'THAT PLACE' - Waimarino- National Park Village

If all guests were like these guests oh how easy a short term rental would be. Lovely guests, house was left how they found it. We would happily recommend them to other property owners. 👍😊👍

Thanks for your guestbook comments. To answer about the rags - we choose not to leave rags, as we cannot control when and where people use them. We do ask people to use toilet paper to clean the toilet and sink in the bathroom as it can be flushed and that way hopefully no bugs can be passed around. I go in after ever guest and give sinks, toilets, shower, fridge and all handles a wipe down with antibacterial cloths just for good measure. Regards Kelly

Fact - It is clearly stated on the booking site - Taken from website - Lounge Sofa bed/futon (2) - Pullout Sofas x 2 on the first page of information) One sofa needs to be moved backwards about 2 feet. Unfortunley due to past experiences we have had to be clear about the bond situation. This is our home and there have been people that feel they can walk away with doing any cleaning, so we now arrange a check out time and do a quick walk thought the house, if it is not clean then we ask for that to be sorted. .Regarding toilet paper, we make it very clear in the instructions what is included in the price. We get praise from so many people on how clear and detailed our information regarding the house is, italics help people notice things that may be different from other properties they may have used. We have a minimum of 2 nights stay, these guests choose to leave after only staying 1 day/night of their 2 day stay (without any inspection and got all their bond back) and then expected us to refund them or give them a free night to make up for them leaving early. They were not happy when we explained we were not going to do that. Maybe they need to look at accommodation that works better for their expectations.

Yes, any house that is a rental in a cold part of New Zealand will be cold when you arrive in winter. The heat pumps and heat transfer systems that we have in both sides of the property work perfectly but like any heating system it takes time for the warmth to travel the house. Guests are given in advance a information sheet regarding what is expected of them, We then ask if they have any questions regarding the information provided and a check out time and we are present at that time. If cleaning is not done we ask guests to fix what they have not done. We never had any issues in the first 5 years of having this property but have found certain groups of guests would walk away having not done any or very little cleaning, we have had windows and doors left open, the list is endless, so we changed our check out process. These guests set the check out time and I was at the house from the day before the check out day but 30 minutes before the set check out time they left without informing me. We are the only ones that do the checking out so we know when cleaning and resetting is not done. We have little or no issues when guests follow the checking out process, which they agree to. These guests did not follow that process. It is also stated very clearly on both book a bach and the information sheet if you don't stay or don't clean you will be charged from $25.00 to $200.00 depending on what needs doing. We purchased in 2020 industrial cleaning products which have a very distinctive smell, so when I opened the house I could tell straight away that the products had not been used. Bench tops had sugar and food all over them. Bathroom had no cleaning smells at all, toothpaste over the sink area. Mop was dry therefore had not been used. Hot water cylinder left on. All bedding was all over the place, yet that said they never used the beds. Kitchen items were left on the bench and they had not vacuumed (I can hear when the vacuum is being used). We do not expect a deep clean, we expect you clean up and reset our home after you have used it. Once guests have left, we take dettol wipes and spend time going over surfaces, door handles, remotes, power points and anything else we feel could use it. Straighten up bedding, if needed put any kitchen items back in the right place, so the property photos on book a bach always look the same as what you will find when you arrive. They state 'they did everything' that is not correct, part of 'the everything' is being there for the check out process. People don't sneak off if they have done everything, they knock on the door and say they are ready early for an early check out.

Just want to say thanks again Kim for how clean and tidy house you guys left the house, much appreciated.

So that these guests were clear on what we were 'a little unhappy about' (from our email - don't think that is rude) I sent them an email including photos so they could see what they had not done. We give detailed information in all our emails so there is no misinterpretation of what is expected by guests to make our property ready for us to do the 5 min walk though to check the property is ready for the next guests. I often and regularly fix 1 or 2 things that have not be done without any charges to guests but when there is over 10 things that I need to do including cleaning bathrooms, kitchens and microwaves, we will charge a small cleaning fee.

Other owners need to know that these guests do not follow the rules set out under the terms and conditions. They were clearly seen by other Homeaway owners (next door to our house) but denied what they were doing. We will not state what is was they were doing but we will happily email other property owners and property managers. Their actions were serious and illegal.

These guests were great. Communication was easy and they left our home as they found it. Would happily recommend this group of friends to other owners.

Having been given the terms and conditions regarding cleaning and how to leave our home (2 pages of instructions) well before they started their stay and me checking via emails that they understand those terms and conditions, our home was not left how they found it when they arrived. These instructions are also pinned to the lounge wall at our home. Guests are asked to set a check out time between 9am and 11am so that I can go thought our home to check that they have completed the cleaning etc. The time that this guest choose for their group was 8am. At 8.30am as they tried to leave without cleaning, they were reminded by me (the owner Kelly) to go and vacuum, clean, reset the house and as I started my checks always with the bathroom, I had to get them to come and clean the toilet because the bowl had body waste over it. I had 3 emails asking for dishwash liquid which I told them were it was. They told me on Sunday they still could not find it. They stated there was not cleaning products, again clearly stated were they are in the information instructions, under the kitchen sink and in the bathroom. Because of the comments regarding not being able to find the cleaning products I could not trust that they had done the cleaning properly. I had to clean everything in the whole house because our next guests deserve to come into a clean and tidy house. Yes we have keep the bond as they did not stay until I had completed the check out list, as stated in the terms and conditions, so if something is not done then they may fix it so that the bond can be released. If would have been really hard for Roy to be unfriendly as he was not there and did not deal with this group at anytime from booking to check out. I will happily send any potential guest or owners all emails regarding this booking.