,Airbnb’s latest policy change bans hosts from including chores in their mandatory ‘House Rules’. Apparently, the dreaded “checkout chore list”—demanding that guests strip beds, vacuum rugs, and empty bins—has become a major source of frustration for travellers, especially if they have already been charged a hefty cleaning fee over and above the nightly rate.
At Whitby Log Cabins, we have never charged a cleaning fee, nor have we ever approved of the concept. We have also never asked a guest to wash up. In 11 years of hosting, I struggle to recall any guests who have left more than a couple of mugs in the sink.
We’ve watched this online debate unfold with a bit of confusion, and frankly, we feel that neither Airbnb nor the disgruntled hosts are presenting themselves in a good light. Here is our take on why the holiday let industry needs to ditch the chore list, drop the hidden fees, and return to true hospitality.
Trust Guests and They Will Respect Your Space
In recent years, Airbnb has shifted its focus toward selling authentic, local immersion, in unique character properties—such as our three woodland cabins on the Yorkshire Coast. Guests are paying for a break from reality and time out from their daily grind; they are paying to relax and thoroughly enjoy the cabin and its surroundings.
We find that a warm welcome and an ordered, clutter-free, environment is generally kept ordered simply because guests feel comfortable and respected. Airbnb now suggests a checkout checklist in the guest message chain on the morning of departure, but I can see how that might feel stressful and possibly even prove counterproductive. The Airbnb review system, where neither party can see the other’s comments before they are published, already adds enough pressure. We often get messages from guests asking where to put the rubbish, when in reality, we fully expect to take it out ourselves.
The Flawed Logic of the ‘Cleaning Fee’
We never understood why Airbnb introduced a separate cleaning fee in the first place. Historically, it was an inflammatory setup because the price shown on initial search results was not the actual price you paid at checkout. When Airbnb adjusted their platform to include the cleaning fee in the upfront price display, I think many hosts felt forced to drop the separate fee to stay competitive. Unfortunately, this may have driven some to put more demands on guests in order to save on professional turnaround costs.
Don’t get me wrong—as hosts, we are more than aware of how costs have escalated and how competitive the market has become. We also face increasing demands for shorter stays, meaning we have to work much harder on quick turnarounds. But at the end of the day, we are a business, and we provide a service.
The Need for Total Price Transparency
Our take is that the price of a self-catering stay should be transparent from the very first click. Factoring the cost of turnovers and laundry into your baseline nightly rate isn’t just simpler; it’s more honest. It eliminates nasty surprises at checkout and builds immediate trust with the guest.
From Spare Bedrooms to Professional Businesses
In the early days of Airbnb, guests were often staying in someone’s spare bedroom, or their personal home while the host was away. A bit of communal tidying made sense back then. Today, many holiday lets are semi- or fully professional businesses operating at the same scale—and certainly charging the same premium rates—as established commercial boutique hotels. If you are charging professional business rates, you need to provide professional business standards.
Many Airbnbs are also second homes, and they are often over-furnished as such. I stayed in an Airbnb with my family recently, and there were more than 20 mugs and three full dinner services for the five of us. With that much clutter, it would have been incredibly easy to get behind with the washing up! Of course, if the owner is not around and no personal relationship is formed, the temptation for guests to walk away from chores might be greater (though we resisted it!).
True Hospitality
At Whitby Log Cabins, we only host couples, so washing up is never a massive deal, whoever does it. However, larger holiday homes hosting big groups are charging large rates to match. If turnaround is an issue, perhaps it is time to invest in a dishwasher or sort out the cluttered cupboards? Chaos invites chaos.
Airbnb’s move to ban mandatory checkout chores should be a wake-up call for hosts to examine their setups and ensure they are only offering what they can realistically service. It will inject a much-needed degree of professionalism back into the market and mark a welcome return to the core principles of hospitality.
Even better? Book direct. When you bypass the giant platforms, what you see is exactly what you get, and the price will always be lower because you aren’t paying a hefty commission to a third party.
Explore our cabins at www.whitbylogcabins.co.uk.