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What makes for a GOOD Villa guest?
What makes for a GOOD Villa guest?
After reading the post from the frustrated villa owner, and several of the responses from villa renters, I was wondering - what IS preferred? For instance, someone mentioned that they will leave token souvenir items behind as a "house gift". I think we are all expected to leave the place clean, take out the trash, etc. But, for example, do the villa rental agencies appreciate it if a load of laundry has been started?
What makes for a great guest?
What makes for a great guest?
fins-up fran
Well, we do a few straightforward things. All things you would do in a beach rental anywhere.
- Throw away perishables from the refrigerator
- Take trash to the dumpster
- Sweep floors
- Rinse off beach chairs
- Put things back where we found them
- Wash and fold beach towels
- Write a note in the house journal
If anything is broken or damaged we let the rental agency know when it happens. There are usually a few maintenance related items that we let them know about.
Another thing we do is get the sand out of the rental cars and give them a rinse at the villa. There is usually a bit of mud and dust on the car.
Cheers, RickG
- Throw away perishables from the refrigerator
- Take trash to the dumpster
- Sweep floors
- Rinse off beach chairs
- Put things back where we found them
- Wash and fold beach towels
- Write a note in the house journal
If anything is broken or damaged we let the rental agency know when it happens. There are usually a few maintenance related items that we let them know about.
Another thing we do is get the sand out of the rental cars and give them a rinse at the villa. There is usually a bit of mud and dust on the car.
Cheers, RickG
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California Girl
I agree with everything Rick said except the part of washing the towells, or any other linens for that matter, as those items are done by the cleaning service with water not being taken from the villa's cistern.
We are super careful about water usage, even to the point of washing dishes in a pan and emptying the water off the deck to give a thirsty plant a watering. Some folks will spank me for this, but at least in Coral Bay this is the preferred practice.Showers are kept to a minimum amount of water used.
The 1st time we stayed in Coral Bay the water pump died on the first day. The villa rep sent a handyman up, a pretty old guy, and he said the pump was shot and would take several days to get a new one. Now we're pretty easy, can do with minimal water, but not no water. The guy had a pressure gauge with him, so I being from a rural background, bypassed the switch on the pump, pumped the pressure up to the proper pressure, got water, told the guy they didn't need a new pump but just a switch. The next day the switch was replaced for about $20.00 instead of a new pump for several hundred. The following year we got a very substantial discount on the same villa.
We are super careful about water usage, even to the point of washing dishes in a pan and emptying the water off the deck to give a thirsty plant a watering. Some folks will spank me for this, but at least in Coral Bay this is the preferred practice.Showers are kept to a minimum amount of water used.
The 1st time we stayed in Coral Bay the water pump died on the first day. The villa rep sent a handyman up, a pretty old guy, and he said the pump was shot and would take several days to get a new one. Now we're pretty easy, can do with minimal water, but not no water. The guy had a pressure gauge with him, so I being from a rural background, bypassed the switch on the pump, pumped the pressure up to the proper pressure, got water, told the guy they didn't need a new pump but just a switch. The next day the switch was replaced for about $20.00 instead of a new pump for several hundred. The following year we got a very substantial discount on the same villa.
When you find yourself in a hole.... quit digging.
RickG's list is very good! That would be a perfect guest.
During a same-day turn-over we have four hours to turn chaos into order. That includes all laundry (towels, linens, tablecloths, etc.) washed, dried, folded, put away; cleaning bathrooms, showers, kitchen (including dirty dishes), fridge, stove, all surfaces, floors (washed, rinsed and dried), grill cleaning, vacuuming, dusting; replacing worn or broken items; trash removal; pool cleaning, pool filter, sunscreen scum line, pool deck, outdoor furniture; landscaping, plant watering, grass cutting; cistern treatment; septic pumping if necessary; water delivery if necessary; provisioning; minor (or major) repairs and guest pick up.
Did I miss anything?
For us, processing all the laundry through one washer and dryer is the bottleneck in the process. So we really like it when guests do some of the laundry. We don't expect this nor is it considered "the norm". It just gives us a little more time, and time is precious during those four hours.
I am not complaining. This goes with the territory! One day of intense labor nets six at the beach. (In theory. In reality it rarely seems to work out that way!) I thought you would like some insight about what goes on behind the scenes after you leave.
peace.... bert
During a same-day turn-over we have four hours to turn chaos into order. That includes all laundry (towels, linens, tablecloths, etc.) washed, dried, folded, put away; cleaning bathrooms, showers, kitchen (including dirty dishes), fridge, stove, all surfaces, floors (washed, rinsed and dried), grill cleaning, vacuuming, dusting; replacing worn or broken items; trash removal; pool cleaning, pool filter, sunscreen scum line, pool deck, outdoor furniture; landscaping, plant watering, grass cutting; cistern treatment; septic pumping if necessary; water delivery if necessary; provisioning; minor (or major) repairs and guest pick up.
Did I miss anything?
For us, processing all the laundry through one washer and dryer is the bottleneck in the process. So we really like it when guests do some of the laundry. We don't expect this nor is it considered "the norm". It just gives us a little more time, and time is precious during those four hours.
I am not complaining. This goes with the territory! One day of intense labor nets six at the beach. (In theory. In reality it rarely seems to work out that way!) I thought you would like some insight about what goes on behind the scenes after you leave.
peace.... bert
We try to be good guests, I hope the people we have rented from agree that we are OK. We are pretty low maintenance anyway--we don't use the beach chairs or floats at all--when we are at the beach, we are in the water snorkeling. We "lime" at the villa.
When we leave (sob) we do strip the bed and start the washer/dryer, and we also clean and fold all the beach towels we've used. I'll admit that we've encroached on beach towels in extra rooms that we are not using--last trip we had to! It rained so much there was no way to air dry the towels adequately.
I've also left notes for the cleaning crew when the whole house is unlocked but we've only been in one bedroom, letting them know what rooms we have not been in--that way they don't have to do extra cleaning/laundry.
We run the last load of dishes in the dishwasher, but do leave that last load for the crew to put away. The one time we rented a house without a dishwasher, we cleaned everything and put it away.
Rick G, I have to admit I never would have thought to sweep the floors! Maybe next time.
Most importantly, we leave a nice tip and a note of thanks for the cleaning crew!
When we leave (sob) we do strip the bed and start the washer/dryer, and we also clean and fold all the beach towels we've used. I'll admit that we've encroached on beach towels in extra rooms that we are not using--last trip we had to! It rained so much there was no way to air dry the towels adequately.
I've also left notes for the cleaning crew when the whole house is unlocked but we've only been in one bedroom, letting them know what rooms we have not been in--that way they don't have to do extra cleaning/laundry.
We run the last load of dishes in the dishwasher, but do leave that last load for the crew to put away. The one time we rented a house without a dishwasher, we cleaned everything and put it away.
Rick G, I have to admit I never would have thought to sweep the floors! Maybe next time.
Most importantly, we leave a nice tip and a note of thanks for the cleaning crew!
It's like looking in your soup and finding a whole different alphabet.
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Xislandgirl
- Posts: 4163
- Joined: Tue Aug 08, 2006 4:03 pm
- Location: Slightly left of center
D**n, you guys are good. I think I'd invite some of you guys to housesit while we're away on vacation or extended long weekends. Seems like the place will always be better than when we left.
Let's see, we leave the place the same as when we arrived, but we definitely don't the linens and towels. Gotta figure some of that money that's paid has got to go for at least that service. No souvenirs. I figure that if I'm paying $3000.00 a week that the owners can buy their own souvenirs and at the same time get a deduction for an expense.
Let's see, we leave the place the same as when we arrived, but we definitely don't the linens and towels. Gotta figure some of that money that's paid has got to go for at least that service. No souvenirs. I figure that if I'm paying $3000.00 a week that the owners can buy their own souvenirs and at the same time get a deduction for an expense.
You guys ARE good! We don't normally do any laundry unless we've used a lot of towels, but we do bring them all to the laundry room. I've never stripped the beds but now I feel guilty so I'm sure I'll do it next trip. Easy enough. 
We also run the dishwasher and put away all pots, pans, etc. One thing I started doing a few years ago, in any house I rent, is to date any food items I leave behind in the fridge with a sharpie. This applies mainly to jarred items like ketchup, mustard and other condiments. I'm hesitant to use anything left behind if there's not a date on it somewhere.
Except for the kitchen, I don't normally sweep (and probably never will!
) and we take out all the trash when we leave.
And lastly we always leave a tip for the cleaning people.
I figure if I leave it as I found it, that's good enough.
We also run the dishwasher and put away all pots, pans, etc. One thing I started doing a few years ago, in any house I rent, is to date any food items I leave behind in the fridge with a sharpie. This applies mainly to jarred items like ketchup, mustard and other condiments. I'm hesitant to use anything left behind if there's not a date on it somewhere.
Except for the kitchen, I don't normally sweep (and probably never will!
) and we take out all the trash when we leave. And lastly we always leave a tip for the cleaning people.
I figure if I leave it as I found it, that's good enough.
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Xislandgirl
- Posts: 4163
- Joined: Tue Aug 08, 2006 4:03 pm
- Location: Slightly left of center
Just Curious As I Read This......
do you all do this when you stay at a hotel?
I too agree with Rick.
We rent the same house in Coral Bay twice a year. All the dishes are washed and put away, the floors are swept clean, beach towels washed and folded and beds stripped and laundry started.
We do use the laundry facilities located at the house because we know that the cleaning crew uses those machines. Might as well get them started.
We also leave any unopened canned or dry goods and always fill in the guest book. We like to treat our rental Villa as we do our home.
Same with our car rental. Some companies charge a fee if there is sand left in the car. We wash it and vacuum it. Our car rental place loves it, they turn around and are able to rent it right back out again. This works well for both sides as we use the same rental every time. They don't worry about a deposit from us anymore.
I think a good villa renter is one that can simply be trusted to do the right thing and treat the rental as a home.
We rent the same house in Coral Bay twice a year. All the dishes are washed and put away, the floors are swept clean, beach towels washed and folded and beds stripped and laundry started.
We do use the laundry facilities located at the house because we know that the cleaning crew uses those machines. Might as well get them started.
We also leave any unopened canned or dry goods and always fill in the guest book. We like to treat our rental Villa as we do our home.
Same with our car rental. Some companies charge a fee if there is sand left in the car. We wash it and vacuum it. Our car rental place loves it, they turn around and are able to rent it right back out again. This works well for both sides as we use the same rental every time. They don't worry about a deposit from us anymore.
I think a good villa renter is one that can simply be trusted to do the right thing and treat the rental as a home.
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Xislandgirl
- Posts: 4163
- Joined: Tue Aug 08, 2006 4:03 pm
- Location: Slightly left of center
I do not do this in a hotel because it is not someone's personal home. I know the people that rent their villas and I rented my beach house for years. You hope that people will treat your home in a way that they would treat their own home.
I would never expect anyone to do all the laundry and remake the beds, but I would hope that they treat the home as just that, a home.
There are good people in the world that rent houses on St John and take great care of them. The obviously are all on this board as well.
I would never expect anyone to do all the laundry and remake the beds, but I would hope that they treat the home as just that, a home.
There are good people in the world that rent houses on St John and take great care of them. The obviously are all on this board as well.
Sweeping floors, etc.
No, I never do any of these things at a hotel. But I do some of them when we rent a place at the beach on the East Coast. But there, we have to bring our own linens and towels. Not having to pack towels is a big deal. Towels were half of our luggage when we stayed at Maho Bay. Running a load of beach towels through the washer/dryer is just part of our routine.promoguy wrote:do you all do this when you stay at a hotel?
On sweeping, we do it more than once during the week, especially when we have 8 or 10 adults in the house. People walk in a lot of sand from the beach and sand brings no-see-ums. Spreading these chores across all of the folks in the group makes it easy to get done. When we travel with the kids they do the same chores they do at home: wash dishes after dinner, wipe down the dining room table and sweep the dining room and kitchen floors. No problem.
We had our first experience with mid-week maid service last year at Caribe Villa through ViVa. There was a mix up and the maid came by a day earlier than we expected. She rather got an eye full of early sun bathing... We'll ask them to skip the mid-week maid service next time.
Cheers, RickG
S/V Echoes - Coral Bay - St. John, VI