Mums left divided over how much to clean your holiday rental when checking out – and what you should NEVER do
PEOPLE have been left divided over how clean you should leave your holiday rental when you leave – with some saying there are things you should NEVER clean.
A mum asked on Reddit how much she should clean the place before leaving, despite having an early check out.
She wrote: “I’m going on holiday in the UK next week and staying in an Airbnb holiday cottage for the first time. I’m wondering how clean I should leave it?
“Check in isn’t until 4pm apparently so they have time to clean it, but check out is at 9am. So they have a 7-hour window to clean it between guests?
“Is it ok to just do the washing up and wipe the kitchen surfaces? Will I need to clean the bathroom, strip the beds, hoover?”
Most agreed to give it a usual clean, with taking the bins out and washing up.
One thing not to do, which many agreed on, was stripping the sheets, despite many thinking this is actually a courteous thing to do.
A home owner, who rents out their own houses, said: “I prefer beds not stripped – I like to see any makeup/fake tan that I might need to deal with.
“Just generally leave the place tidy but not do any actual cleaning. Wouldn’t strip beds unless specifically asked.”
Someone else agreed: “Our last AirBnb actually left instructions that we WEREN’T to make or strip the beds ‘it confuses the cleaner’!”
Another mum added: “As an Airbnb owner, do not wash the towels. I can’t stand when people do this. I send all my linen and towels out for laundering and this makes it so difficult.”
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Others said they wouldn’t do much cleaning – as Airbnb has a cleaning fee anyway.
They said: “Airbnb always has a cleaning/servicing fee – at our most recent one it was a £70 cleaning fee after a 3 day stay! I’m certainly not stripping beds and cleaning if I’m paying extra for it to be done.”
Another person said: “If you’re paying a cleaning fee I’d do the dishes/put the dishwasher on but not necessarily wait for it to finish, wipe up any obvious mess in the kitchen & bathroom, put bins out if asked (there’s often an instruction booklet of what you’re asked to do).”
One thing not to do? Put the dishwasher on.
One person pointed out: “Please don’t leave the dishwasher running. It can delay the cleaners hugely. If you must, put it in as early as you can and on a short cycle.”
One traveller divided opinion after he said always stripped the hotel beds when he checked out – although hotel housekeepers praised his actions.
A mum was recently branded “disgusting” after she said she left dirty dishes in her holiday rental.
And another mum was left gutted after being charged £200 for a “damage fee” after staying at a holiday let – because she didn’t vacuum enough.
One woman was left stunned by an “inappropriate” Airbnb request – which asked her to water the flowers twice a day.