• by Tanya Gazdik , December 14, 2020

Home stay vacation company Vrbo is playing up 2021 as the year of the reunion, be it with family or friends. 

A national TV and online video ad campaign themed “Your Together Awaits” features a voiceover from musician John Legend. 

Despite the pandemic and a general hesitancy by consumers to travel, vacation home stays have surged, says Lish Kennedy, vice president of global brand for Vrbo.

“We’ve been doing this for 25 years, but this year we saw many new families discover Vrbo’s offering of unique, private vacation homes,” Kennedy says in a release. “We built the campaign around those magic moments.”

The videos highlight moments that happen in a Vrbo property, like a father and daughter fishing, a grandfather playing checkers with his grandson, longtime friends celebrating a wedding, or the moment a new boyfriend officially becomes a member of the family.

The campaign aims to inspire families, 82% of whom are already planning 2021 travel, according to data provided by the company.

Travel has already begun to rebound, with the Sunday following the Thanksgiving holiday registering the highest number (1,176,091) screened at airports since pre-pandemic in mid-March, according to the Transportation Security Administration. 

Non-holiday travel is still light, less than one-third the normal volume. According to the TSA, 703,546 people were screened at airports on Dec. 7, compared to 2,226,290 one year ago on the same weekday. 

Vrbo's effort is airing across TV (including ABC, NBC, AMC, Bravo and Food Network), Hulu, and Youtube. The brand's agency of record, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, created the ad series, and independent, Latina and Black-owned 360 Agency developed and negotiated the creative work with Legend.

Vrbo, which is pronounced ver-bow, is part of Expedia Group. Its global community of homeowners and travelers offers properties around the world, including cabins, condos and beach houses.