Everyone has their favourite part of a holiday that they’ll be thinking back on by the time they head for home. Some people fondly remember the food, while other people will like the holiday photos or just getting to stay at a variety of places best.
But then there’s the part of the holiday that almost nobody likes talking or thinking about: The cleanup.
People and their pets can both have accidents, and it’s not about if they’ll happen as much as when they’ll take place.
Here are some practical tips to help you clean up after your stay:
- Cleaning Bit by Bit
Cleaning can sometimes feel like a huge mountain in front of you, especially after you’ve enjoyed a nice break away.The easiest way to take on post holiday cleaning, is to tackle it bit by bit, or section by section. This makes it feel like a much smaller job, and it helps you do it in a much more organized way.If you’re anything like us, we usually leave tidying until the morning of checkout – but there is nothing more unpleasant than having to clean-up the entire house, find things, pack car and get dogs in tow, than having to rush a big clean-up before a 10am checkout. - Do Dishes as you Go
If you do the dishes as you go you won’t have that many to take care of on the day of checkout. We also try to put things back in their place as we use them – which saves us from running around frantically on morning of checkout trying to find things we’ve misplaced. - Hunting down Hair Balls
Pets shed, especially during the seasons where their human owners like going on holiday. This is naturally problematic for most pet owners, at home or on holiday.
If you have a super sheddy dog, consider travelling with a lint brush, or use a dry cloth or brush over areas where there are clusters of hair caked to furniture, pillows or linen. (Dustpan and small broom usually helps with this – and is something usually stocked in all Getaways.)
What we do to help catch most of the dirt, grime and hair balls, is to travel with extra blankets and sheets we throw over couches and beds to protect it from the worst damage. - Check Strange Places
Staying in pet-friendly getaways mean that there have been other dogs there before you. They would’ve left interesting messages and scents that your dogs can pick up, even if you don’t.We’ve had it happen once where Shiva decided to leave a message as well – but luckily it was on the stoep, so we could wash it off quite quickly and thoroughly.
Pet’s also sometimes leave things behind. Our dogs love to bury their hooves and toys in couches, and it’s easy to miss especially if they like burying it deep. That behaviour doesn’t get checked at the door when they set foot outside of their home. So it’s best to check unusual places – usually under and behind things, including cupboards, couches and tables – for anything they’ve buried for later, or possibly rolled away during play. We’ve come across a few balls in places we’ve stayed this way – which Shiva promptly acquired as his own. - Cleaning Problematic Stains
We’ve noticed that many Getaways love white linens – even when they know dog families are coming to stay.White linens stain just by looking at it. Add in dogs, grass, mud etc into the equation and you could quite quickly have yourself tied in knots thinking how you will explain this away.Even if you bring your own cover sheets it’s inevitable that as they play on the bed or couches that things may get dirty on the fabric below.Try your best to get the stains out, and if you fail – it’s courteous to let the Getaway owner know about it.
Do you have any tricks for departing quickly on day of checkout? Tell us in the comments!
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