House Cleaning

[floridadreamvilla.co.uk]

Exactly the way we work with our own homes too as it really does help the cleaners out, especially if another guest is arriving the same day.

I was once doing some maintenance on our 7 bedroom home while it was being cleaned and it took the cleaner over 4 hours to do the house to a standard that we require for new guests. With the last guests leaving at 10am and the next guests potentially arriving at 4pm, the cleaners really have to work hard to get everything done in time and putting the towels / bedding by the washing machine and starting off a wash really does help them [msnsmile].


<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by Mo Green
We just ask our guests to strip the beds, put any used bed linen and towels in the laundry room and put the first load of washing in. That way it helps to cut the cleaning time down - and our costs to guests.

Maureen


[/quote]

[steph_goodrum]

We to ask that the bed are striped and onl if they have time to start the first wash but we certainy wouldnt mandate it. If the beds arent striped then the cleaner can only assume all beds have been used which may mean a waste of water, energy and time.
The wash pocess is fairly quick but its the drying that takes the time especially if there has been a large party stating.

I've noticed when we have been in hotels recently that they are now asking you to put towels that have been used in the bath so they dont waste energy.

[thistle1314]

I always stay in villas when I go so I treat it as my home which I work hard to keep in good condition and apply the same theory to any villa I hire. As soon as I get up on the morning of our leaving day I strip all the beds and get the first load in and normally by the time we're ready to leave I have the first load in the dryer and the second load in. I understand what you villa owners are saying about it not being mandatory and you dont expect guests to do it etc but I see it as common curtesy and I've seen how hard the cleaners work so every little helps as far as I'm concerned.

[fiona]

We also ask guests (if they have time) to strip the beds and put the first wash on - I suggest the towels as these take the longest to dry.

When staying in villas ourselves (before we bought our own) I used to get the washing on, strip the beds, wash the kitchen floor, wipe down all the surfaces and clean the basins out. When we rented a condo in Missouri a couple of years ago we not only had to strip the beds, take the garbage down 4 flights of stairs and dispose in a dumpster, but the dishwasher had to be stacked and then washed and emptied with the water turned off before we left, now that was pressure!

[thornton]

As a courtsey we ask guests to put one load of towels in before they leave. If they do more it is a bonus for the cleaners. I know that I would not want to strip, wash and make 8 beds, wash and dry all the towels as well as clean the house in 4-5 hours. I really do not know how they manage it in the time.

[Hutchy]

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by 50sumtng
It is nice and helpfull if a guest just places the bed sheets in the washer, but certainly not mandatory.
A guest is..a guest and is on holiday.
I cannot remember the last time I helped a hotel clean a room, and I dont necessarily see why villa guests should not be treated similarly
[/quote]

Absolutely. By renting out my villa I became part of a customer service industry. i.e. we provide a service to our customers, not the other way around. Whilst a Villa is a different kind of holiday to a hotel in that you don't have a daily clean etc, I will try to make every other part of the experience as close to what they would expect from the finest hotel. I might stuggle with the concierge in the lobby though [msnwink]

[steph_goodrum]

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by Hutchy
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by 50sumtng
It is nice and helpfull if a guest just places the bed sheets in the washer, but certainly not mandatory.
A guest is..a guest and is on holiday.
I cannot remember the last time I helped a hotel clean a room, and I dont necessarily see why villa guests should not be treated similarly
[/quote]

Absolutely. By renting out my villa I became part of a customer service industry. i.e. we provide a service to our customers, not the other way around. Whilst a Villa is a different kind of holiday to a hotel in that you don't have a daily clean etc, I will try to make every other part of the experience as close to what they would expect from the finest hotel. I might stuggle with the concierge in the lobby though [msnwink][/quote]It's about logistics for cleaners really, though if you have a party of 8 (that means 6 sets of sheets with 2 double beds) and possibly 16 towels to get washed and dried in a maximum of 6 hours if you have more guests arriving at 4 so the only way round it would be to put 2 driers in or make checkin/out time earleir /later to allow for the drying.

[Jules]

We do the same as most villa owners and request that the guests strip the beds that they have used and start the first load of laundry. We also ask that they load the dishwasher with any dishes they have used and start it going. These requests are just that, they are not mandatory, but it does make life a lot easier for our cleaners when they are on a tight time schedule between guests.

When we first started renting we had a family stay in our home over Christmas, when they left on New Years Eve our cleaners found all the bedding (2 king sets, 2 queen sets and 8 twin sets) and every towel in the house (24 bath size, 24 hand size, 24 face cloths and 8 pool towels) had been used, the beds hadn't been stripped, there were dirty towels in every bathroom and dirty dishes in the kitchen sink.

Now I don't expect guests to spend their whole holiday cleaning my home but they had only been there a week, they had obviously changed the bed linen mid stay and just piled it by the washing machine and not washed a single towel during their stay. I don't think it was asking too much for them to throw a load of towels in the washer and to load the dishwasher before they left.

My cleaners and my management company had a very memorable New Years eve that year as some of the laundry had to be taken to my MC's house to get it washed and dried and they then had to deliver it back to my home the next day. We have now had a 2nd dryer installed to make things easier but it can still be a rush when we have had a full house and have a back to back booking so the cleaners appreciate all the help they can get.

[Sally D]

We have never been asked to do any washing etc before we leave but I always strip the beds and put all laundry by washing machine and put a load in and start the dishwasher as we are leaving.

I would not be offended if I was asked to do these things.

One year the owner kindly let us stay in villa until we needed to leave for airport so the least I could do is the laundry, managed to get it all done except all drying without breaking my neck.

[SDJ]

We just politely request that the guests put one load of washing on before they leave. It is difficult for the MCs to do a back to back on a 5 bed even with a 1000am checkout. We generally try not to accept back to backs but of course sometimes it cannot be helped.

Sandra