Trying to rent cabin or B+B with flexible date range search

[Bill Dufour]

They are selling the cabin we like to rent so looking at other options in California. I have looked at a few name brand sites and their search function sucks.
Problem is we have a date range like say all of July for one or two nights. But all the search engines require an exact start and end date. So that would require 60 + searches for each property once that is found.
Links say they used to offer such a flexible search but no one does it now. Found a nice cabin rental site with flexible search function then discovered they are only in Georgia, USA.
I found a few sites that require cookies to use at all. Is this now a common thing?
Bill D

[Peter Kelly]

Can search properties without dates using the VRBO app for iOS or Android. Chose the property you want > Select Dates > Available dates will display. Sign up not required if you don’t see anything you like.

[Bill Dufour]

Thanks Peter. On vrbo I figured out how to ignore then calender and see what is for rent. They make no mention about this possibility. for a search their first question is always arrival date. And leaving. it blank results in no action.
Bill D

[John M Wilson]

A tactic that I have used for finding a rental in Florida is to use VRBO to find an area with several candidates. I then look to see who the listing agency is (there are usually only 2 or 3 big ones in an area). I will call them directly with my potential dates, price range, requirements, etc. Sometimes they search while I am on the phone, other times I let them search at their leisure and email me back with their suggested candidates. If one of the listing agencies is not meeting the bill, I move on.

Once I have a couple of preliminary candidates lined up, the negotiations begin. If you have flexible dates, you can often find a place that has an awkward gap in between 2 other rentals, and they are sometimes willing to move on the price a bit.

Good luck!

[Alan Rutherford]

...I found a few sites that require cookies to use at all. Is this now a common thing?...

Yes. It's not realistic to expect a web site to do anything specific to you, like check the status of something, without cookies. They aren't evil. You can set your browser to delete them when you're done if you want.