Gite Cleaning

Lis15
Level 2
Genneteil, France

Gite Cleaning

I have just joined AirBnB as a host. I own 2 gites (holiday homes in France) of which one has been listed here. The generally accepted situation here is that gite clients leave the place as they find it - clean, tidy and sanitised, essentially ready for the next occupants. The host (me) of course, will change bed linen, towels, handtowels and kitchen linen etc. between sets of guests - but unlike a hotel where one rents a room, the provision here is a spacious self-catering 'cottage'  - which is uneconomical to rent out for a low nightly rate if it is provided clean and ready to use but the client abuses the situation and leaves dirty dishes, pans, dirty floors and surfaces and unsanitised bathrooms when they leave. Also, it isn't easy to have to clean our gite from top to bottom in the time between check out and next potential check in later the same day.

 

Is that what is meant by 'Cleaning before checkout' which is one of the amenities which can be 'checked' ? 

I have added a 'cleaning fee' at the moment but if clients 'leave as they find' then this isnt necessary.

I'd appreciate any feedback on this.

Lis

10 Replies 10

@Lis15 - Make sure that you have a cleaning fee, security deposit, and explicitly note in your house rules that the space must be as-found-clean when checking out on your listings.  You can also send the guest the check list of what is required for check out before check in (use the "saved messages" section) and tell them, if all boxes are checked, the cleaning fee will be refunded to them.  Then leave a very, very specific "cleaning list" in the property that at check out you and the guest go through together (or your local co-host).  

Thanks, that is very helpful! 🙂

Marzena4
Level 10
Kraków, Poland

As for your question, @Lis15, about that amenity - yes, it is meant for that. But then the cleaning fee is dubious.

// "The only person you can trust is yourself"
Marko17
Level 5
Bled, Slovenia

This is quite a bad business model from my point of view with all the competition out there..  You can not expect from guest to do a detailed complete cleaning. Final cleaning should be always performed by the maid/owner/someone.. Nowadays its al about health, higiene, etc...

My approach is like that:
(House Rules description) The guest must tidy/clean the apartment on the time of check-out, specially the kitchen and its equipment or they can choose to pay additional cleaning fee of 50,00eur. Till now noone took the cleaning fee, so the guests did a basic cleaning, some were spot on some were less spot on. The point of this is to prevent them leaving a big mess so it doesnt take us the whole day to clean the unit. 




That is useful - I do not expect guests to dust clean under beds, behind furniture, windows...all that sort of thing - but we do need them to leave anything they have used 'as they found it' and if they have left footprints, dirty marks and so on, on the floor, then I expect them to clean it up.

It is less of an issue if people are 'in transit' and only essentially using the bed...but if they stay a week and are self catering then they have time to clean before they leave - this is the 'norm' in France for holiday cottages - perhaps not the same world wide - which is why I ask. Thanks

@Marko17 I think it is partially a cultural thing.

 

If these Gites are a specific kind of accomodation in France, and the people who use them are accustomed to the idea that guests are to expected leave them in the condition they found them, then it works for everyone involved.

 

I think @Lis15 has mentioned that the guests don't do deep cleaning... just make sure things are nice, neat, and no unwashed dishes and floor stains and the like.

 

Sort of how one would expect to behave if you stayed with relatives. Clean up your own messes.

 

Lis15
Level 2
Genneteil, France

That is pretty much it! Unfortunately, not everybody understands the concept - gites are the French name for a holiday home, self contained, and usually self-catering. Sometimes tiny and poorly equipped with second hand furniture and equipment. They can be anything from a wooden building to a home in a cave or a chateau (castle).

Mine are part of an old Farmhouse, very spacious and well equipped with high quality things one needs to cater for oneself in all aspects! 

They are far less expensive to rent than a hotel and far more spacious than a caravan or tent - and not subject to the whims of weather!

Marit-Anne0
Level 10
Bergen, Norway

@Lis15

I have been renting my French holiday home on a weekly basis during the last 13 years and only once have I had an issue with guests leaving a mess. They agreed to pay for the extra cleaning though. Even the dogowners behave. The norm is the same, tidy up the kitchen, do the dishes, take out the garbage, clear out the fridge, sweep the terrace, do the bbq, vacuum floors. All appliances including oven left clean and ready for the next guests.

My guests hardly ever come through airbnb though as we are often booked up a year in advance and there are quite a few regulars.

I make them sign a contract equivalent to those done by the agencies.

Thanks Marit Anne, This is what I do normally - no problems with 'existing' booking methods - as people sign a contract. I just thought I'd try AirBnb and want to make sure my property  is adequately advertised - so that people understand what is expected of them.

Marit-Anne0
Level 10
Bergen, Norway

@Lis15

It is a bit of a challenge to adapt this to airbnb - so far so good, but I have only had a handful of bookings and they were from those surrounding countries used to the concept.