To be sick of 'quick turnaround' holiday cottages and their half arsed cleaning

[Holidayfatigue24]

Hi,

Just wondered if anyone else was feeling this.

Got back yesterday from a few days away in a holiday cottage, but once again was left feeling pissed off at the level of cleanliness and general lack of facilities. This time was probably the worst, as the dishwasher didn't work, there was mould in the washing machine and there was absolutely nothing in terms of household essentials. I.e, butter, oil, dishcloths, toilet roll, milk - absolutely nothing. It just seems so bloody stingy! We paid good money because it's a popular area, but we still expect the basic levels of cleanliness at the very least!

I wouldn't expect biscuits and wine on arrival (although that didn't used to be unusual!) and I'd forgive a bit of dust here and there, but this just seems thoughtless and greedy.

Definitely seems to be becoming the norm now unfortunately. The last thing I want is to start the process of an official complaint, but I feel utterly ripped off, so I will.

I know I'm not being unreasonable to feel this way under the circumstances. I guess I just wondered if anyone else felt like this or have we just been really unlucky? ....

We use classic cottages mainly who specify number of toilet rolls etc to be left per guest.
expecting butter, oil etc is unusual…. And if your booking is only a few days?

It should be clean but I am definitely not expecting to be provided with butter and milk.

YANBU to be annoyed at finding it dirty. Especially as they all seem to have a big window between check in and check out - eg check out by 10am, check in at 4pm … if they have a 6 hour window the place should be clean!

Weird to expect oils and butter but mould, dirt, broken appliances and no toilet roll completely unacceptable.

I have given up on expensive uk holiday cottages after our last experience. The money charged generally does not reflect good value and are usually poorly maintained. We left 3 days into a 7 day booking on our last attempt.

My family have dairy allergies so butter would be the last thing I'd want left! I think YABU unless these things are specifically listed as provided then you assume it's a completely blank slate.

I think you are justified in tackling the cleanliness aspect with the owner or if that doesn’t work, leave a fair review mentioning good and bad!

And it is stingy if you are paying a fair whack not to leave one loo roll, or one dw tab, or pepper and salt for example.

It sounds like it wasn’t serviced properly to me!

I’ve not found this. We’ve rented a lot of holiday places in several countries, and they’ve all been spotless. Expecting butter and milk is a bit odd, though.

Definitely need to do better re cleaning.

If you want welcome packs of items may I recommend Landal, they have packs you can add into your stay ready for arrival. Adult drinks packs, children’s packs and general welcome pack with item such as your sponges and such.

In terms of a welcome pack, I really really appreciate things like a few dishwasher and laundry tabs as otherwise you have to buy a massive pack (or remember from home).

Salt, pepper, oil and vinegar are also very useful and last a long time.

I wouldn’t expect perishables.

The thing is with self-catering is that you, well, self-cater. You provide yourself with all your consumables.

I'd complain about the washing machine, dishcloths, and dishwasher. I'd expect to provide myself with everything else. If a bottle of milk it's left it's a nice touch, but I don't expect it.

Last place we stayed in, the lady left us 2 pints of milk, there was unopened little packets of weetabix, tea, coffee, sugar. Most airbnbs seems to have this, along with cleaning stuff and loo roll. She also had a ‘useful’ drawer and just asks that you leave a note to say if you’ve taken a toothbrush/moisturiser etc. I’d expect the basics and that everything works and is clean given the prices charged.

I would expect it to be clean.

I would expect household essentials!

Yes, with some of them you feel that no care has gone into making it a welcoming space. It feels less like you're a guest and more like an inconvenience and they just want your money, and aren't interested in you having a good experience. They're not all like that, but there are more and more that are.

I would expect a starter toilet roll in each toilet/bathroom (I mean you get a starter loo roll in a Haven caravan!) but nothing more and definitely not butter, milk, oil etc. That falls under “self catering”. You are being completely unreasonable to expect any kind of foodstuffs to be left.

A non working dishwasher I’d be annnoyed about, but also accept things occasionally break and can take time to fix or replace - it’s not a boiler or something I’d expect instant action over. A bit of mildew on a washing machine seal is fairly normal and not something I’d get too worked up about.

I think a few essentials is useful and I’d be happy to pay a small sum especially for when we’re travelling on a Sunday and most, if not all, shops will close before check in. We’re limited on how much we transport because we have 2 dogs and all their food etc filling the boot.

Meant to say I’d expect all appliances to be clean and in working order with a few tabs also.

“butter, oil, dishcloths, toilet roll, milk”

Out of this list, I’d only expect toilet rolls and maybe dishcloth. Anything else is a bonus.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen butter, but sometimes milk, bottle of wine, local biscuits etc, and in a French one, there’s been a platter of local cheese and ham, and a carafe of wine (very welcome!).

Dishwasher not working etc is worth mentioning though.

We just returned from a cottage that we left early - no washing machine (despite being advertised as having one) and all the beds were incredibly uncomfortable. We couldn't sleep at all. In refund negotiations. Shame as the rest of the cottage was pretty nicely presented, clean and well located. Looked like new beds but they had skimped by buying really cheap ones. Then moved to a hotel were the washing machine was present but labelled as out of order, jacuzzi feature on the bath labelled out of order, and the oven door glass broke during use! So glad to be home.

I expect loo roll and spare(s) and washing up liquid/cloth/a dishwasher tab per day and bin bags as bare minimum really, and I would be thoroughly unimpressed if any of those were missing. They're really inexpensive things for hosts to provide and it's horrendously stingy to cheap out on them.

Broken or mouldy equipment is obviously not okay. I would expect communication from the host with an apology if they weren't able to fix it before I arrived, and alternative offered. I didn't need a coffee machine in my last Air B&B but it was disappointing to have one, only to find it dribbled a weak half dribble without actually brewing any coffee. I usually find they've left a pint of milk though, which I really appreciate.

Toilet rolls are essential I wouldn't be impressed if I arrived and I couldn't use the toilet

@minipie yes, this was my point. The early check out, late check in really irritates me, as you're essentially paying for a big chunk of the day you're not getting, but I do understand they need time to clean and they've got other houses to do. When the house isn't actually clean though, it's just not on.

Yep, we've used holiday homes for around 25 years, UK and abroad, mostly very good, some exceptional and over the top, and very few poor ones.

But sadly, the last couple have been terrible, both UK, and both very expensive in sought after tourist locations.

In one the "cleaning" was abysmal, cobwebs hanging from the ceilings and door frames, and we had to move a bed which was up against the bedroom wall and found all sorts down the gap, including layers of dust, cobwebs, a couple of fluffy kids' toys and some underwear! That bed hadn't been moved to dust/vacuum for years!

In the other, the carpets were all stained and worn, no doormat at the front door, so everyone would be trailing in the muck off their shoes. Patio was absolutely lethal as it clearly hadn't been power-washed/scrubbed for years and had layers of slippy mould/growth on it, which made it impossible to go out of the patio doors into the garden.

Despite having longer to do cleans and turnarounds after covid, standards do seem to be slipping, which isn't acceptable when prices have gone up so much and they expect you to strip your own beds etc these days.

"Welcome packs" have always been variable. They're usually just the basics of milk, tea/coffee, sugar and biscuits (usually individually wrapped rather than loose or in big packets). Some are tight and give nothing at all. Others are pretty generous and include a loaf of bread, carton of milk, packet of biscuits, bottle of wine etc. A couple have left a few coffee machine pods as well. The best, I think, was a "welcome pack" that much have been worth £40! It had a couple of packs of local biscuits, a decent bottle of wine, pack of local butter, pack of filter coffee, box of local tea bags, jar of jam from a local farm shop, couple of bottles of lager, etc. It was also well stocked with other things such as decent quality shampoo and shower gel in all the bathrooms, full packs of dishwasher tablets and washing machine pods, more loo rolls than we'd ever need. Quite unbelievable really - it was also spotlessly clean and everything worked. We'd go back in a heartbeat (Not ridiculously expensive either!).

I’ve found places tend to leave a welcome pack in Ireland which I love, milk, nice bread, preserves, butter, biscuits etc. not super expensive but makes you feel welcome and it’s often advertising for local goods which is win win. I’ve found that’s not as common in the UK but it’s definitely a very cheap way of making you feel welcomed. Clean/toilet paper/washing up liquid or dishwater tabs are essential I think!

Completely agree.

had to defrost the tiny (box) freezer in our last one on arrival, cobwebs everywhere, broken utensils, smelt like dog (no way the blanket was ever washed), towels didn’t smell fresh. Only one towel each for the adults and nothing for the kids, one roll of toilet roll to last us the week and minimal cleaning supplies (fairy liquid and a dustpan and brush!)

then when we leave we are expected to wash, dry, put away and strip the fucking beds!

I agree with Welcome packs they do vary. The best we’ve had was Champagne, bread, cheese, tomatoes, milk, dog treats, poo bags, a few small tins of dog food, another was full cream tea laid out and waiting. It annoys me when they leave a little tea and coffee, but no milk. This year we had a full fruit bowl, very nice, but didn’t know so took our own. I also think cleaning basics should be supplied. OP did you complain about the dishwasher and washing machine.