"Spoil yourself, you deserve it!"
That might be what you tell yourself seconds before booking a short-term rental property for a Miami vacation. Justify it by the water views and luxury amenities that come with an ultramodern three-bedroom, five-bathroom house complete with a heated saltwater infinity pool, hot tub, and all the necessities for a perfect long weekend.
For that, you'd most likely drop two grand a night, easy. But a new property-rental platform is offering the opportunity to book this million-dollar South Florida property for free.
You'll just be doing it to the sounds of an autonomous robotic mower as it trims and sculpts the property's one-acre lawn while you lounge nearby.
It's no joke, but rather a new limited-time promotion called mowbnb, which has tapped Miami as one of its first bases of operation. The platform is designed to cater to money-savvy travelers willing to trade some light yard work for a complimentary, short-term stay.
Behind the new booking website is Toro, a Minnesota-based landscaping equipment company that is looking to promote its upgraded line of battery-powered products by offering would-be customers a way to, in essence, mow their way to a free vacation.
"It was important for us to create something that showed how easy it is to use our battery-powered 60V Flex-Force lineup of interchangeable yard-care tools and new robotic mower, so that people can get back to doing what they enjoy most over household chores," Toro vice president Greg Janey tells New Times.
This week, mowbnb will debut its "rental" platform, offering a lucky few the chance to book a luxury home in the Austin, Texas; Mooresview, North Carolina; Mountain View, California; the Hamptons on Long Island; and (drumroll, please) Wilton Manors.
The mowbnb extended-weekend stays will take place between August 4 and September 6. According to the official rules, bookings will be made available online beginning Wednesday, July 27, at 1 p.m. EDT and will stay open until each of the five properties is spoken for by an eligible entrant (i.e., one winner per property). Prizes do not include airfare or other transportation to or from the destination.
Each of the mowbnb properties features the usual range of state-of-the-art amenities you'd expect to find in luxury homes, from pools and jacuzzis to guest houses, outdoor kitchens, and — of course — some pretty immaculate lawns.
Each property will also be equipped with a full line of the company's latest energy-efficient cordless yard tools. They include hedge trimmers, edgers, and leaf blowers that share one interchangeable battery.
So, do you have to do the yard work?
Nah, says Janey.
"Right now, we’re focused on making the launch of this inaugural mowbnb booking platform a success," he explains. "But if consumers love it, who knows what the future holds?"