I’m currently staying in a not so clean house. There wasn’t even a clean towel left for me. Luckily I had taken my own. I don’t think the linen in the spare room has been changed for a while. I’ve brought my own pillow😜. The tea towels are filthy and smelly and I cannot find a stash of clean ones. The vanity sink was not clean and had hair in it? host or dog?? The fridge is not clean and I don’t think I need to clean it either.
I am reluctant to put this on my feedback because I’m concerned that he may retaliate and give me a bad review which may affect other sits. I was thinking of not mentioning anything about cleanliness in my review but send him a private message pointing out that things could have been done better.
What do others think?
Cheers
Please do mention it in your review (as it’s a blind review system) the HO won’t see your review until they’ve submitted theirs. They can reply to your review so make it purely factual. The HO needs ‘educating’ as to minimum standards that are acceptable to the majority of sitters. My response would be YUK! I’d be docking more than a few stars for this …. and feeling a responsibility to fellow future sitters who I know would be grateful for this heads-up.
The HO will see your review only after they’ve written and published their, so please write an honest feedback.
Leave a review - you can mark each category and give an overall rating.
I am sure you would have appreciated any previous sitters leaving an honest review.
That is a 1-star for the hospitality category! I cannot imagine how such HOs treat people. But frankly, I also cannot imagine how sitters put up with such things.
And it shows how completely unreliable the old system was when sitters were prepared to leave 5-star reviews for this.
That sounds horrible. Please leave an honest review. I would drop stars in cleanliness (for obvious reasons) & hospitality- (not providing fresh bedding & towels) Whether this host is new or not they need educating on basic standards to offer sitters. That is not acceptable. Write your review factually without emotion. The host will not be able to read it till they’ve submitted your review too. If they don’t like what you write they can respond to your review. Readers will figure out who to believe.
A review system only works if you use it. I feel it’s a sitters duty (as it is for HOs) to warn future sitters of issues.
@Karen65 you might not realise that as of mid February, sitters can now give star ratings for five owner categories, two of which are Hospitality and Cleanliness. As others have said, reviews are now blind and can only be seen once both have been completed or after 14 days since sit finished if only one member completed their review. Honest, unemotional and factual is what you need to be.
You all have been so helpful so I’m asking for advice. We just completed a sit and need to write our review. I feel a need to warn other sitters about the cleanliness so I want to be truthful BUT something one of the homeowner said the night before the sit while we were having dinner causes me to pause. She was talking about how comfortable the bed was and he said “she’ll sometimes spend all day up there”. His tone was that it wasn’t a big deal BUT MY thoughts went to my former DIL who would spend all day in bed because of depression.
So I need help wording my review. What I don’t specifically mention in my review is that the only place to sit was a couple of tiny armchairs and a broken-down couch in the living room and the amount of clutter; there was not one single surface that wasn’t full of clutter… not a flat surface that wasn’t full of stuff. The carpets and floor looked clean and the bathrooms were amazing clean especially given the state of the kitchen. I spent two plus hours cleaning the kitchen and then hubby clean the inside of the dishwasher so we could us it. We are not talking a day or two of dirt buildup, we’re talking grease and grime. Here’s what I drafted:
"[HO Name Redacted] communicated well both before and during the sit despite some issues with the THS platform. They were welcoming and respectful hosts who kindly picked us up from the train station and provided dinner after a long travel day. They had thoughtfully cleared space in the fridge for our groceries and had emptied a wardrobe for us to hang clothes. They left the house well equipped to sufficiently look after [Pets Name Redacted] and left great instructions regarding their feeding and care routines. The huge bed was comfortable.
While the bathrooms had clearly been cleaned, the kitchen required a thorough cleaning before we felt comfortable using it. This included cleaning handles, worktops and appliances like the interior of the microwave, dishwasher, and washing machine. There was an unpleasant odor in the refrigerator, and the freezer had significant frost buildup, limiting storage capacity.
Additional Notes for Pet Sitters:
Wifi Strength, Availability and Speed were great however there is no laptop-friendly workspace.
No indoor cameras were seen though there was an Alexa-type device in the bedroom, easily unplugged.
The home was a short, flat walk to the small local grocery stores, restaurant and bus stops for exploring other villages.
The washing machine was quite loud, making it difficult to sleep or hold conversations while it operated.
Stairs up to the bedrooms are quite steep and narrow so those with mobility issues might struggle. "
Thoughts, feedback, advice?
My impression (which also HOs might get): this is all complaining too much.
If the washer makes too much noise, the sitter can let it run while they are walking the dog or while they are out exploring.
My personal laptop-friendly workspace is my lap, reclining in a comfy couch.
Thank you for your feedback. We were not warned of the washing machine being so loud… we thought something was wrong with it. There is not a comfy couch to work from… and no dining room table or chairs.
How would YOU word this?
Oh!!
Then that would be my main complaint!
A sitter is not expecting accommodation like a tent or a camper. One wants to be comfortable!
(I am now typing this in the dog’s couch actually. It is the most comfortable one, near a power outlet.)
so the level of dirt would not bother you?
You have to remember, you stayed in a home not an office workspace.
Not as much as the lack of a comfy couch.
Sticky handles in the kitchen would bother me, but I can easily wipe those. The lack of a couch is more difficult to remedy.
thank you, yes, and they knew from multiple conversations, that we would be working remotely and I asked about using their office and was told yes… but upon arrival the office was so full of stuff I, literally, could not even see the desk.
Please be honest I personally would be horrified to arrive at this home without a prior sitter warning me…. sitters have different concerns of course but I require cleanliness and would NEVER apply to this sit and would be very grateful for an honest review warning me.
@themobileretiree I think you have done well. I might say something about the clutter, for example “those needing clean lines and minimalist spaces, might feel a little uncomfortable here as surfaces are quite full”.
I might give a little less detail about the kitchen, just saying “the cleanliness of the kitchen could have been a bit better”.
The rest is nice.
same. I had no clue until we got there. First sitter never mention any of this in his review.
thank you for your input. I’m thinking less details about the kitchen might be the way to go… though I’m worried that other sitters might think it just needed a wipe down… the level of grime had be thinking “how do people live like this?”