As the holiday home owner it is very important that you have strict check-in and checkout policies for guests. This will not only ensure that a certain level of disciple is maintained, but also gives you a chance to plan things accordingly. Since, in most instances, you will physically not be present at the property to welcome and see-off guests, you will have to rely on your caretaker or guests to abide by the check-in and checkout policies.
Like any other business, the idea here should be to ensure that you run your holiday home rental business professionally. Even guests, while they look for a homely atmosphere in a holiday home, appreciate a certain level of professionalism from the owner.
Here’s what you can do:
1. When you are preparing the holiday home rental agreement, make sure that you add a clause clearly stating the check-in and checkout timings.
2. The agreement should also mention that failure to checkout before or at the checkout timing will attract deduction of a day’s rental from the deposit.
3. The point here is to be firm without being rude. If you have stayed in a hotel, you must have noticed that the hotel staff are not rude with you when it comes to vacating the room on a given day. They however ensure that you abide by what you have agreed with them. The same professionalism should be applied with your holiday home checkout rules too.
4. A very good idea can also be to have a folder on the bedside table (which along with the list of important phone numbers or your menu card) mentions the check-in and checkout timings. Since guests will invariably have a look at the folder, they will with all probability notice this too. You can have one glued behind the bedroom doors too.
5. On the day before the checkout, call you guests and remind them of the checkout timing. Call them to enquire whether they are enjoying their stay and if they were facing any difficulties. At the end of the conversation drop a line about the next day’s checkout. On the day of the checkout you can instruct your caretaker to ask the guests if they required any help in their packing. However if the checkout time exceeds by a couple of hours, instruct him to ask the guests if they intend to stay an extra day.
ADVANTAGES OF HAVING A STRICT CHECK-IN AND CHECKOUT POLICY FOR YOUR HOLIDAY HOME:
1. Having strict check-in and checkout policies go to show that you run the holiday home rental most professionally, a fact that even guests will appreciate.
2. If you have back to back rentals, it will give you time to prepare the holiday home for the new guests.
3. If you are strict about your check-in and checkout timings, you can have a part-time caretaker who can be employed accordingly. If you keep the timings flexible, there may be days when you will be paying the caretaker extra or he may not be able to work because he may have prior engagement elsewhere.
4. While keeping a deposit from the guests is a must, if you haven’t, it means you will have to make alternative arrangements to collect the rent for the extra day, which is an unnecessary hassle.
5. Not having a strict check-in and checkout policy or timings mean you are keeping space for a disagreement with guests who might justify that they thought they could leisurely checkout in the evening without much haste.
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