Holiday rental must have/have nots

[TitaniasAss]

What do you look for in a holiday rental property. What are you 'must' haves, your 'would like' and your 'absolutely puts me off's please?

Decent sized cups, glasses and wine glasses, sharp knives that actually cut through fruit veg etc, comfortable settees preferably a 3 and a 2 rather than a corner one. Good sized beds with the option to split into singles if needed and good quality bedding and pillows. Good sized bathroom although an en suite would be a bonus and a shower with good water pressure and plenty of hot water. Washing machine and tumble dryer or an airer to hang clothes on. Plenty of coat hangers in the wardrobes plenty of draw space in the bedroom. Good sized tv with Netflix, a garden or outdoor patio area and a list of your recycling rules and which bins to put stuff in and also which bin goes out on what day.

Want: good shower and wifi. If winter, heating.

Don’t want: property owners living nearby - worst if in adjoining property! Or ‘popping in’. Windows not properly covered and letting loads of light in. Early check out. Complicated heating or rubbish disposal.

Dishes / pans suitable to cook for the amount of guests. If it sleeps 6 then pots to cook 6 portions of pasta / potatoes
Baby gates - massive bonus to keep little ones safe and allow split seconds of taking your eye off them
Ditto simple box of baby toys - few old barbies / trains / dog eared books and Lego blocks / old tea set - heavenly to keep toddlers distracted
Washing machine / clothes lines to dry
Little book shelf for take one leave one
Maybe a few puzzles / DVDs / scrabble for rainy nights
Up to date local info on takeaways / recommended restaurants and taxi numbers if you're not in a town with Uber / deliveroo
Cosy sofa blankets
Soap in all bathrooms for hand washing
Simple washing up kit - sponge / washing up liquid
Simple stash of oil / salt / pepper / tin foil

Proper curtains, preferably black out. Not flimsy blinds that let all the light in.
Decent size wine glasses (not 'caravan glasses' as my friend calls them!)
Good size lounge with plenty of sofa space to sprawl out.
Mirrors in all the bedrooms
A good power shower in a roomy cubicle
A hot water system that allows more than one person to shower at once
A dishwasher
A coffee machine (and instructions on how to use it!)
Comfy beds and pillows. Spare blankets.
Outside seating area. Doesn't need to be big, just somewhere to sit. And make sure it's clean, not covered in leaves and bird poo!

Don't let dogs in.

I don't have them in my home. I certainly don't want dog hair around when I'm paying to stay elsewhere.

Other than that, just make it worth my while. Now we're past restrictions it's once again often cheaper for me to book a break abroad than in the UK, even accounting for plane fares. So that's what I do, if you're charging £1.5k plus Airbnb fees for a week.

Big bed - won’t stay somewhere that doesn’t have a king size minimum.

big towels - hate when you rock up and you get normal size towels and then a hand towel- I use a normal size towel to wrap up my hair and we use bath sheet size towels for bodies.

A well stocked kitchen, it’s so irritating staying in self catering (food allergies) so that you can self cater but not having the equipment to do so.

King size beds in at least two bedrooms - I’m fed up with properties that have one double / king size bed and the multiple other bedrooms being twin beds.

Knives that actually cut things, and non-manky chopping boards

If off road parking is advertised, please have a dropped kerb to access it

More than one tea towel! If we have booked for seven nights, more than one bath towel and one hand towel per person, towels for the kids too (stayed in two holiday rentals where they only left towels in the master bedroom, two hand towels and two bath towels, children do wash as well!). Plastic plates, cups and bowls if you allow children otherwise some of your IKEA tableware may get broken. Only say you have Sky TV if we can view the Sky TV Channels. If you mean that we can only watch the freeview channels through your Sky box don't let us get excited about all the new programmes we might watch. A rubber anti slip mat in the bath. Handwash and more than one toilet roll. Enough tablets if you provide a dishwasher. An iron that actually works and doesn't have part of someone else's shirt stuck on the bottom! Don't bother with decorative cushions, we just throw them on the floor. Pegs if you provide a washing line.

Just booked my first rental for years - the must haves:

Quiet - away from others, not overlooked
In countryside
Washing machine
Bath
Kingsize bed (superking preferable but not many about)
Decent wifi

Nos:
Wouldn't book anywhere where there is more than one property - even if say 2/3 on same site.
No shared facilities obviously

A decent dishwasher and washing machine
Comfortable beds and pillows and decent bedding (nothing synthetic)
Everything spotless
No drawers/cupboards with old crap in and absolutely nothing obviously superfluous to requirements in your own home
Dishwasher tablets and washing up liquid
Plenty of loo roll and bathroom soap
Plenty of power sockets and lights

Personally I dislike welcome packs with fresh ingredients like milk and butter but don’t mind nice biscuits etc. No cheap wine either thanks!

washing machine, washing basket, airer or outside clothes line (and pegs);
duvets of no more than 5 tog for summer (and preferably no more than 10 tog for winter) and which are anti-allergy (or at least say if they aren't so we can bring our own);
enough glasses, cutlery and crockery so dishwasher doesn't have to go on more than once a day;
clear instructions re recycling so I don't have to google the local council to find out what is actually recycled;
recommendations on eg local pubs, restaurants, walks (either from owners or visitors book which asks people to leave recommendations);
enough basic cooking equipment (eg range of pans, frying pans, casserole dishes, grater, chopping board, decent knives, wooden spoons, oven trays) but not what looks like the contents of your grandmother's kitchen;
at least one bin with lid in a bathroom/toilet;
more than one key;
washing up liquid, dishwasher tablets, soap at every sink, kitchen roll, at least one toilet roll for each toilet, oven gloves, more than one tea towel;
decent wifi;
clear listing sent beforehand of what is and isn't provided;
friendly owner/manager who is easy to contact but not constantly watching us!

Blackout blinds/curtains. The sun rises very early in Scotland around midsummer!

Check that the crockery, glassware and cutlery is properly clean after the last visitors. We often seem to have to load it back in the dishwasher when we arrive, so that it isn't grim.

King bed minimum, no bars or wooden panel at the foot of the bed for tall visitors.

Dishwasher, washing machine and at least a clothes drying rack.

Sharp knife would be good, but we generally take one with us now as nowhere manages to have sharp knives.

I'd really like it if more holiday rentals had an inventory posted on the website so I can see in advance what cooking utensils/crockery etc is in the kitchen. This would let me decide what to bring from home (or adjust my catering plans). It would also help me decide which place to book.

Must have at least one bathroom per bedroom, ideally en suites
parking
good wifi
Near restaurants
decent crockery and cutlery
good bed linen and towels
privacy, not overlooked
sea view

The basics, like I was quite annoyed in the last place that there was no soap/handwash. Yes I can buy my own but I want to wash my hands after travelling and not go out looking for a supermarket instead.

Things should work without complicated instructions in lines of: To lock the door, pull firmly, jiggle 3 times, then turn twice anticlockwise and then it might lock. Fix it. Same with appliances, get simple foolproof ones not fancy gimmicky things that require user manuals to figure out.

If you advertise as child/toddler friendly I would expect it to be reasonably childproofed, no expensive knick-knacks around, unsecured furniture etc.

Necessities are:
Washing machine plus somewhere to hang clothes out or a tumble drier.
King size beds and plenty of pillows
Comfy sofas and a decent tv
Lamps and decent lighting so you can actually relax in the evening
Decent pans and knifes
blackout blinds/curtains
One room with single beds or bunk beds for the kids but they should be decent beds with decent mattresses and not squeaky 😊

bonus points for:
something comfortable to sit on in the garden if there is one
Trampoline,, swings etc
Interesting board games
nice mugs and wine glasses
Decor which isn’t beige, leather sofas and magnolia walls, a place you’d like to spend time in and feel relaxed in
Books

Easy to contact owners via email/whatsapp etc in case of queries or issues
Cancellation options (Covid...)
has to be sparkling clean
New(ish) bathroom
Fast reliable wifi
privacy (no owners living next door, etc). Self check-in/self check out preferred.
Washing machine
We don't use dishwashers so need a dish rack for dishes to dry
one king size + twin beds
quiet location
free parking
enough hot water to have several people shower after one another
late check out if possible
Kitchen with Fairy liquid, olive oil, salt, sugar etc available. Bathroom with hand wash
Toilet paper available
Clear and easy instructions for rubbish disposal
Tips for good restaurants/pubs/etc nearby

Don't care about:
number of glass/wine glasses etc
knifes
comfy sofas
Netflix
We are all different :)

Comfortable king-sized bed. For some reason air BnB beds feel like they're made from concrete.

Plenty of plug sockets!
And a hoover! Stayed in a property a couple of weeks ago with no hoover it was a nightmare.

Superking or zip and link beds that can be super king or twin. Not doubles that only fit one person. 100% cotton bedding. Decent size towels and plenty of them. Enough crockery, cutlery and glasses for a full day of meals for all the guests. Decent knives. A cafetière over a fancy machine that needs pods. No dogs. A sensible bin system that doesn’t involve ten different recycling receptacles and relies on the previous people putting it all out on the right day.

Quiet
Clean comfy bed

shower with head that comes off wall not an overhead rain style
clean toilet
heating that works
dishwasher /washing machine /dryer
instructions for everything and takeaway menus

Enough comfy chairs for number of guests, bedside lights, spare crockery, mugs, cutlery, tea towel, oven gloves, instruction manuals for appliances, clothes storage, decent size pots and pans, oven ware, decent knives and a grater, comfy beds and pillows, thermostat so I can set the temperature. Dining table big enough for all. Decent parking, with a realistic estimation of how many cars can be parked.

nice to have stuff like tinfoil/ baking paper, salt/pepper/vinegar. DVD player, games, books

We stayed in one where she gave us a home made cake, a loaf from the local artisanal baker (and their flyer! Smart move) , some posh jam and best of all a dozen gorgeous eggs from their own hens, a mix of colours and sizes, they looked so pretty. And she had put flowers from her garden in vases around the house!

Must: Washing machine and dishwasher, heating system I can sort out myself. Decent Wi-fi, Super King size bed, bedding provided

Decent cutlery, plates, glasses. More than just one set per person, I don't want to do the washing up each time I eat/drink something
Towels and more than just one per person and also a couple of tea towels

Nice to have: storage containers for leftovers, washing up stuff provided, hairdryer, up-to-date leaflets and - depending on location - hiking maps/books

Deal breaker - having to bring all towels and bedding. Queensize for the master bedroom, sharing outdoor space with owner/other people, having to pay. for cleaning or cleaning instructions prior to departure outside the usual. like empty dishwasher/bins/general tidying

duvets of no more than 5 tog for summer (and preferably no more than 10 tog for winter)

Yes, this! So many places seem to think that we all want a winter duvet in summer. I go home having had barely any sleep (I can't sleep without a cover, but which also has to be thicker than a sheet)!