What would you expect to find/love to find in a holiday let?

[lifesabitchandthenyoudie]

We want to set up a small cottage quite near a beach, about mid-range. We want to make it friendly and homely, a nice space to 'get away from it all'. What are your essentials in a holiday let? What would you like to see more of? What small extra things would give you that 'special' feeling? Thanks!

I don't think a vacuum is cheeky, if you have children coming back from the beach there is probably going to be sand.

When booking maybe give options for the 'welcome' pack eg I don't drink milk and I love proper coffee. My (now deceased) mother would need tea bags - the cheaper the better and milk.

A decent knife in the kitchen, just one good cook's knife is great, more than one is a bonus.

I wouldn't include bikes as there are implications with insurance and maintenance, it could literally be a liability.

Wi fi is a must these days. Also some plug sockets with USB slots for charging.

Information about the local area, nearest chippy, take away, walk in clinic, chemist, corner shop. Local places you know about but others may not eg does a local farm sell produce to the public.

High chair, baby gates and a cot if you are marketing to a family. If you have blinds don't have the ones with strings, people don't always wrap them up and they are a hazard for young children.

A couple of fans, AC if possible, even a portable unit - but leave instructions.

Also instructions for anything electrical washer, dish washer, microwave.

Bedside lamp, bright enough to read by. Actually in my spare room / office the bedside lamp has different brightness, you just tap the base and it comes on and then tap again to dim it, dim it further, off - so could be left on low for a child who doesn't like the dark.

An emergency box, or shelf in a cupboard with a torch, candles matches, first aid kit. In an upper cupboard so toddlers can't get in.

Avoid perfumes, plug ins and reed difusers. In every rental we remove these. Clean wiith vinegar to remove smells and if you absolutely must, use a small amount of lemon essential oil or similar.

For what it is worth.. we don't eat gluten or dairy, so milk and cake would be wasted.

Yes! Sat shivering in an Airbnb last spring, every time I sat down I jumped from the shock 😂 and not a blanket in sight

Most important thing is that it is spotlessly clean. I dont want to start my holiday by cleaning up someone elses muck! Note especially greasy ovens and grill pans and microwaves.

Other things that make a big difference:

Bedside table and reading lamps for all beds, including both sides of double beds. We have had many places where only some have a light and we're hunting around for extension leads.
Sharp knives
At least 2 of cutlery, crockery for the number of people
Big pans if it's a big house!
One big empty cupboard in kitchen to put food in. Very common to end up having to rearrange cupboards as no space.
Oil, salt, pepper, foil, cling film
Pint of milk in fridge and enough tea, coffee, toilet roll, kitchen roll, handwash, dishwasher/ washing tabs for a couple of days.
Hooks and shelves in bathroom
Instructions for setting up tv, appliances, bins and recycling.
Generous amounts of towels including hand towels for kitchen. Spare pillows, blankets, and a few spare sheets/pillowcases. Summer weight duvets in summer!
Washing line/ pegs and indoor airer.

Best advice would be to spend a night in your place, cook a proper meal, sleep in the beds, use the shower. So many obvious issues would be avoided if owners just did this!

A cafetière!!
Holiday let’s keep having these posh coffee makers, but that’s never enough coffee for me. I need a whole jug to wake up.

Ive resorted to taking my own these days, but last time it broke en route.
Would just love a simple cafetière.

Oh, and agree please no artificial air fresheners, we always have to put them outside.

And please take photos that show every room properly, including all the bedrooms, not just the master. I immediately discount those annoying ones full of arty soft focus close ups of wine glasses! They're always the ones where you turn up and everything is old and manky.

No dog bedding - I'd avoid anything that might get chewed up. I've been to places that have supplied dog towels though, and a little jar of dog biscuits.

A vacuum cleaner definitely, especially as you're near the beach and allow dogs.
I take my dog's bed but a very dog-friendly cottage I go to has dog throws for the sofa as well as a spare bowl.

As you're having new bedding the horrible lumpy pillows or mattresses don't apply to you!
I agree with hooks on doors and somewhere to put toiletries.
Having never used a Nespresso I'd be happy with a cafetiere or filter machine.
Clear recycling instructions and clearly labelled outside bins to avoid confusion.
Enough room in the kitchen cupboards to store my own food.
And updated information folders. Hundreds of leaflets, many outdated, or information about appliances that is no longer relevant can be irritating.

Hope you have nothing but nice and appreciative guests!

We stayed in a great one last year.
Instructions for everything (washing machine, cooker, dishwasher, rubbish and recycling etc) in a folder in the lounge; decent wifi; comfy beds; towels and bedding provided; basic cleaning products-eg. washing up liquid, dishwasher tablets, a cleaning spray, cloths etc; decent kitchen utensils so you can cook and eat there; vacuum; mirrors in sensible places so you can do make up, hair etc. Clean and not smelly, preferably no plug in air fresheners!
I would say if you own one, you should try living in if for a few days so you can see what guests will need.

Special dog throws as mentioned by PP is a good idea - it also sends the message that you know the dogs will be on the sofa, but you'd like it looked after/kept clean. I think the horrible cold leather sofas are a strategy to avoid mess/be wipe-clean, so having throws might mean you don't have to do that.

I've stayed in cottages where I've had to make coffee in a saucepan and strain it through a sieve, so I'm not fussy about coffee makers as long as there is one! But I suspect the advantage of Nespresso or similar is (a) lots of people seem to be impressed with them, and (b) they don't need washing up and are less likely to get broken than a glass cafetiere or filter pot.

@lifesabitchandthenyoudie

Seems weird to me that clean is also on the list; wouldn't have thought it would ever be an issue! Of course it has to be cleaned in between, and very well!

Sadly, lots of places don't clean thoroughly and just do a quick/shoddy job, i.e. leaving hairs in the shower waste, crumbs in the kitchen drawers/cupboards, dust/hairs behind the sofa & under the bed, cobwebs in the ceiling corners, even hairs in the bed, bits of food stuck inside the oven/microwave sides etc. In one place, if you "slapped" the sofa, you got a cloud of dust (just like if you did that on a bus or train cloth seat) - really grim.

Some are exactly like you see on those TV programs (4 in a bed, Hotel inspector, etc).

Forgot to note my pet hate, which a pp has also mentioned - decorative cushions on the bed. They probably get chucked on the floor, and I'm never sure they've been cleaned/changed for every new guest!

If you expect a certain level of cleaning ( which seems to be expected even if there is an end of let clean😱) provide cleaning stuff !

Somehow read this as “Would you expect to find love in a holiday let?” Sounds like the blurb to the kind of book I would enjoy reading on holiday😂😉

I wouldn’t expect to find love, but:

A good range of board games, not just little children aimed games! A pack of playing cards is always good - particularly a souvenir one with local pictures on.

Some basic cleaning stuff - I always want to be able to tidy up after myself so yes, a hoover and mop are a good shout.

Lots of plug sockets. Sometimes beautiful quirky cottages etc have absolutely nowhere to plug things in.

Big towels. Nobody likes seeing their dad waft around with a hand towel wrapped around his waist.

Buckets and spades etc and mention it on the booking so nobody has to lug all their plastic stuff with them only to find there is stuff already there!

Some kind of game machine is nice to have. Even an older wii can be good fun on holiday.

Somewhere to hang clothes in each room. Doesn't even have to be a wardrobe, just some hooks or a rail.

The one item I always long for but have never found is an all season duvet. I hate trying to sleep under a thick duvet on a hot summer's night.

Corkscrew! We usually keep one in the car now after some desperate times trying to get a bottle open.
Big mugs- I like a nice big cup of tea
Definitely good wifi, smart tv or something you can plug a fire stick in
Good curtains , it’s really annoying to be woken up at 4am with see through curtains
Really idiot proof directions, especially if parking is an issue. We were away to the Lakes last week, the apartment was in the middle of a town on a main road which had parking restrictions and a tortuous one way system. We did get sent directions, but it was pissing down when we arrived and was difficult to see the signs. Apartment was down a wee lane. They did give us the what3words location but we really needed absolutely idiot proof step by step instructions from a local, satnav and Google maps just didn’t cut it. Photos of the outside would help so you have an idea of what you’re looking for.

I was just thinking that some sort of nail file would be helpful. It never fails that one snags or breaks a nail at the most inopportune moment, especially with all of the loading/unloading/activity on holiday.

These are cheap enough https://www.amazon.co.uk/Disposable-Fingernail-Manicure-Natural-Acrylic/dp/B08BNJGHFW/ref=sr_1_6?crid=TEW26MZI2VB2&keywords=bulk+emery+boards&qid=1688510441&sprefix=bulk+emergy+board%2Caps%2C164&sr=8-6

I travel frequently

Example
If I am in an Asian accommodation
I don't want the wall art to be the Eiffel tower in Paris !

I would like to see art depicting local scenes, local colours, local flora & fauna, local animals, local food, or abstract or maps

Beds that are more comfortable to sleep on than the floor. So many hotels, airbnbs seem to have mattresses like granite.

We stayed in a great cottage recently. They provided:

• games and books (including kids books)
• soap and shower gel in every bathroom (I thought this was a very nice touch)
• tea and coffee making supplies including milk
• enough loo roll for the week
• a few dishwasher tabs
• a few laundry tabs
• coat hangers in the wardrobe

I thought they got it just right. All the things that you needed without too much extra stuff getting in the way. The only thing missing was anywhere to charge a shaver/electric toothbrush! I appreciated the hoover to clean up after my kids every day. No way can you go a whole week without doing some level of cleaning if you have young kids!

I’ve stayed at the same places again and again, and appreciate different things in different seasons. The cottage we normally stay in, in Wales, I usually don’t pay much attention to what’s on all the shelves or the wifi etc. but when we stayed in Feb, we played all the games in the place and I read just about every book cover to cover. As it was very rural and set in stunning scenery, I really loved immersing myself in fact/nature books about the local area, and fiction and biographies set there. They also have local artwork on the walls/local scenes which I really love.

A place we stay in when that one is unavailable is great for its setting etc but one thing I love is that each part of the house is uncluttered, but there’s a cupboard in each area for the extras you might want or need and that is clearly signposted. Eg upstairs where the bedrooms are there is a cupboard with extra blankets, bathroom essentials etc. by the back door there’s a huge boot room/ porch with things like spare wellies, a bench and boot rack, drying area with hooks and pegs, things like bird seed and dog towels. The kitchen has a pantry with everything you could need, from herbs to vinegar to oxo cubes but the kitchen is really clear and streamlined. When you think how much oxo someone is likely to use on a weekend away, I think it’s good value for the host (probably less than a couple of pounds of stock used per visit) and will get you good reviews if you have a really well stocked kitchen pantry/dry goods cupboard. Just tell me clearly where everything is and I’ll sort myself out - I don’t need necessarily everything out.

I’ve always really appreciated recommendations and discounts for local businesses, and local produce on arrival. I think if you incorporate local businesses and help to incentivise them being used and appreciated, you’ll have the goodwill of locals but also help to keep the area lovely, and people coming back to your holiday let for more. Win win.

Some wonderful suggestions that I have diligently been copying as DH and I are buying a property that will have holiday lets and I’d love to be able to hit the ground running.

As far as welcome packs go, bottles of wine (do you really need an alcohol license if you’re not actually selling it?) and homemade cakes are a nice touch but I’d prefer stuff I would either really want as soon as I arrive (coffee, tea, milk, loo roll) or would need eventually but it would be wasteful to have to buy a whole pack (salt, pepper, herbs and spices, stock cubes, dishwashing tablets) and either leave behind or transport home.

As a menopausal woman who gets night sweats, please have some bedding that is not a heavy duvet. So many times the only bedcovering available is a duvet that will make me sweat, with maybe an extra blanket if I want (I don't!) I don't like sleeping with nothing over me - even a top sheet is fine. I often spend the night alternately covering myself with the duvet, tossing it off, grabbing it back...

I think the idea of a "welcome pack" is nice in theory but I find it difficult as a host to cater to a variety of needs.

We are your total average family, no allergies, no vegans, no vegetarians but I still don't like fruit cake and DD is not keen on cereals.

If you want to do something check with your guests and cater accordingly. You will have a huge loss otherwise as I am not sure that you can use even properly packed items when they leave.

My needs are simple & always the same everywhere we stay.
More hangers (if I’m here for a fortnight I’ll probably have more than 2 items of clothing)

BIGGER TOWELS! Nobody ever complained a towel was too big - these pissy middle size towels are useless (I’m in Spain at the mo, suffering little towels) Bath sheets nothing smaller please!