While hotels and guesthouses have been the most common accommodation choice for most travelers for many years, the rise of Airbnb and similar platforms have greatly transformed how people choose accommodation when they travel. Also, Airbnb has given homeowners a chance to venture into the vacation rental business and become hosts by offering their free accommodation to travelers for a reasonable cost, helping them earn extra income.
However, as an Airbnb host, you need to ensure you offer a safe, comfortable, and clean space to your guests so they will give you glowing reviews and you will attract repeat visitors to your vacation rental units. This makes it necessary to have a comprehensive Airbnb cleaning checklist so you provide a spotless experience for your guests.
Below are some key tips that can help you to implement a comprehensive Airbnb cleaning checklist to offer an inviting space to your guests that will leave them delighted, and even eager to come back to rent your space again.
Ensure you have all the cleaning requirements
Before you can embark on the cleaning process, you need to make sure you have all the supplies necessary for the cleaning process. Some of the things you need to gather include:
- Vacuum cleaner
- Cleaning agents
- Brooms
- Microfiber cloths
- Mops
- Trash bags
- Specialized cleaning products to remove specific stains or for specific surfaces
You also need to have the right people to do the work if you cannot or do not want to do it yourself. The reason for gathering all the needed supplies is to prevent interruptions once the cleaning is started and to streamline the process.
Declutter the vacation rental space
When you decide which space within your home you want to turn into a vacation rental, you should declutter it. This involves removing any personal items and other unnecessary things you may have there. Some of the stuff to get rid of are your toiletries, clothes, and even food leftovers that previous guests may have left.
During the decluttering process, ensure you rid all surfaces like shelves, countertops, and tables of any clutter. Removing unnecessary items makes the cleaning more efficient, and makes the place feel homely, inviting, and spacious.
Clean the kitchen
As with any home, the kitchen is also a crucial area of any vacation rental space and means so much to the guests who rent your house. You need to ensure it is immaculate. And because it can be so costly to cover cleaning costs and still make some decent income, you should include a reasonable Airbnb cleaning fee in your rental rates. This way, you can purchase the necessary supplies and even hire labor.
Some tasks when cleaning the kitchen in your vacation rental space include:
- Cleaning and sanitizing the various appliances, such as the fridge, stove, dishwasher and microwave
- Emptying and cleaning the toaster, coffee maker, etc.
- Checking and getting rid of any food crumbs, and spills inside cabinets and drawers.
Dust the surfaces
Unfortunately, all living spaces have one invisible enemy, dust. You need to remove any dust that accumulates on surfaces over time. To dust surfaces, use dusters or microfiber cloths to thoroughly clean them. Some of the places to check out as you dust are shelves, decorative items, light fixtures, and electronics. Make sure you pay close attention to the often-overlooked areas such as air vents and ceiling fans.
Vacuum and sweep floors
You must ensure proper vacuuming of rugs, and carpets is done, and pay keen attention to high-traffic areas and under furniture. Where there are hard floors, you need to remove debris and loose dirt by sweeping or vacuuming. You must ensure you reach the corners and even along the baseboards. Also ensure you clean any spills or stains that are visible, to ensure they don’t set in.
Clean and sanitize the bathrooms
Another key item to ensure is on your Airbnb cleaning checklist is the cleaning and disinfecting of bathrooms. You must see to it that you clean and sanitize the washrooms thoroughly. You must scrub the shower or bathtub while paying close attention to the corners and the grout lines.
As part of the bathroom clean-up, ensure you replenish toiletries like shampoo, soap, and toilet paper. In addition, remember to wash and replace the linens, for example, bathmats and towels.
Ensure bedroom comfort
Given that your guests will need clean sleeping spaces; you must ensure the bedrooms are comfortable. You need to change and launder the different beddings including pillowcases, sheets, and duvet covers. Also, make sure the pillows and mattresses have no stains or odors. Additionally, ensure you wipe all furniture, for example, dressers and nightstands.
Conclusion
In addition to the above tips, ensure your Airbnb cleaning checklist also includes regular maintenance to take care of various faults like leaky faucets, loose cabinet handles, burned-out bulbs, and others. You must keep your Airbnb property spotless so you can get positive guest reviews, attract more visitors, and ultimately, maximize your vacation space rental income.