a dispute later, you’ll want timestamps and exact wording.
5. Sanity-check the property: compare photos, look for inconsistent descriptions, ask a couple of specific questions that a real host can answer (parking details, floor level, exact check-in process).

Key takeaways

• Amivac.com is a France-oriented vacation rental marketplace with both direct-contact listings and partner-style instant booking options.
• Fees and policies aren’t uniform; cancellations and refunds are often governed by the host/manager terms, not a single platform rule.
• The platform is owned by HomeToGo after an acquisition from Groupe SeLoger, and the business is linked to subscription-based listing services for hosts.
• User reviews show recurring friction around support and responsibility boundaries, so it pays to be careful with documentation and payment methods.

FAQ

Is Amivac.com a booking site or just a listings site?

It’s both, depending on the listing. Some offers support instant booking, while others are inquiry-based or use booking requests where the host accepts or rejects.

Does Amivac charge travelers a commission?

Amivac’s own messaging says direct listings have transparent pricing without extra commission fees added for the traveler, while partner/instant-booking offers run through online payment flows. In practice, always check the final price breakdown on the specific listing you’re booking.

Who sets cancellation and refund policies?

Commonly the owner/manager of the listing sets the policy, and Amivac positions itself as the connecting platform. Some help content also notes Amivac/HomeToGo don’t charge cancellation fees themselves, but partners may. So the correct answer is: look at the exact terms tied to your booking.

What payment methods are safest when paying a host directly?

Amivac’s guidance favors traceable methods like credit card, check, and bank transfer, and warns against Western Union/MoneyGram or cash.

How does Amivac make money if it’s “direct contact”?

For hosts, Amivac is linked to subscription-based listing plans (typically sold in 12- or 24-month durations) with features for managing the listing and receiving inquiries.