Holiday Cleaning

Cleaning before going on holiday means your holiday lasts that little bit longer. Did you walk through the door last year to piles of washing, food rotting in the fridge and smelly bins and have to start cleaning? Not exactly the nicest way to end a relaxing holiday, is it?

A half day of cleaning before you leave for your week or two away will mean you walk back into a clean, tidy house, so all you need to do is unpack, stick the laundry in, sit down with a glass of wine and flick through your happy memories.

Preparing your house for your holiday is also a good safety measure. Ask a friend to come in to pick up post and water your plants. Leave your contact details with your friend – and make sure your friend also has the house alarm details. Put timers on some of your lights, so it seems someone is home to deter unwelcome visitors. Turn off your TVs and computers, DVDs and coffee machines to save electricity.

OK, with the practicalities of safety sorted, you can now focus on sorting out your home.

Give your home a good clean-up. Empty any perishables from your cupboards and fridge – give them to your friend! Leaving fruit out will attract flies as it rots, and make your house smell.

Take the bin out before you leave – you could even give your bin a bit of a clean and leave it to dry while you’re away. And while you do that, get everyone else to pick up all their stuff and put it away neatly in their rooms.

In bedrooms, change the bedding and stick the towels through the laundry, so that everything is clean when you get back … such a treat: it feels like you’re getting into another, comfier hotel bed.

Do a regular house clean – top to bottom, and think about how you would like it to be when you return. If you have a chance, cook a meal and leave it in the freezer, so when you get back you don’t have to go rummaging around for something to eat. Even have a bottle of unopened milk in the fridge with a best before date after you get back. And before you leave, put any final dirty dishes through the dishwasher.

Writing a shopping list will give your first few days back an easier feel: no need to root around trying to remember what you have in – and while you have your list head on, make a note of any appointments or tasks you need to do in the first few days back, enabling you to slip into gear again.

Returning to a clean house is a real treat after your holiday, so stick some summer tunes on and get cleaning as a warm-up for two weeks of relaxed bliss.

Or you can call in Cleaner London to do a professional home cleaning service for you!