What do you look for in a holiday let?

[ClareC]

Hello,

Having moved out of London, we are now @ 1 hour away, living in the country. We are in a rural location @7 miles from the sea, and sandy beaches. Lots of country pubs with good food nearby and farm shops etc selling local produce.

We are about to have plans drawn up to convert our barn into 1 or 2 holiday lets. Would love to hear what everyone looks for in a holiday let on the basis we currently have a clean page to start from.

I've posted in the family room too, also interested in the views of those without small children.

Thank you in advance

Clare

[Louisa]

A personal touch. Maybe fill the fridge with some of the basics to make the stay run more smoothly? A bottle of wine and welcome card on the table when people arrive? Free and decent quality (eg Molton Brown) toiletries in the bathroom.

Louisa.

[womanofdulwich]

cleanliness and a big enough fridge / freezer, enough cutlery and crockery and pans /overn trays to cook a meal not reheat ready meals. Sounds fun!

[MrBen]

Lots of small things make a big difference.keep it simple and go for functional over aesthetics alone. Get the layout of the space and light right by thinking how people will realistically use it.

Pet hates of mine:

- a shite bed. Get something solid and a good firm mattress with a high spring count.get decent bed linen with a high thread count in cotton. Muji do good stuff as do white company.

- badly fitted showers with too many dials with no markings to help you work out how to use it. Get a single dial with hot and cold. Get the shower screen ls fitted perfectly. If it's on a bath fill the bath with water first to get the correct height of the door when fitting. Use big tiles which are easier to clean and less grout to go mouldy. If its a wet room get the angle of drainage on the floor right. Soft closing toilet seats.

- wifi that doesn't work well. Gone are the days when b&bs could piggy back off the main house wifi. All decent places now have multiple routers or zones to ensure good coverage and bandwidth. Set an easy to remember password not 15 hexadecimal digits.

- in the kitchen good solid pan, cutlery and decent sharp knives chopping boards and a quality range of utensils for cooking. Cheap stuff doesn't last.

- Avoid fancy lighting schemes and keep it simple. I stayed in the Sir Alfred in Amsterdam the other week. Its a cava dispensing hipster joint with high class hookers crowding out their Peruvian Japanese diffusion tapas bar or whatever. It had a shower in the middle of the room and sex toys in the mini bar. Fine if that's your ticket but all I wanted to do when I got in that night was to switch the lights out and it took me 25 mins to find the Lutron switch and find the "night scheme".Fiddly bullshit like that is no use in the real world.

- Sound proofing the barn walls . I had a terrible experience in a converted barn by stansted airport once with crap stud walls and floors which meant I heard two couples humping in stereo whilst every toilet noise from another room. Get foam backed plasterboard and rock wool in your cavity walls.

- A big enough coat rack and place to put dirty shoes at door will help with cleaning overhead.

- wireless music dock to play own music via blue tooth etc

- a place to put your case in each bedroom. Protect walls in these areas with some clear perspex or a timber upstand.

- decent sofa with cushions and throws.

-A WOOD BURNER will help make it more lettable in winter

[MrBen]

And a hand written guide of good places to eat and drink in the area and stuff to do.

[numbers]

"Soft closing toilet seats." - where's the irrational rage thread when you need it? Feckin hate these things.

no "high tech" remote lighting shower cooker controls that take hours to work out how to use and/or don't work properly even when you do.

boot scraper if you're rural.

more than 3 clothes hangers. must be detachable from clothes rail

think you need to work out your target market and furnish accordingly. however, good quality bedlinen, towels, toiletries, candles, matches, kitchen utensils, glassware and crockery will always be appreciated. freshly cut flowers, local produce and wine in fridge are a lovely welcoming touch. agree about having recommendations of things to see and do nearby. good luck!

[Saffron]

Smoke alarms, fire extinguishers in the kitchen, plus a small first aid kit would be good. Spare blankets, books, board games also nice.

[AbDabs]

Dictionary - for arguments over the scrabble you've helpfully provided.

Bedside tables and lights good enough to read (the only time I get the chance)

Sharps knives in the kitchen

A really good corkscrew.

Ice cube trays.

A list of the best local food producers with opening times

A list of pubs with good food

Map of the area.

Leaflets for local attractions, bus, train timetables. Tide tables if near the sea.

Number of reliable taxi service.

Salt, pepper, oil. (Herbs growing in tubs outside the door is such a nice thing)

Cafetiere, teapot with cosy

Hooks just inside door for wet things and shoe rack

Curtains that keep out the light (I'm used to blackouts)

CD player (out of season guests may be older and not have all the latest gadgets)

Dishwasher (absolutely essential - I do not want to wash up on holiday!)

Enough dishwasher tablets (which will be more than normal if you have't given enough place settings)

If you want guests during winter months then you need a washing machine and washing powder. (could be shared)

Walkers/cyclists/surfers will need extra space for wet things and secure storage

As you're close to the sea it's a good idea to include beach towels.

[Jeremy]

Good quality beds, nice linen, clean throughout, decent central heating, well equipped kitchen including dishwasher, private outdoor space with table or picnic bench.

[MrBen]

Numbers: If you don't get soft closing toilet seats. Then you can only be female.

[ClareC]

Some fantastic suggestions, thank you!

Feeling very incentivised and can't wait to get started.

We are rural so the only one we struggle with is internet speed. Wifi is a must, but is high speed critical? Mobile phone coverage rather limited too - which has its positives ;)

[Twirly]

Totally agree about the comfortable bed, also king size as if you're used to that at home, it's not great trying to sleep in a double. (I have actually been contemplating starting a website along the lines of tripadvisor but purely for rating beds - whether you like a soft, firm or hard one (oo err missus aside) and what the bed was actually like). Lack of sleep can ruin an otherwise wonderful holiday.

Somewhere to hang damp towels after a bath/shower (so many places don't have anywhere, and your woodwork/furniture will end up being ruined).

A place to park the car nearby, preferably free.

Somewhere to sit outside when the weather is good (essential for city dwellers who don't have gardens at home).

Black out blinds/curtains are a must too.

If there is little or no mobile signal, then yes, decent wifi is good. Many people never get to take a proper holiday and may need to catch up on work stuff each evening.

A decent TV with freeview and a few DVDs.

A decent sized fridge (we were in Devon week before last, and the fridge was miniscule!).

Make it clear on your website exactly what is provided, e.g. don't say towels (as you could be providing a couple of hand towels for all I know), say large bath sheets. Say if there will be salt, pepper, washing up liquid etc. there. We usually do at least one week somewhere in the UK each year, and I always end up taking these sorts of supplied along, as you never know what will be available, and if there will be any local shops open when you get there.

Good photos on the website - I hardly ever read the descriptions, I look at the pictures - that's your selling point. Then I read up on it as it takes longer and I may be looking at dozens of cottages. If the bed is under an eve and we are going to bash our heads getting up in the morning/can't sit up in bed to read, I don't want to stay there, so I'm not going to waste my time reading about how wonderful it is.

Be bookable online. Unless the cottage is so fabulous that I can't imagine staying anywhere else (hasn't happened yet) or I simply can't find anywhere else (has been known), I don't want to call or email. I want to know immediately how much it costs and if it's available when I want it. This will probably make your life easier too, as you won't have to field lots of calls/emails that don't come to anything.

Decide on your market. Do you want families with kids running around? Do you want couples without children? A mix? We don't have kids, so are generally looking for somewhere with one bedroom only, preferably not over run with other people's children. If you're expecting children, make sure you've got a few suitable DVDs in the selection.

If I think of anything else I'll add it!