A vacation home in need of some vacation home cleaning sits on a marsh by the ocean

Nothing can ruin a vacation faster than a dirty rental property. It’s a surefire way to get bad reviews, unhappy guests and a lot of headaches for yourself. Luckily, vacation home cleaning doesn’t have to be hard.

In fact, all you need to master house cleaning for rentals is a simple room-by-room checklist you can use to make vacation home cleaning faster and easier. This checklist is especially helpful while cleaning rental properties during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your guests will appreciate the extra attention to detail when it comes to cleaning and sanitizing and you can rest easy knowing you’re doing your best to keep guests healthy and safe.

Ready to start exploring how to clean a rental property? Keep reading for our best tips based on our years of experience with Hamptons house cleaning.

The Ultimate Vacation Home Cleaning Checklist

Cleaning a home can be a time consuming process, and when you’re changing over a short-term rental property you typically only have a few hours in between guests checking out and new guests checking in. Having a room-by-room short term rental cleaning checklist is a great way to get the job done more efficiently.

Here’s our recommendations for cleaning your vacation rental:

Living Room Cleaning Checklist

The living room is typically one of the most trafficked areas of a house, so it’s especially important to spend time in this room as part of your vacation home cleaning process. Some of the areas to focus on include:

  • Disinfect all remotes and controllers
  • Clean and disinfect light switches, lamps and TV equipment
  • Dust the television screen
  • Dust and clean coffee tables and side tables
  • Vacuum all furniture, particularly if you allow pets in your rental
  • Dust the television screen
  • Organize bookshelves, magazines or movie collections
  • Check pillows, blankets, etc for use and launder if needed
  • Sweep or vacuum under the furniture and under area rugs
  • Disinfect all door knobs

A woman dusts a bookshelf while wearing gloves, part of her vacation home cleaning list

Kitchen Cleaning Checklist

We all know kitchens can get messy! And even if your guests did their best to keep the space clean during their stay, there’s still usually a good amount of cleaning that needs to be done in this space. Some of the areas to focus on include:

  • Put any clean dishes away – don’t forget to check the dishwasher!
  • Double-check clean dishes for dried food, obvious streaks, etc.
  • Clean the inside and outside of the microwave.
  • Check the dishwasher for any messes and clean as needed.
  • Wipe down the oven and stove.
  • Clean cabinet surfaces and disinfect cabinet pulls.
  • Check the trash and recycling for any remaining debris.
  • Clean out crumbs in drawers.
  • Empty refrigerator and freezer of any food left behind and wipe shelves.
  • Check the drain filter in the sink for any old food and empty.
  • Clean and disinfect all counters and other surfaces.
  • Sweep and mop kitchen floors – including under and around the oven.
  • Wipe down any backsplash behind the counter and sink.
  • Disinfect the sink faucets.

Bathroom Cleaning Checklist

This is another area of your home that can easily get pretty dirty over the course of a week-long rental. And it’s especially important to keep this area clean if you want happy guests! Some of the most important things to focus on when vacation home cleaning for a bathroom include:

  • Clean the entire toilet, including the bottom half.
  • Clean behind the toilet and the floors all around it.
  • Clean all faucets, hardware and counters.
  • Clean the mirror using a streak-free cleaner.
  • Take the extra time to scrub soap grime from the tub, including any tile and grout.
  • Clean around the jets of a Jacuzzi tub.
  • Clean any hair out of the drain and off the walls.
  • Wash all towels and bathmats and replace with fresh ones.
  • Check shower curtains for mildew or discoloration and wash or replace.
  • Dust off any decorations.
  • Replace all complimentary toiletry items.
  • Clean and disinfect all light switches, fans, etc.
  • Check all drawers for any left behind personal items and remove.

A woman sprays a counter with cleaning solution while working on vacation home cleaning.

Bedrooms Cleaning List

While bedrooms may not get as messy as kitchens and bathrooms, it’s still very important to ensure you’re providing clean sleeping places to your guests. Some of the vacation home cleaning priorities to add to your bedroom cleaning list include:

  • Replace the dirty linens of slept-in beds with fresh ones.
  • Straighten out and replace the bed skirt when needed.
  • Check between mattress and headboard for lost items or garbage.
  • Check underneath the beds for any fallen items, laundry, etc.
  • Dust the nightstand and check drawers for personal items.
  • Dust light fixtures including small nightlights and disinfect light switches.
  • Disinfect bedposts.
  • Empty out dressers and closets and ensure there are enough clothes hangers.
  • Sweep, mop or vacuum the floors.
  • Dust window blinds or wash curtains.

Outdoor Cleaning List

Most vacation homes boast some beautiful outdoor spaces. If yours does, then you’ll want to add outdoor clean-up to your vacation home cleaning checklist. Here are some of the most important things to focus on:

  • Clean all windows & gutters, removing any leaves and other debris.
  • Pull weeds and remove debris from the garden, plus water the plants.
  • Wipe dust and bird droppings from lawn furniture and pressure wash if needed.
  • Wipe down or launder chair cushions and covers
  • Wipe off railings and check for rough or damaged wood that could cause splinters.
  • Remove leaves and other debris from the pool, hot tub or water features.
  • Check and clean any grills on the property.
  • Sweep out and clean fire pit areas.
  • Sweep patio stones and remove any large sticks, leaves or other debris.
  • Disinfect any outdoor eating areas and tables.
  • Mow and water the lawn.
  • Check the house exterior for dirt and pressure wash as needed.

A man power washes a deck as part of vacation home cleaning

Hiring Out Vacation Home Cleaning Services

Taking on vacation home cleaning yourself can be very overwhelming – particularly if you don’t live nearby or you just want to spend your summer enjoying your family instead of cleaning every weekend.

Luckily, there are lots of options for short term rental cleaning services and vacation home cleaning services. If you’re in the Hamptons, be sure to contact A Votre Service to learn more about our Hamptons house cleaning services, handyman services and property management services.

We love working with homeowners to simplify their vacation home cleaning so they can rest easy knowing their guests are well taken care of. Contact us today to learn more.