The Global Slowmad

Hello, Global Slowmads! We are back with one last post in our short-term rental series before we move on to another topic. Specifically, after our discovery in Lisbon that soap and shampoo don’t come standard in every AirBNB – even otherwise nice ones – we decided to come up with a property checklist to run through upon arrival. Here it is:

1. Be sure to ask the host upon arrival about any essential items or information that you need for your stay:
   • Keys/access controls (hint: two keys are better than one!)
   • Wifi network ID and password
   • Instructions for HVAC and major appliances (e.g., washing machine, dishwasher, oven, stove – “universal” symbols often make no sense)
   • Parking restrictions (if applicable)
   • Trash and recycle rules
   • Quiet hours
   • Is the tap water safe to drink?
   • Departure protocol
2. Bring up any obvious, major problems with the host right away – ideally during the initial meet-and-greet (assuming it’s not a self-check-in situation). Always follow up in writing via the rental platform’s messaging function to preserve your legal rights and protections.¹ For example:
   • Property does not match the listing description/photos
   • Broken items
   • General uncleanliness
   • Leaks
   • Stains
   • Odors
   • Excessive noise (beyond what reasonably should be expected for the location — another reminder to read reviews before booking!)
3. Take pictures when you arrive and before you leave. You want proof of how everything looked when you got there, and it helps with putting things back where you found them before leaving. Focus on the following:
   • Wide-angle shot of each room to capture basic arrangement of furniture and decor
   • Visible stains, damage, broken items
4. Try to raise any other concerns within the first 24-48 hours of your stay so the host and/or AirBNB have enough time to address them. These include:
   • Bed bugs
   • Bed quality
   • Sofa/furniture quality
   • Missing bath towels
5. From there, you may want to take an inventory of whatever supplies you will need for your stay so you can work on your Day 2 shopping list. We look for:
   • Cookware (skillet, saucepan, pot, baking dish, cutting board, colander)
   • Eating utensils (forks, spoons, knives, plates, bowls, cups)
   • Cooking utensils (chef’s knife, spatula, stirring spoon, measuring cup, corkscrew)
   • Cooking supplies (salt, pepper, sugar, olive oil, vinegar)
   • Dish soap
   • Paper towels
   • Toilet paper
   • Shampoo
   • Soap
   • Laundry detergent

So that’s our new process. We will update this post over time as we live in more places, but we also have to be realistic.

Rarely will a property be perfectly equipped for our stay. Our Lisbon apartment was missing bath soap and shampoo, and we ended up investing in a new cutting board and corkscrew for our apartment in Donostia-San Sebastian. We’ll surely identify something we need in Ljubljana too (although it seems pretty well equipped so far aside from a giant collection of coffee pods with no corresponding machine to prepare them), but that just means we get to do a little more shopping with locals.

Our sole complaint with our otherwise amazing Donostia apartment was that it was located on a large plaza with acoustics that somehow amplified the sound from multiple bars, partying pedestrians, a chanting panhandler and the world’s most diligent garbage collection crew until the wee hours of the morning. That being said, it was entirely our own fault for booking a place in the heart of the tourist quarter. Some might find being so close to the action desirable, but it was a lesson learned for us about living in the city center.

Here are a few more pictures from our living room balcony in Donostia (along with a few of our noisy neighbors — the trash collectors really did come through multiple times every day, as did the street sweepers).

And for those of you who somehow made it this far, might we ask why? Or perhaps how? In any event, please enjoy our first footnote!

1. AirBNB offers “AirCover” protection for guests. We’ve never had to use it but have heard that it can help get you out of a particularly bad rental situation if you follow their rules to the letter. Here’s a link to the AirBNB website:
   
   ↩︎