While planning a family trip postponed due to the pandemic, this home was attractive due to high reviews. I contacted the owner with a request regarding our visit and he warmly agreed, contributing to the feasibility of our trip. Communication before travel with the host was clear, concise and helpful. The home was well situated in this beautiful town, close to public transportation and appropriately sized.
The night prior to occupying the home, we received 5 pages of house rules. Included was a request to clean the property prior to departure. Having utilized various VRBO properties in various countries and never having to “clean” a property prior to departure. As landlords ourselves, we treat properties as we would our own. When we attended the home to deposit our suitcases, the owner expressed anxiety over the quantity of suitcases present (one per person!) as well as an empty beer case that we were unable to return prior to vacating our initial vacation home. The owner expressed concerns over how we might treat his property, despite our party consisting of working professionals. Due to the list of rules, we spent the last day of our vacation cleaning as we were concerned of repercussions relating to failure to return the deposit or poor review. I appreciate it was a joy for you to return to a clean property and your gratefulness for the care shown for your house, but excessive rules and homeowner anxiety caused undue stress. Overall, vacation property is recommended.