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Vacation rental likes/dislikes
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03-15-2012, 06:48 PM
Thanks again for all the ideas and enlightening stories. I'll ax the desktop/laptop and printer. The latter was for printing boarding passes mainly but that's not really necessary at Hilo Airport. I'll just include information about the nearest printer for hire instead. 'Suggestions' is a better idea than 'Complaints'!
Lots to think about with these new regulations.
03-15-2012, 08:45 PM
Lots of good stories here. I'm enjoying this read
I agree with Rich. Do not put a suggestions section in your guestbook. What is written in your GB stays forever, and most guests are polite enough not to put critical material in it. Email them when they get home as to how they enjoyed their stay, if you want to invite critique. If it still irks them, it's more likely worth hearing.
03-16-2012, 03:04 PM
I clean a couple of pretty vacation rentals. The owners are very hands-on with everything that goes into making this a five-star stay for their guests. Some of the most appreciated things are:
* A fresh scrubbie sponge in the wrapper at the kitchen sink (#1 believe it or not!) * Every pillow has a fresh pillow protector which gets washed every time I clean. * Laundry detergent is topped off each time so there is a full bottle. * The owners supply condiments such as mayo, ketchup, minced garlic, steak seasoning, vinegar, olive oil (nice bottle is refilled each time). There are many other supplies which are also provided by the owners. * Paper plates, cups, hot liquid cups, napkins and toilet paper are abundant in the house. * We leave a welcome basket which includes wine, a can of mac nuts, a local guava juice, Punalu'u cookies and a small bag of fresh coffee beans in a bag with the name of the vacation rental on it. (And "Aloha - welcome to ________...") I place everything in a basket and drape a pretty, colorful lei around it. We leave Champagne for guests who are returning and also for an anniversary or honeymoon. * All the pillowcases get tucked in. * The toilet paper gets folded to a point after cleaning. If the roll of toilet paper is 1/2 or less...I replace it with a new roll. * Each bathroom has a small stack of paper cups in a pretty dish. * The towels and bath cloths are all folded exactly the same way in every bedroom/bath. * I top off Nutrogena body soap each time so it looks new - in each shower. * There are extra slippers available in the house. * Large screen TV, computer, skype, printer and cd player in all houses. * Each room has an extra blanket. * Ironing board and spray starch available. * Every bath has it's own blow dryer. * East Hawaii and West Hawaii map books are in each house. * A large assortment of DVD's and music on CD at each house. * Many books on local culture and The Big Island in each house. * I clip fresh anturium from the property and leave them on the table. * The Notebook for the house is filled with directions to local eating establishments and tourist attractions, as well as area beaches. * There is an area in the laundry room where first aid and leftover shampoo, conditioner, sunblock and mosquito sprays are kept for the guests. * Snorkel equipment, including reef shoes and body boards are available. Beach chairs and coolers are available. * Several UMBRELLAS are also available in each house. They get used here! LOL! AND When a group of guests leave, anything in the fridge that looks like it might be a nice surprise for the next guests is left with the understanding that they can either discard the items or use them. Oftentimes guests leave eggs and produce...mangoes, papaya, salad greens, purple sweet potatoes, etc. Also some guests leave bottled water, wine, beer and other liquors which we keep in a cupboard and the fridge if the new guests would like a drink. I know that not every rental can afford all of these items. It's a little higher-end for sure. But many of these things are so doable and make a big difference to our guests. I would say that 40% to 50% of our guests come back year after year. This was fun! It's also fun to see what other people do or what renters like to have available. Mahalo! Carrie http://www.sapphiresoap.etsy.com "Even the smallest person can change the course of the future..." Galadriel LOTR
Carrie Rojo
"Even the smallest person can change the course of the future..." Galadriel LOTR
03-17-2012, 12:43 AM
One last thing from me: someone should spot check the dishes to make sure they are really clean, I don't know how many times I've taken a supposedly clean dish out of vacation rental cabinet only to have it be dirty, sometimes even outright gross. I think many people don't know how to hand wash dishes anymore. Or better yet, invest in a dishwasher.
Carol
Carol
Every time you feel yourself getting pulled into other people's nonsense, repeat these words: Not my circus, not my monkeys. Polish Proverb
03-17-2012, 12:55 AM
quote: A federal judge suspended the law for 60 days after industry was able to show there are more public pools in the US than ADA lifts available to retrofit them. The law apparently also applies to spa tubs?! Anways, the law has not been enacted until further review.
03-17-2012, 10:41 AM
This has been a very interesting and educational thread.
As for the OP, one question would be Why? Not that an answer is important to us, but most important to you. That answer will be your motivation, especially when there's a challenge. My guess that given the number of vrs inPuna already, a pure $$$ reason may not prove to be a good short term reason. I suspect there are many that fit that bill. I would also suggest that you spend some time on different websites looking at what's out there. The HomeAway /VRBO sites have a community forum with lots of discussion. We're pretty new at this and still learning, but maybe I can share one thing we do. I have what I call a suitability checklist. I print this for each guest and place on the table easy to find shortly before their arrival. Each checklist is tailored to the unit. This is referenced in our contract and I ask them to review their first 24 hours. It tends to serve serveral purposes: 1. A final check for me that I checked everything 2. A listing of what's available and where it is 3. A brief inventory & count of various items 4. Special note - like the fireplace pilot is off during summer 5. A place for comments from guest. Here, I have to tell on myself. We recently replaced the set of dinnerware in one unit, because we couldn't find matching replacement bowls. We were pretty pleased to find a nice square set at Ross. The first guests to use were here 15 nights, talked with them most days, dinner together once, a glass of wine from time to time. So imagine my surprise when after they left I read their checklist to find a note next to dinnerware " the large square plates do not fit in microwave". So much for being proud of our selection LOL. So now that checklist also makes note that the large square plates do not fit microwave. Of course there are other choices that do. Enjoy David Ninole Resident Please visit vacation.ninolehawaii.com
Ninole Resident
03-17-2012, 10:56 AM
Once again, thanks for all contributions. Keep them coming! Another thing I recently added to my list was a landline phone, with long-distance lock. Could be useful during a power cut. Or is it not worth the expense?
As for the reasons for doing a vacation rental, there are a few: - we are renovating a house and we can't be in Hawaii full time so it seemed a good idea to make it a VRBO - one of our neighbors does the same and her VRBO is almost always occupied - I've stayed in vacation rentals a number of times myself and I can always think of improvements If it doesn't work out, no problem. Are people making money on vacation rentals? I can only assume they are, otherwise why do it? Then again, I suppose selling isn't a good idea either. Please enlighten me!
03-17-2012, 11:15 AM
quote: I haven't used a landline in a hotel or rental for as long as I can remember. The only time I ever use the phone is for a wake-up call, otherwise I can do without it. All they do is ring for wrong numbers, sometimes waking me up for no reason. There's 3 people in our household and 4 cell phones. A landline is redundant- although it would be nice to know if there was one nearby in case the cell service went down. You mentioned something about locking the long distance- If I used a land line in a rental it would most likely be to call home (long distance). If you're not going to have long distance, then don't bother with the phone at all. One thing I forgot to mention before as an absolute must is wi-fi (can't believe I forgot that). For a vacation rental (wouldn't say this about a hotel) another "must" would be access to a washer and dryer. Of course free is best but even a pay unit would be OK so long as there was someone there to sell me quarters. Personally, I probably wouldn't watch TV but somebody traveling with kids probably would want a flat screen to watch. When I see a place with an old CRT model I think "this place needs an updating" regardless of whether or not I use it. You didn't say where your place was but if it was above 2000' I would say: FIREPLACE. Nothing adds charm to a chilly Hawaiian evening more than a cozy fireplace. I've only done one Hawaii VRBO and the thing that still sticks out in my mind was how many stains there were on the carpet. With the steep cleaning fee I paid I would expect to be able to eat off the floor. The other thing is, don't misrepresent the unit. For example the listing said "whirlpool tub". I don't know if it was a "whirlpool brand" tub or what, but there was no whirlpool, no jets, nothing but a spigot and a drain. It was just a regular tub! It described the master as a "queen sized suite" It had a full sized bed in it! (which is smaller than a queen). It also advertised granite countertops. It had granite TILE countertops. It was still a really nice unit, very well equiped, great view and amenities etc, but the operation just seemed sleazy. The other thing was that they took FOREVER to refund the security deposit. They kept saying they were going to send it, they were going to send it, and finally they got sick of me asking and said WE'LL GIVE YOUR REFUND ON THE LAST DAY WE ARE ALLOWED TO ACCORDING TO HAWAIIAN LAW. Really? Needless to say I wouldn't stay there again. It's the little things... like when we showed up to our unit for the first time (it was night) and the key was inside one of those realtor-style locks hanging from the door knob where you punch in the combination code to open it and get the key out. But there was no light on out front in which to see the gizmo. We had to get all of our cell phone screens on maximum brightness in order to be able to (barely) see the gizmo well enough to operate it. "Under the mat" would have worked a lot better, but I understand the need for security. And then anytime we came or left, the gizmo had to be manipulated out of the way so we could close and lock the door, which subconsciously reminded me of the ordeal we endured trying to get into the place in darkness lit up by the glowing screens of technology. |
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