The real problem is that you want the sitter to arrive on Christmas Day. That is such a shame and will put most people off. Most sitters would want to be in, settled and cosy ready for Christmas.
How do you expect them to reach you as it’s a bank holiday so they will have to drive. What if they got a flat tyre on the way. It’s just a nightmare travel day - absolutely no way.
On top of that they won’t be able to get any food in for Christmas as they will be travelling and all the shops will be closed.
It takes time to settle into a new sit, figure out the animals personalities and routine and how to navigate the house. Usually on the first day in we end up cleaning and sorting unpacking it’s not an easy day.
Christmas and new year is our prime sitting time and we pick our favourite place as there are so many available. There’s nothing better than celebrating with extra pets and having cuddles on Christmas morning with the fluffballs.
I tend to agree with Enjaybee’s comment that starting on Christmas Day would be something that kept us from applying. Travel around the holidays is substantially more expensive, and then to have to sort out food shopping when everything is closed? Maybe if a sitter has family in the area and can stay there the days before? Your dogs look lovely and the home is very nice, but I wouldn’t spend extra money to get there on a holiday when there are so many other great sits at that time. If you don’t find any applicants, you might consider offering to pay their airbnb or hotel costs for the two nights before you want them to arrive. You mentioned arriving later and having your daughter hand over the home and dogs, but I think you’ll run into the same issues. Sitters will already have committed for both Christmas and NYE.
Can your pets be left alone for a few hours at a time? We’re spending Christmas at home, but we then fly very early on boxing day in preparation for starting a sit 2 days later, because our family is split between two places, so we get to enjoy Christmas twice with the help of cat-sitting.
There will be plenty of people like us on THS who have family living in a certain area who would love to have somewhere to stay locally, while enjoying seeing their family for occasionally over Christmas time.
Your house is lovely and your dogs are super cute. Along with others, I think the start date on the 25th is a deterrent for many sitters but not impossible. Is there any way to celebrate xmas eve with your grandchildren at another home? I know that is a big ask but it could help to start the sit on the 23rd. I often spend xmas in the UK and I am very fond of Yorkshire, so I have favorited your listing for the future. I plan to spend a cozy xmas at home this year. Good luck!
I should also add, we’re staying at the Premier Inn at the Airport on Christmas Day night, so after Christmas lunch and the usual nap with the family, we’ll head off on the night time just 30mins up the road to the Premier Inn Airport hotel, ready for our flight the next day. You could have offered to put the sitters up somewhere locally beforehand if you feel you may get stuck.
Our Premier Inn is only £40 on the night of the 25th Dec, so it was a no-brainer, it was even cheaper on Christmas Eve (but pointless for us). Travelodge is even cheaper (£25), they must just not get any trade over Christmas, I suppose most would want wining and dining if they were in a hotel at Christmas, rather than Travelodge/Premier Inn, whereas a pet sitter wouldn’t be bothered for a couple of nights, as it would be your place that they then get to enjoy.
I appreciate all the advice here, as I posted my end of year sit over a week ago, and it’s the first time I haven’t had full applications within a couple of hours (cue sad trombone). Still looking! I have tweaked my listing a little based on feedback here. But I am heartened to see that there are sitters who actually look forward to xmas sits!
I am already booked for Xmas but looked at your ad and the problem may be that your sit starts on Xmas day itself. Most people would want to be already in a sit before then.
We always try to go somewhere “exotic” (read warm) over Christmas and New Year. It’s been Spain, Panama, Ecuador and Costa Rica over the years. This year it’s New Zealand. I always try and book the sit early so we can get good deals on flights.
Hi Karenglen
Let me speak from the other side as a client who seeks sitters. We are avid travelers and do usually book well in advance. And get our sitter chosen. However there are times when travel is still being planned or pending. Hang in there something will pop up for you.
Hello @Vizsla and a very warm welcome to the Community Forum and it’s lovely to see you joining in with this thread
For reference, you can also add your TrustedHousesitters profile on to your Forum profile by following the attached link, should you wish. This will then enable others to offer you helpful advice and feedback and will also give your listing extra exposure!
If you are unsure how to do this, or if you have any questions at all, do not hesitate to ask, we are all more than happy to help.
Also, remember you can use the spyglass symbol at the top of the page next to the TrustedHousesitters logo and search for any questions that you may have as they have most likely already been answered on here and of course if not then please just ask!
I have attached a thread below, it would be great if you could join in with this as we think you could offer great feedback and your input would be a great addition
Lots of us do holiday sits; but as you can imagine, the competition is fierce.
Some of us hold off committing as we know that many more will come on the site before Christmas, so unless it really suits us we will wait.
So make you listing as attractive as you can, there are tips on here for that, just search it. While obviously you’d like it to be sorted, don’t give up as many don’t decide or don’t know their own plans until closer to the event.
All the best!
We have done many sits over Christmas.
My only concern with yours would be arriving on Christmas Day. Many shops are shut, so stocking up the fridge etc after arrival would be hard.
Other than that, your photos are great and helpful!
Good luck.
Most definitely some of us do holiday sits! Many of us don’t celebrate Christmas (or whatever) and/or like to have excuses to avoid our families.
That said, I don’t like being cold or dealing with snow when traveling, so I look for warm places in winter (of course, there are others who seek cold/snow). As others have said, traveling in predominantly Christian countries on the 25th is hard, so that’s not appealing. And I’ve seen some sits ending on Dec 31, which is inconvenient for some people.
Happy birthday to hubby! I’m a Capricorn, too (Dec 30).
Thanks everyone. Just to clarify we always make sure the fridge/freezer and cupboards are well stocked before we leave with whatever the sitter wants so the shops being closed christmas day wouldn’t be an issue. There is a supermarket a 2 min walk away which has always been open boxing day anyway if theres anything else they need
I have had Xmas sitters through this site, but it’s hard work to get anyone interested in any sit these days! I have a beautiful home and a lovely dog but in the last year or so THS seems to have stopped working. I am thinking of posting Xmas dates now, the only problem being that I’m not sure of my dates yet and may have to change. Good luck.
