Anonymous wrote:The obligatory Onion article:

https://theonion.com/mom-spends-beach-vacation-assuming-all-household-duties-1819575406/

Same, OP, same. I now refuse to stay anywhere but full-service resorts, even though it means beach vacations are shorter or less frequent for budget reasons.

I think of this every time someone suggests renting a house on the beach. No thanks!

I am right there with you, op! There is a time and place for Airbnb - like for group trips. We also stayed in one near Joshua Tree just because we would be spending a lot of time there. It was after a couple of long travel days and we only hiked early and late in the day. So lots of time resting and relaxing at the house. Still found myself running to the store daily and doing chores.

My friend travels alone to visit her daughter at college and would prefer an airbnb that is someone’s basement over a hotel. I don’t get it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Again. It’s not the food, it’s the chores.

Unless you’re scrubbing toilets and vacuuming it’s not that bad. It’s about an hour the day you check out. Strip the beds, make sure dishwasher is up, take out the trash, turn thermostat up or down. At least that’s our experience vacationing with 10 people (2 families with kids plus grandparents) and has been manageable and worth it to all stay together. I only pick places that claim to have a cleaner turn the place over between clients, however!

You don’t get it. I don’t want to do this crap on vacation.

So don’t. Easy enough.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah I'm over this, back to hotels all the way.

Same.

It was novel at first. So much space! We will save money on food! We can drink out back around the fire pit while the kids splash in the pool!

But then the demands of the hosts got to be ridiculous, and the list of chores too ridiculous, and hotels started looking more relaxing.

I agree. I don’t want to strip the beds. I don’t want to wash the towels. I don’t want to empty the trash cans. The last place we stayed had a departure checklist that included the most mundane crap like turning down the thermostat, raising the fridge temp, and switching the water heater to vacation! It’s like, come do it when we leave!

Unless this is an inexpensive rental, the owners shouldn't be expecting much. Maybe taking out the trash since that could stink up the house if left for very long. Most of the places on VRBO have large cleaning fees, so they can do it (& it's still rather dirty most of the time because they don't do everything in those few turnover hours). If I see a long list of chores to do before leaving, I'll choose a different place. If the list isn't disclosed in advance, I'll mention it in my review so other renters get a heads-up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Again. It’s not the food, it’s the chores.

Unless you’re scrubbing toilets and vacuuming it’s not that bad. It’s about an hour the day you check out. Strip the beds, make sure dishwasher is up, take out the trash, turn thermostat up or down. At least that’s our experience vacationing with 10 people (2 families with kids plus grandparents) and has been manageable and worth it to all stay together. I only pick places that claim to have a cleaner turn the place over between clients, however!

You don’t get it. I don’t want to do this crap on vacation.

DP. The only rental I've been where I've felt the checkout chores were OTT was on Cape Cod, and it was not a rental I chose- we were with my parents and sibling's family. I try to stick to places where the only obligations are to take out the trash/recycling, start the dishwasher, etc. If that's still too much for you, that's fine! Just stick to hotels or cruises.

I think what this thread illustrates is that not everyone has the same idea of "relaxing." Heck, my own definition of relaxing can vary depending on whether it's just DH and I or with our kids. When my still young-ish kids are involved, it's more relaxing for me to have more space and to not have to go out for every single meal during a week-long vacation.

Anonymous wrote:I’ve only ever stayed in villas on resorts, and these villas are maintained by the resort. What’s the advantage of a privately owned villa on a resort?

Nothing…it’s just a different business model for a resort where they sell off the villas and condos to private owners though they still manage the properties and take reservations.

Helps them finance the project because they are getting a bunch of cash for each condo/villa they sell.

They also split the nightly room rates with the owner, so it’s appealing to the owner to know that the resort is taking care of the property for you. The owner can also block times for their own use.

I’ve only ever stayed in villas on resorts, and these villas are maintained by the resort. What’s the advantage of a privately owned villa on a resort?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Curious why nobody has mentioned renting villas in resorts.

We also have rented privately owned condos/houses within resorts that have daily cleaning. No different really than a hotel room.

You can keep some of your own snacks and drinks or just walk out your door and get food and drinks at the resort.

No chore lists or what not.

I don’t like resorts.

So, are you pro or anti hotel?

Only point is it doesn’t have to be either or…you can get the benefits of a hotel and the space and flexibility of a condo/house.