What should a guest do before they leave re: cleaning/tidying?

[Jill41]

I have just had a guest who left unwashed crockery, one of the toilets was disgusting, wet towels everywhere, duvets on floor, gas hob thick with grease and dirty greasy kitchen surfaces. I wrote a neutral review saying they were friendly and communicated well before the hosting. I choose to let him know privately that I was surprised at how the apartment was left but made it friendly and offering understanding if there had been a problem but I got this back

'Did you really expect us to clean the house before leaving? I think you don't even know what kind of service you are offering. Airbnb is about renting your house as a Hotel, It is not like couch surfing, where people do it for free. I paid more than 400 € for only 3 nights in your old apartment and after that amount of money, that is almost a robbery for the quality of the flat, you are cheeky enough to tell me about the cleaning? You are charging almost a half monthly salary for only 3 nights, you must be able to clean it after all. We didn't break anything, but as you should understand like when I go to a hotel I don't care about tidying or cleaning, because I don't have to do it. .....the house full of boxes everywhere, and the bathrooms were pretty dirty when we came in. So please, stop saying bull**bleep**, take your money that you probably don't even pay taxes for that and this business is totally under the table and don't text me again. I will tell you again just to make it clear, when you pay such a crazy amount of money for a renting, you don't have to clean after being in the house, you must take care like we did and don't break anything.'

The apartment is professionally cleaned in between each guest and the bathrooms are spotless so he has lied about that. I don't charge a cleaning fee. There are no boxes laying around and there is no smell - so my question is this - how should a guest be expected to leave a rental? Everyone else who has stayed has said the apartment is really clean and have left it fine. I expect to have to clean but not this level, am I expecting too much from my guests? 

He left me a great review.

Thanks for any advice so i can put it on my hosting:)

[Christine615]

In my house rules I make it clear that I expect the house to be returned exactliy how they found it. Dishes cleaned and put away, trashed bundled and ready for pickup. Recycling sorted, etc. I say in my listing that the cleaning fee only covers the cost of washing linens. Guests put the towels in the hamper in the laundry room and I'll strip the beds. Otherwise they are to treat my home as my home.

So far I've had minor issues, but most have cleaned before they left.

There are people who think "I'm paying money I shouldn't have to clean." But on the Airbnb livestream they did say they are now trying to tell new guests that they are renting homes and there is a different level of expectation about that versus a hotel with maids.

And you're not alone. In the beginning I left a few good reviews I now regret. It's a learning curve. I'm going to find ways to be kind but honest about reviews and leave fewer stars and hit the "thumbs down" symbol.

[Don-and-Sandy0]

I am new to Airbnb, and am wondering if I am requiring too much from my guests after reading the comments.  I was advised by others locally to not make the beds for guests and just have the sheets folded on the beds so that they can make the bed - that way they would know that the sheets were fresh and it also cut down on cleaning costs, since it takes time to make beds. I also request that before they leave, guests should put a load of towels in the washer and turn it on, strip the used beds and put the pile by the washer, take out the trash, and leave the cottage as they found it.  (So far, I have long breaks between guests and though someone checks the premises, I do not have it cleaned until the next guest is arriving, so I need the garbage put out, etc).  I am bargain priced for Cape Cod and charge a cleaning fee below my costs.    Is this reasonable or outrageous?

[David126]

There is no right or wrong answer.

[Sarah977]

Your requests do not seem unreasonable. You might mention, or have in writing at the home, the reason you want them to put the towels in the washer and take out the garbage, so they don't just think that you want them to do your cleaning for you. That there are sometimes long breaks between guests, and that the space gets cleaned immediately BEFORE guests arrive, ensuring that it is freshly scrubbed for them, therefore you can't have wet towels moldering and garbage smelling the place up or attracting pests, and thank them in advance for their understanding and cooperation.

Personally, I would make the beds before the guests arrive- it just looks nicer and more welcoming. It should be pretty obvious to a guest whether the bedding is clean or not. And while it would be helpful for the guests to strip the beds and put the laundry by the washer, I wouldn't require that. It only takes a few minutes to make or strip a bed.

[Don-and-Sandy0]

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@Don-and-Sandy0 wrote:

I am new to Airbnb, and am wondering if I am requiring too much from my guests after reading the comments.  I was advised by others locally to not make the beds for guests and just have the sheets folded on the beds so that they can make the bed - that way they would know that the sheets were fresh and it also cut down on cleaning costs, since it takes time to make beds. I also request that before they leave, guests should put a load of towels in the washer and turn it on, strip the used beds and put the pile by the washer, take out the trash, and leave the cottage as they found it.  (So far, I have long breaks between guests and though someone checks the premises, I do not have it cleaned until the next guest is arriving, so I need the garbage put out, etc).  I am bargain priced for Cape Cod and charge a cleaning fee below my costs.    Is this reasonable or outrageous?

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Just an update - after a full summer and quick turn-arounds, and a little more experience! I now have the cleaners make the beds and I added this line to my instructions, "if you are willing and able"  please strip the beds and do a load of towels.  I request that the cottage be left in "tidy" condition, as they found it, (which is not the same as saying it has to be as clean as they found it), that dishes be washed and put away.  Most have complied.  I have wonderful cleaners, but our clean rate has been marked down for reasons beyond their control -one of the Keurigs was running slow, or they found a dirty dish in the cupboard (our cleaners don't have time to work with dishes!),etc.   I am going to add to the instruction book these stories to inform guests; maybe that will help next year with the clean reviews.

[Ben284]

Hello,

This is Harry. I assist Ben with his AirBnB property. We have been doing this for two years now and are Superhosts. Everyone may have different standards of “clean”, but I’m sure we as hosts all endeavor to provide clean accomodations for our guests. What I take exception to is the misconception of guests treating our accomodations as their own because that’s when we get surprised when we find out the guest turns out to be slovenly at home. AirBnb should be about a more ideal mindful community of hosts and guests, but, as a very recent experiment, and many guests are new to the concept of home stays and more accustomed to the maid service of hotels, motels, and possibly even traditional bed and breakfasts, it’s hard to live up to ideals. We will keep endeavoring to provide our guests with the kind of service and experience we’d want to enjoy when traveling, but we hope AirBnB will do the same when considering that the host accommodations are really the bread & butter of this experiment, and be more proactive in educating guests about mindful traveling. As hosts we can best seek out the lessons to be learned.

[Paul154]

LOL

These are guests I really, really want.

I hope you feel pretty foolish about not publicly stating that they left the apartment dirty  🙂

[Des3]

I always read guests’ reviews, and sometimes check out the person who reviewed them, especially if all reviews use similar wording.

If they kept to the rules and arrangements, didn’t cause any damage but weren’t the tidiest, then I’d focus on the positive. If you’re overly critical, it could impact future bookings. That said, I always score as I find and state if they were messy on the private feedback for Airbnb.

It’s swings and roundabouts, some guests are spotless, some are not. I pay my cleaner the same weather she does a 2 hour clean or 4, as the cleaning fees go to her. Though, if it’s above 4 hour’s, I obviously pay the extra. I only charge for 3 hour’s, as the extra is for windows, checking cutlery and crockery etc, which is my responsibility.

Some people are just not as clean as others, or are in a rush, or are having a bad day on checkout. Most people are on holiday, so I don’t expect too much.

The worse thing is causing damage and not telling me, as it’s hard to pinpoint the culprit if you have a few back to back guests.

[Sebastien77]

I have been hosting for more than a year now, and indeed my experience is that we are all different in how we live and what our expectations are. For ex,  I do not expect my guests to clean the bathrooms or vaccuum the floors or clean the stove, but I expect them to not leave pots and pans dirty and full of leftover food. I try to be as specific as possible in my posting and house manual as possible without scaring guests.

[Xeph0]

Ive been reading this post to get some insight into your reactions to messy guests.
I have been hosting two beautiful rural houses on the same estate since November 2017. Im no stranger to hosting and cleaning as I have experience stewarding on private superyachts, which require precision interior cleaning that ends with an unnerving level of OCD, lol!
Most of our guests have been fantastic, but there has been a few who have left the houses in a cruddy mess. Example, super nice guests all week, said our goodbyes, but then I go to the rooms and find crisps in the beds and floors, dried food on the cutlery, clean plates on top of their dirty ones (!?!), unflushed toilet, bin overflowing, baby high chair encrusted with food, and leftovers in the fridge that serve no-one (think two spoons of jam in a jar, a tiny piece of cheese, half a smelly onion, a mouthful of milk...). The guests had also booked both of our houses together, so I spent a good while going between each replacing furniture and kitchenware, which I have calmly resigned to the fact that its gonna happen.
I always rewash all the cutlery, plates and glasses as most nationalities have this thing about washing up in a sink of "soup" (the nasty remains of dinners in the cleaning water which is left to drip-dry leaving stains), and I like to present my guests with sparkly clean glasses and stainless cutlery and plates (the kind everyone enjoys and expects to receive in any establishment). That cleaning part does not bother me (as one host mentioned earlier, its better hosts clean everything as not everyone has the same standards of cleanliness), but I do not like finding gross kitchenware that's been put away and out of sight by the guests.
What does tick me off is when guests have been super cool during their stay and then leave the houses like they couldnt give a toss! How am I to leave them a good review, even if they were the sweetest of guests?When it comes to my reviews I keep them neutral for these type of guests as I really do not want to go into details of how the guest's mother left skid marks in her ensuite toilet, or how toe nails blocked the plug hole, or chocolate stained the sofas. My neutral reviews go like this, 'Guest and family settled in very quickly and appeared to really enjoy their holiday'. FULL STOP. Any host reading this should get the idea of what I'm really saying and I also hope the actual guests question why my review was so empty, as my good guest reviews are epic masterpieces!
So am I expecting too much of my guests? I dont think so. I think a bit of common sense cleaning up behind oneself goes a long way and shows self-respect and respect for others. As hosts, we know we have cleaning and some rearranging to do, but I'm cleaning up a house and should not expect to be cleaning up someone else mess. HUGE difference.
I look forward to the day Airbnb becomes more proactive in advising their guests to clean up after themselves, in a manner as if the guests were leaving their bosses guesthouse the day before a promotion, lol!

[Sarah977]

@Xeph0  I had to laugh when you wrote about that way of doing dishes. That's the norm here in Mexico- a little plastic tub of tepid water with bits of food floating around it and a cursory rinse under a dribble of water. And here they favor little tubs of powdered dishwashing soap- they dip the cleaning rag in the soap tub, then use that to wash, back and forth, so that soap tub also has food bits in it and slimey water. So revolting. They even do the dishes like that in restaurants. I'm convinced that when people come here and get "Montezuma's Revenge" that it's from the poorly washed dishes rather than the food.

[Cathie19]

Thanks for your comments. I rewash as needed cutlery, crockery and glassware. Then I know it’s clena!

But never forget, common sense is a super! LOL....

[Sue799]

So do you think that most hosts already know what your "code words" mean?  I'd appreciate other hosts verifying this information.  Thank you.  

[Tammy10]

I charge a cleaning fee and pay a professional to come in and clean it.  I only ask my guests to separate their garbage into the appropriate bins and wash their dishes before they leave.  And if they do not follow those instructions, I simply carry on.  We cannot have expectations of our guests to clean.  And we certainly can't expect them to clean to the highest possible standard.  I make sure that my listings are immaculate.  I treat them as an asset.  If a towel gets a stain, I replace it.  If a wall gets scuffed from luggage, I paint it.  I also wash the sheets down to the mattress cover and pillow protectors everytime.  For long stay guests, I do a linen change every week, so my linens don't get stained.  I also have the cleaners, clean inside cupboards, because sometimes guests get silly with the dishes.  We wash inside cupboards and will rewash dishes etc, if necessary.  This may seem like overkill, but my listings are rated very high.  And I have many repeat guest over the years.  And not one person has resented or questioned the cleaning fee.  In the rare cases where there has been an outrageous mess, I simply chalk it up to that one guest in a season that is a bit of a nightmare.  I simply rate them honestly to warn other hosts, and I wouldn't have them back.

[Des3]

You do exactly what I do.

It’s swings and roundabouts.

Some guests are super clean, others are not. Also, some guests have early flights and or taxis, so I don’t hold a little bit or mess and wear and tear against them. After all, we’re in the hospitality industry.

It’s  the same with toiletries and breakfast supplies. Some guests barely touch either, some probably take stuff home.

I’m more concerned with damage and/theft. Which is very rare.