Holiday Let Cleaning: Tips for Efficient Cleans...

Holiday lets are a great way to earn extra cash during the holidays when you need it most. But if you’re not careful with cleaning, your property could be in danger of being left in poor condition and become less desirable for future bookings. This article is going to cover everything from what sort of equipment you will need, how often should you clean and various other tips that can help keep your property in top shape all year round!

Why cleaning is so important?

We don’t believe it’s surprising that your holiday home is one big factor that influences your overall perception. One common negative review of vacation accommodation and Airbnb accommodation occurs when clients complain about the standard of cleanliness. Negative reviews can most certainly put off people booking, and if they do book but find isn’t what the guests expect, you could find complaints or even refund requests coming your way.

So, to prevent this, once you’ve begun receiving bookings it’s important that you’re cleaning before each new guest. This way the property is pristine when new guests arrive and they’ll all go away with fond memories of their stay rather than an uncomfortable one. You therefore want to ensure that everything is up to scratch before someone comes in, and this article has tips on how you can do this, so keep on reading!

What should you clean?

Carpets, floors and windows are generally the most visible areas that will need attention but it’s important to remember all surfaces – including light fixtures, ceilings, walls and door frames. It might be tempting to skip a few corners as you race against time to get everything done before your next guests arrive but this will only lead to a bigger and more time-consuming clean later on.

Other areas to pay attention to will be cleaning the kitchen and bathrooms. Make sure that all surfaces are clean as well as the oven, fridge, freezer and any other appliances in the kitchen. In bathrooms, you should aim to clean all surfaces including the bath, shower tiles and toilets.

Of course with any holiday let cleaning it’s important to focus on what a new guest will see when they arrive. The above mentioned areas are all important but you should also be sure that your guests have a place to put their luggage and hang up clothes, so make sure that wardrobes and drawers are clean inside and out.

How often should you clean your holiday rental?

Now it’s important you build a cleaning routine, as while the frequency may vary there are a few ways that you can look at when it comes to how often you need to clean your holiday rental. The most obvious one is to simply clean before each booking to make sure that everything is looking as good as new for the guests.

However, if you’re not able to do this, you can also do quicker cleans that include dusting, sweeping and wiping surfaces every other week and at least replacing bedding, bath towels, tea towels, toilet rolls and anything each guest will be using for every new booking. If you have the time, then as you would with an end of tenancy clean, a thorough deep clean between each guest would be ideal, but if not possible at least once a month is a must, assuming of course you have enough bookings to warrant this.

What equipment will you need?

Now this depends on if you’re planning on hiring a cleaning service or professional cleaner because they’ll likely bring their own equipment with them. However, if you’re doing the cleaning yourself there are a few pieces of equipment that will help save time and effort. For instance, having all the right cleaning products – such as sponges for surfaces and microfiber cloths for furniture – is extremely useful. In addition to this, it’s also very helpful if you have items like vacuum cleaners on hand too.

In terms of tools specifically designed for vacuuming soft furnishings from upholstery and stairs, we think investing in a handheld vacuum cleaner would be well worth considering since they’ll speed up the process considerably. There are various other pieces of equipment that you’ll need to complete the job particularly when deep cleaning, so it’s always best to think about what will actually help make your life easier when it comes to ensuring things are looking their very best.

Laundry, things to think about:

– If you have a washing machine in the property, use it! Washing machines can take care of a lot of laundry in one go and if you have a dryer, it will save on electricity costs.

– Try to use natural detergents where possible as these can be kinder to the environment and your guests’ skin.

– Make sure all bedding is freshly laundered before each new guest arrives – this will give them a clean and comfortable place to sleep.

– If the property has linens included you can consider doing laundry mid stay – but make sure that you don’t run out of clean linen.

– If you’re using professional cleaners they may well have a laundry service, if they do, it’s worth considering as this can save you a lot of time and effort.

How to find the right cleaning services?

This really depends on what you’re looking for and your budget, for instance the cost of an independent maid may well be cheaper than hiring a commercial cleaning company. You can find cleaning services through online directories, by asking friends or family if they know of any good ones or even by searching Google. When it comes to finding the right one, it’s important that you read reviews from previous customers to get an idea of their standards and what they’re like to work with.

Keeping your holiday property clean between bookings is an important task, but it doesn’t need to be something that takes up a lot of time or effort if you know what needs to be done and have the right tools.

When does it make sense to outsource your Airbnb cleaning?

If you’re letting out your rental property on Airbnb on an alternative competitor or ad-hoc basis, it might make sense to outsource your cleaning altogether. Cleaning services are often geared towards short-term lets and can save you time and hassle when it comes to getting the property ready in between guests.

This will make the most sense if you’re renting your property out and don’t live locally, or if you have people staying over frequently. It will also make sense if you have a few different properties and you don’t want cleaning between bookings being your full time job.

It of course needs to make financial sense as well though, so you need to weigh up the cost and consider if you’re looking for a one off clean before guests arrive and then you could just give the property a very quick once over between bookings yourself this can help save money and increase your overall profit margins.

Some useful tips for holiday lets:

Now we’re almost done but there’s some extra little tidbits of information that can be worth remembering if you want to get things right.

It’s important to make sure that you give surfaces a quick wipe down and spray with some disinfectant or deodoriser before people arrive, this is important particularly because of Covid (some up to date requirements here), plus people like the smell of freshness!
Another tip if you’re cleaning yourself or using a cleaning professional is have a simple checklist for the holiday home cleaning. This checklist will make sure nothing gets missed and that a thorough clean is completed each and every time.
Spillages by guest happen and these can sometimes leads to stains, whether that be cushions stained bed sheets, the sofa or anywhere else. Make sure to have check before new guests as stains can be very visible and off putting.
Try not to cut corners if possible, that means making sure the dishwasher is empty, pans are clean and in their cupboards, surfaces are spotless and without dust (including skirting boards), old food is removed from the fridge, bin bags have been removed, the bathroom floor doesn’t have hairs, shower curtains and glass are clean are ready to wash in. All of these things will help improve guests first impressions, lead to happy guests in the long term, increase the chances of rebooking and better reviews if you use any sort of online platform.
Make sure you’re fully insured. This one of the most essential things you need to consider when you’re letting out your property, it simply isn’t worth the risk of something happening outside of general wear and you’re not covered. You will need to make sure you have the right insurance for your property and rental purpose, whether that be holiday lets, single long term lets, block of flats insurance, HMO or something else.
Create a welcome pack for your guests to use, they can be very useful and appreciated by guests. This can include things like a list of local amenities, emergency contact numbers, WiFi passwords, how to work things in the house like the heating, air conditioning etc.

Final thoughts

We hope you’ve got value from this article, as you can see it’s important to keep your property clean between bookings especially if you’re looking for the highest standards. We’ve gone over some of the most important tips to bear in mind when you’re cleaning your property, so follow these simple steps in between changeover days and you’ll have glowing reviews, happy guests and even more bookings!