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Original poster

In what state would you leave a self-catering cottage?

60 replies

Miaou · 21/08/2004 21:06

I ask out of interest because I have spent this summer cleaning two.

The state they are left in varies, from pretty clean to just walked out of the house and left everything (including breakfast dishes on the table).

My main gripe is that people break things then hide the evidence, so I have to play detective.I wonder if they think I'm going to tell them off!!! It's embarrassing if I don't spot the breakages and the next visitors find the evidence.

How do you leave them? And do you own up to breakages?

OP posts:
KateandtheGirls · 21/08/2004 21:10

I have to admit we broke a couple of wine glasses at the villa we stayed in in Spain and didn't admit it. They were obviously only cheap ones though, and I would think that if you rent out your house you have to expect stuff like that to happen.

I wouldn't clean the house before I left (that's one of the joys of being on holiday and one of the things you're paying for). But I do try and leave things tidy, load the dishwasher and run it, take out the garbage etc.

JJ · 21/08/2004 21:10

I leave them reasonably clean. I don't do a full clean (scrub showers, mop floors) but make sure everything is neat and tidy, the kitchen is clean (no dirty dishes, although I might leave the dishwasher running) and the linens are taken off the bed. Should I take the linens off or is it unhelpful? I've always wondered that.

Breakages I leave on the dining room table if it's not possible to tell someone.

nutcracker · 21/08/2004 21:11

We always leave them clean and tidy.

I used to clean hotel rooms and some of them were disgraceful, and alot seemed to have been done deliberatly.

Oooggs · 21/08/2004 21:15

I would leave the cottage as I found it. (Assumingly it was clean and tidy when we arrived )

KateandtheGirls · 21/08/2004 21:16

nutcracker and oooggs,

Do you mean you would vacuum, dust, mop floors etc. before you left? Don't you think that one of the things you are paying for when you rent a house is for someone else to clean it?

Oooggs · 21/08/2004 21:27

If the cleaning 'bits' were there I would probably use them. Sorry - must be too houseproud .

dinny · 21/08/2004 21:28

Miaou, I would leave it as I found it - clean and tidy up, and own up to breakages. My mum has holiday lets and is constantly dismayed by the state people leave them in.

JiminyCricket · 21/08/2004 21:29

Clean and tidy but not scrubbed..have to admit I'll make more effort and own up to breakages more often if I'm likely to be coming back or if we've had a good holiday.

One bunkhouse we used to stay in regularly was lovely when we first went, but I don't think they ever cleaned it properly in between lets and it got really grotty so after a while we didn't bother leaving it too spick and span because it was dirty when we got there - we just didn't go back.

dottee · 21/08/2004 21:38

I would leave it tidy and relatively clean. I normally strip the beds and roll the bedding up. I don't want anyone to think 'well the last one was real dirty b**ch!'

JJ · 21/08/2004 21:39

KatG, I'm with you. Dinny, does your mom except people to do a top to bottom clean? (Honest question!)

I have done a big clean when staying in a small apartment on a farm. I knew the woman didn't have cleaners, so I made sure she had a minimal amount to do after I left. (Not sure what I didn't do, but am sure she came and did more! )

JJ · 21/08/2004 21:40

I also take the duvet covers off? Is that unhelpful?

It's worrying me now in a minor worry, hey it's great to having nothing else to worry about on a Saturday night way.

KateandtheGirls · 21/08/2004 21:42

JJ, I was wondering that too. Surely owners can't expect renters to clean the house after their holiday is done?

I would think taking off the duvet covers is helpful. I would hope that they would be washed inbetween guests.

Turquoise · 21/08/2004 21:43

I'd leave it swept and tidy, washed up etc and beds stripped. Mind you I'm a bit freakish and would probably have brought my own Ajax and had a good go round the bathroom when we arrived, no matter how clean it was!

bayleaf · 21/08/2004 21:59

I'm a bit of a slut in many ways - but I admit I always try and leave holiday rents tidy and fairly clean - particularly the kitchen - and I would certainly admit to breakages - I remember making a point of telling one owner who lived nearby about breaking a glass and trying to pay her some money and her dismissing it out of hand - telling me about the people who just steal stuff never mind breaking a glass! I think in part my attitude is down to the fact that our family has alwasy rented out our holiday home at the sea and we've basically had the same people go year on year - Dad charges very little - but the people are regulars so look after it incredibly well ( no-one comes in and cleans in between lets)so I guess I've normalised their behaviour in my head as ''what you do'' when renting a holiday home.

aloha · 21/08/2004 22:09

Clean kitchen and bathroom, hoovered downstairs (where there are crumbs etc) reasonably tidy, bins emptied and floors mopped over, beds stripped, breakages owned up to. I have also cleaned hotel rooms as a holiday job as a student and I remember vividly the utter contempt I felt for the scum who left their rooms in a DISGUSTING state. DH thought I was mad (particularly as I loathe housework with a passion) but I don't want anyone to have to wipe my pubic hairs out of the bath! For me, it is a matter of respect, which I probably wouldn't have thought if I hadn't had that cleaning job in my youth. Very useful things in that way, student jobs.

Original poster
Miaou · 21/08/2004 22:27

Thanks for all your replies, makes interesting reading!

Just for the record - I would expect people to do their washing up, and it is helpful to have the beds stripped. Otherwise I just expect that furniture and furnishings are left in the right places (you would be amazed at how many people rearrange the whole damn house and leave it that way!!)

I would never expect anyone to mop, clean bath, even sweep - just leave it ready to clean.

OP posts:
JJ · 21/08/2004 22:47

Miaou, thanks! I was wondering about that (obviously!). You've made me feel great, too. Last time in a house, I rearranged things (kids and all) but had the foresight to photo them beforehand. So I took the pics and it was easy to get them back where they should be.

Can I ask you something kind of personal? On the rare occasion I've left the house less than desirable (time constraints), I've left money. Is that ok or really offensive?

If you mind me asking questions, please let me know. I'm nosey and you can call me on it.

luckymum · 21/08/2004 23:23

I've never left money, but I always strip the beds and clean the bathroom and kitchen. I would hoover but often there isn't one. We even managed it once when we didn't get up til 9.30 and had to be out by 10 (that's with three kids and no packing done!!) I needed a holiday by the time we got home! lol

MeanBean · 22/08/2004 00:35

Depends on what state you find it in. I once stayed in a cottage in Cornwall where we spent £70 on the water meter in two weeks, so we didn't tidy up. I felt that as they'd fixed the meter to such an extent, they could bloody well afford to get a cleaner in!

oxocube · 22/08/2004 07:51

We went to a holiday house in France a few months ago and it was immaculate when we arrived and I did spend 3 hours before we left hoovering, cleaning etc. I would just be too embarrassed to leave it any other way. My own home however ........ And re damages, we didn't realise we had spilled red wine on a cover which the owners said was new (it obviously was) and the stains would not come out, so we offered a replacement which was £40 from our £50 deposit. Annoying, but only fair that, as we caused the damage, we had to cough up for it.

emmatmg · 22/08/2004 08:42

We've just come back from our holiday (Private owned caravan-Isle of wight) and I hoovered the lounge every day. The strange looks I got from the people staying either side of us were a picture BUT with DS3 very nearly crawling I couldn't leave the floor covered in sand and grass from our days out.

When we left I cleaned the Bathroom, kitchen and hoovered the whole place.

I sewed some tassle-y things back on the cushion before we left as the DS1 or 2 had kindly yanked them off but the kettle broke while we were there so there was no way we could hide the evidence. We bought a new one and sent the reciept to the caravan owners on their request for a refund.

I think we left it cleaner and tidier than when we arrived but then we want to use it again next year so need to stay in their good books.

Original poster
Miaou · 22/08/2004 10:23

Morning, folks.

JJ, I wouldn't be offended if you left money if you weren't able to clean up in time before you left - I appreciate that especially with small children it is not always easy when you have a deadline to meet... However as far as I'm concerned a note of apology would be sufficient!

Any other questions, ask away!

I also take on board what people say about the state the cottage is found in - I am very meticulous but I know that the person who cleaned before me was not quite as thorough - comments from regulars suggest to me that they have made more of an effort to leave it in a clean state because I have.

Re breakages - we accept that they happen, of course - but if we don't know about them we can't mend/replace things. I spend a lot of time checking things like lightbulbs, batteries in smoke alarms, whether castors on chairs are missing etc. when I could be mopping floors, and of course I have a limited amount of time to get the cottages ready for the next guests.

OP posts:
toddlerbob · 23/08/2004 01:20

Clean and tidy, floor swept, washing up done and put away. Bin emptied. I leave towels and sheets were they are though as the cleaner will have to put out new anyway. I did nothing in the bathroom because I assume someone does that properly for the next people. I put back the furniture to were it was (having moved it to let toddler have more running space). Oh and I spent 2 hours cleaning the scum off the top loader washing machine before I would use it.

Didn't break anything, but yes I would own up.

roisin · 23/08/2004 16:01

I think the amount I do depends on the state it was in when we arrived, and also how much we are paying for it. Often we take a property for a fortnight, but no-one comes in during that time, but usually you don't get any discount for the fact there is no linen to change, no cleaning to be done.

I would always do the washing up, sweep or hoover the living room, kitchen and dining room areas. But I don't strip the beds, don't hoover the bedrooms, and probably don't even clean the bathroom.

However, I do always let the owners know either during the stay or in a note when we leave, of any problems with appliances not working, or breakages (either by us or found that way).

Roobie · 23/08/2004 16:17

We regularly rent self-catering cottages and on leaving always make sure that the place looks broadly the same as it was when we started. This means dishes washed and put away, furniture moved back to its original position etc. I would never bother doing any major cleaning work though (apart from running round with the hoover, wiping the worktops, sluicing round the bath/shower and making sure there were no obvious scummy bits). To be honest I would be a bit concerned if the cleanliness of each letting was dependent on the previous occupier cleaning up - I would much rather the place had a thorough deep clean by the landlord before re-letting.