To hate the holiday cottage clean up

[ClusterBustering]

Every year we go away with extended family to a holiday cottage and every year I dread the last day and thank go we normally stick to camping! It's more effort meeting the rules than it is re-packing a whole tent etc.

Obviously I'd leave a place tidy, wash up and tidy spills etc... but it fills more I end the holiday with spring cleaning someone else's house. Striping beds as the kids mither, floors to clean, bathrooms to go over and alll sorts of rules they add to. AND they are so expensive I'm sure paying a cleaner to go over a tidy house without any significant mess must be well into the price.

It's always a crap end to the holiday going over a list, despite making an effort to keep it tidy through the stay. All before 10am

I have a holiday cottage (and do the cleaning-not everyone has professional cleaners)

We ask for the cottage to be left how you found it. But no way do I expect it.

I get cross of people leave washing up and skanky bins but that rarely happens. I'm really grateful if you strip beds- that is the dream.

A couple of weeks ago one couple did a full clean which was fab but I still go over everything.

My heart sinks when someone says 'don't worry I've done a full clean, you won't have much to do' as that translates as 'I've left the place in a complete shit heap and it's probably going to take 5-7 hours to clean' (1 bedroom.

We leave cleaning equipment but as other posters have said it's only for small spills.

But if i have to do 3.5 hours plus on a cottage you won't be able to rebook.

If you're being asked to do the full bloody changeover I would find a new cottage!

Agreeing with others who say this sounds well over the top! We stay in holiday cottages every year with my parents - a different one each year - and we always tidy, wash up etc, make (but not strip) beds, Hoover etc. We do most of it the night before, then in the morning just make beds, wash coffee cups and go out for breakfast!

We've always had full deposit returned and more than once a thank you email for leaving it so tidy! We've been doing this every summer for about 9 years...

Many, many rentals these days that include the final clean in the price or you can pay a fee for the final clean.

Try Homeaway and Airbnb.

We've stayed in lots of cottages. There are normally cleaning products left to use - often eco friendly ones due to them having septic tanks. I normally clean the toilets, sink and shower after use on a daily basis, as I would in my own home, so nothing gets dirty anyway. There is usually a Hoover and an iron but I have never used these while on holiday. Our last cottage requested that we strip the beds, which I felt was a bit of a cheek, as it's always a rush to pack up and leave, but I did do it as it was such a lovely clean place and we are going back there.

This is pretty common where I'm from, and holiday rentals take a specific cleaning deposit.

I also hate it - way to ruin the last day's holiday!

a pillow cover?

I mean a pillow protector? I even have them at home, because I don't wash the pillows that often . Even if one of my kid has a nose bleed at night, they're quick to strip and wash without washing the pillows all the time.

I hate places who don't have them, the pillow cases look far too thin.I might be a bit fussy should never have read the thread about hoovering mattress, I am in full panic mode now

I too have a holiday let.....
There is only a small window in which to turn the property around for the next guests. Recently I have had guests totally rearrange the furniture, leave their washing up, raw meat dripping in the fridge, dirty pans in cupboards, half empty lager cans abandoned in the garden, food in the garden, dog poo on the lawn, dog poo bags hurled anywhere. Sorting that out and doing a full clean in a few hours takes some doing!
No, those guests will never be welcome again....

The Eurocamp cabin we stayed in once had all these rules - we had a visit from two reps in one week explaining what was expected of us- including cleaning the outside bbq - which was hard as not left with anything much to clean it with, so we just washed the grill bit.
Didn't hear anymore from them , so must have done what was expected, but i did find it odd as i have been on self catering holidays in caravans and not been asked to do anything ( apart from putting the bins out) although i always leave them tidy, beds stripped etc.

Fidget please tell me you took photos and kept their deposit!

I rent out a holiday apartment, and cleaning is factored into the rental. I do ask guests to put all used linen in a laundry basket, put out rubbish, and wash crockery. The cleaner does a deep clean in between every booking.
Only once has this been abused (cigarette ends everywhere - it's NS - piles of dirty crockery, every single piece of linen used, and something that looked like Cola sprayed all over the walls.)

Where did you go OP and what did they expect you to do? I haven't holidayed in France since I was a teen, so I don't know the norm there but have rented apartments in Spain and London and have never had to do any cleaning really.

When it's DP and I and we're there for a week, the only cleaning we do is keeping the kitchen usable and mopping up any actual spills. What else needs doing in a week? Sounds like some people make work for themselves by doing the cleaner's job for them.

On the last day we make sure we have washed up or left dishwasher running, put all rubbish out and made sure there isn't great piles of sand anywhere, but we don't do any cleaning or bed stripping because unless it is made blindingly obvious that we are expected to do it, and we never are, that's what you'd expect the owner/agent/cleaner to do before the next guest, in addition to changing towels and checking that everything is OK.

Friend who works in an estate agent on the Costa del Sol that does a lot of holiday rentals says that this is absolutely fine and is better than a lot of guests leave the place - they are in an area with lots of golf courses and get lots of all male groups who leave an absolute midden .

The place we stayed at expected the rubbish out, furniture and kitchen back where it was, messes cleaned up and that was it.

The owner said there was once a family who brought cash and carry boxes of chocolate bars with them (think snickers, mars etc). When they left, there was chocolate everywhere, on the furnishings and every where. That is the sort of stuff they don't want. Even with the owner and extra cleaners, you can't turn that round by 3pm.

We've never had to pay a deposit or be subjected to an end of holiday inspection before being allowed to leave either, and we don't stay in posh or expensive places - just fairly standard apartments in Spanish holiday areas.

Definitely take charge of the rental choice!

We often go to holidays cottages and only ever "maintain" it. So I'll make sure all the rubbish has been taken out, fridge is empty, work surfaces are clean, and a quick sweep up if it needs it before we go. Basically imagining that if no cleaner is coming for a couple of days, how can I make sure there's nothing to attract mice.

Other than that, I certainly don't clean unless it's common courtesy - I wouldn't leave a disgusting toilet if one of the kids had made a mess, for example. But definitely no to a whole spring clean!

Apartments in France usually require this kind of cleaning, I hate it - but it's often then only way to get a cheap ski rental so it's worth it compared to hotels.

However - what I really hate is not discovering the requirements till you get there. Crystal are a pain for this - they don't mention anywhere that bedding isn't included so you end up having to fork out extra for the apartment ones (they'll hire for a small fee) and have no proper duvet. They're really designed for French people driving with everything in the car.

I never strip the beds.
Why are you spring cleaning a holiday cottage?
Book one where they clean it at end

coddiwomple No time to take photos. I don't take deposits as it is another layer of admin (time) and potential for lengthy disputes (more time). I rely on presenting the accommodation to a very high standard (spotless, welcome pack incl wine, fresh flowers, toiletries) and hope that guests appreciate it - most do. I'm very hacked off with replacing towels destroyed by fake tan, hair dye and nail varnish (sigh)!

Make sure you point out the cleaning cores on the homeletters website.

I had forgotten about a trip we had to Andorra once, the apartments are checked over after everything is out and , if its not up to scratch, they can withhold the deposit. we did get ours back, but they always look as if they wont let you have it, or may withhold some of it. not had this before in the Uk, so it was a shock. luckily we are not naturally messy folk, but i bet a lot of people are! it wasnt even somewhere that posh and the apartment was just an average place without a lift!!

OP just stick to the basics. You don't need to be hoovering or mopping floors, especially if you're helping disabled people to pack up. You're already paying for that service, and like a pp said, I would prefer a cleaner doing it thoroughly rather than them thinking they don't have much to do because you've already done it. I doubt anyone leaving a property puts a lot of effort into cleaning and wiping anyway, I know we don't; it's just a wipe round and making sure all the dishes are away, cushions plumped and all rubbish out, bin left clean.

I absolutely hate the last morning as I'm not an early morning person. I would much prefer to have a lazy breakfast. We do as much as possible the night before but it's still a race to meet the 10 o'clock deadline. We've had cleaners waiting outside before now.

Our last rental was absolutely sparkling clean, which made us want to maintain the standard as the owner obviously cared about the property. The windows and balcony glass were immaculate. Usually they look like they've never been cleaned in a year. Previous property, a lovely beach house, was grotty: dirty windows and window sills, cobwebs and generally felt dirty. I would much prefer a proper clean than a welcome pack of scones and cream. That house got the bare minimum done on the last day, but it was probably cleaner than when we went in as we'd wiped windows and dusty windowsills as we went along, because we didn't like living with the dirt.

I have a holiday let and agree with everyone who has suggested you find somewhere else, because that is not normal.

I expect dishwasher loaded, bins out and no obvious big messes/spills because that's just courtesy.

I pay someone to do the other stuff, after you leave at 10am and before the next lot arrive at 3pm; you're on holiday!

If you've been left a big list of cleaning jobs I'd suspect the owners are cleaning it themselves and are trying to save themselves some work. What would happen if you didn't do it?

When we stay in a cottage, I'll take the rubbish and recycling out, sweep kitchen floor, empty dishwasher, remove food from fridge and wipe surfaces. That's it! It's always hard to pack up and get out by 10 with children. I don't go on holiday to clean and there is usually about 5 hours between lets for the cottages to be cleaned.

The one we are staying in next week says to leave the cottage as you found it which I think is a bit ambiguous as to what it means.

Agree that an instruction to 'leave as found' is ambigious, because you would hope to find a property properly cleaned, with clean towels and bedding and everything tidy including emptied dishwasher etc.

But as an owner, you wouldn't rely on guests to do this themselves to the required standard, especially the beds and towels.

we've always got away with doing the basics. kitchen surfaces wiped, floor swept, empty any fresh food from the fridge, bin out. I wash the last few breakfast things by hand so the dishwasher's not still running when the cleaner arrives. I'll wipe a sponge over any visible marks in the bathroom, but not clean it otherwise. I've never stripped beds. The above takes 20-30mins tops.

My aim is less to clean the place, more to make it quick and easy for the cleaners to clean it IYSWIM.

One of the best holiday rentals we stayed in was in Canada. They had a folder and were very specific about what you did need to do - basically do the washing up - and what you didn't - everything else. They even said that if you didn't want to do the washing up, that was fine, but leave some extra money for the cleaners.

I hate it when they say leave as found - what the heck does that mean - and even more so if the owner doesn't actually expect you to clean it - then why say it ? If you expect people to empty bins, strip beds and do their washing up then just ask for it.

Oh and top tip to holiday rental owners. If you don't scatter the property with loads of tat ( particularly dust seeking bunches of twigs - seriously we had this in one property - felt like a scene from the Blair Witch project) it will be a lot easier to keep clean.