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Towel charges


Clair
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ps I still think it's a bad idea to charge for towels. It's all very petty to add charges for this and that. If you have two sets then the guests can't use them all up in a week, and if they bring their own they will probably prefer to use them anyway.
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[quote user="Montcigoux"]I have just arrived home this morning from a week in a gite we are English and travelled by plane plus hire car. The luggage weight restrictions on Rynair mean it is not practical to take any towels at all especially as you may have to travel back with some or all of them still damp. The gite owner helpfully said we could hire towels from a local launderette and added it was open on Satrudays.He failed to tell us that it closed for the weekend at 12 noon and we arrived too late! We bought towels from Carrefour 8 euros for two bath sized towels they were a bit thin and we had to buy two packs as there were three of us so that was 16 euros. They doubled up as pool, and bath towels. I knew we would have to leave them behind which grated a bit. It is completely different if you drive you can fit them into the car presumably why the mainland europe guests expect to bring their own towels and bedding. Next time I fly I will look for a gite with towels and bedding provided and inclusive. Clair my advice is don't go over the top with the towel pack try a smaller pack ie one towel for less cost. My other gripe in most gites is a lack of tea towels but as I never take a gite without a dishwasher that solves that problem! I also left the gite cleaner then when I arrived something I seem to do every time.[/quote]

[I] Instead of hiring it might have been cheaper in the end to pay for an extra suitcase for your own towels. At least you would have been able to keep and re-use the towels after the holiday.

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[quote user="Bluebell"]Clair, have you tried soaking them in weak bleach overnight, putting them through the wash and then hanging them to dry in the sun? Last week I had curry stained napkins that nearly got turned into rags. When I hung them up to dry they still had fearsome stains. But after a sunny afternoon on the line I was surprised there wasn't a mark on them.[/quote]

Thanks for that.

Using bleach is a last resort, as it accelerates the breakdown of the fibres, but that's my next step... (i'll wait the for sun to come out again!)

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[quote user="Bluebell"][quote user="Russethouse"]

Heres an interesting site re cost and stain removal too [:)]

http://www.laundrytoday.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=507:whats-the-average-cost-per-pound-to-wash-hotel-linens&catid=50:towels-linens&Itemid=116

[/quote]

Yes, but remember the Americans tumble dry everything and I don't think that helps longevity.

[/quote]

 I always tumble dry my towels too, even if it's only for 15 minures at the end  to take away the dampness and to fluff them up....

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[quote user="teapot"]Or try using peroxide bleach like Ace etc which will not destroy fibres anywhere near as quickly but does a good job on stains.

[/quote]

I have tried Ace (and I have also tried Vanish) and although it did help removing the worse stains, there are still some marks which are very apparent.

I have not tried soaking the towels, although I used the "extra long cotton wash" program on the W-M last night...

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I'll do the boil wash after the overnight soak in crystal soda.

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions. Much appreciated [:)].

From the shapes of the marks still left on the towels, it looks as if the guests have used them to wipe their walking boots or wellies on. [6]

Could be well trodden cow muck I suppose...?

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  • 2 weeks later...
If I were looking for a gite to rent I would be particularly drawn to one which offered towels included in the price.  If coming from the UK and flying a budget airline, especially Ryanair who have a 15kg limit to luggage with no pooling amongst party members allowed, the luggage restrictions don't really allow room for towels and linen.  Whilst I would expect linen to be included I would usually expect to pay for towels apart from perhaps pool towels.  One villa I had decided to rent then told me there was a £100 (UK based owner) charge for linen hire.  It was a deal breaker!  However other Europeans or Brits who drive, may feel differently.
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phew. £100? Was it a massive party?

 

You would have to have 14 people in my apartment (more than twice its maximum) to get that 'surcharge'.

 

However if it was for a dozen or more that probably that gite wasn't cheap anyway so  £100 may hust have been a bagatel to you -:)

 

Being more serious. We recognise that all coming by air will need bedding and towels. I wouldn't dream of renting without offering them (though the Residence du Canigou in Vernet could not offer bedding when I wanted to stay there, but hey they have now closed down). BUT the car travellers (particularly French and Dutch) like to bring their own.

Therefore we have a small extra charge which is flagged up on the price page (not merely after booking) and in any price correspondence. No hidden extras.

 

 

 

 

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We have a similar system to Owens88.  There is a basic price which is the rent, electricity and taxe de sejour, and we have an inclusive price (about 120 euros more which is the above plus all linen, towels and end of stay clean), and we have a third option of the basic price plus options for sheets, towels and cleaning.  All very clearly explained on the website, in my replies to enquiries and in th t&c's.  I'm (edit - oops)not Pierre et Vacances, I can be flexible!

fI

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Sorry, another thought - those of you who would only accept an all-inclusive deal - have you done a price comparison between those that do offer everything, and those who make an extra charge for linen?  If I only did an inclusive price, and it took into account the cost implications of laundry etc, I would be significantly more expensive than other, similar properties in this area on the listings websites, and I imagine binned at "first sift" by potential clients on price alone.  It would only be on further reading of the small print that they would notice the extra charges and by then too late for me, I've already been binned.

As and owner I have to take account of what my competition is doing, and here, it is the basic price plus extras.

F

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Fi

Not everyone bases the holiday choice on cheapest - sometimes a more expensive gite would get the booking, simply because it had something the hirers wanted and the others didn't.  (Or they had something the hirers didn't want, as in our case, a pool for example).  Unfortunately, it is not always possible to know in advance how hirers make the decisions they do:)

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[quote user="Judith"]Fi

Not everyone bases the holiday choice on cheapest - sometimes a more expensive gite would get the booking, simply because it had something the hirers wanted and the others didn't.  (Or they had something the hirers didn't want, as in our case, a pool for example).  Unfortunately, it is not always possible to know in advance how hirers make the decisions they do:)

[/quote]

I'm not suggesting they do, however recent comments have concerned hidden charges, hence my comment[:)]

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Owens88

No, we weren't a massive party - there were 3 of us.  Two adults (one bed) and one child (one bed)!!!  All the other villas I looked at included linen and pool towels.  I would expect linen to be included to be honest in a villa rental, but I have never rented a gite so unsure of the protocol!  I can understand the reasons for the charges as it must stack up to quite a lot both in terms of time and money to launder them.

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  • 1 year later...
[quote user="Clair"]I am considering a review of our all-inclusive prices for 2010. The bedding will still be included in the weekly tariff but I would provide the towels as an option.

The towel pack which is currently included consists of two mitts, a hand towel, a bath towel and a pool towel, with no change offered during the stay (there is a washing machine in the property).

Any opinions on how much to charge?

Or is this a wrong move?

[/quote]

I asked this just over a year ago, after a rather nasty experience with uncouth paying guests had left a bitter after-taste and I thought an update was due, as we are reaching the end of our summer season.

I re-evaluate the tariff for 2010 and after taking all the comments and PMs  into consideration, I decided to charge 7.50 € per person per pack, as described above.

I also took into consideration the taxe de séjour implemented for the summer 2010 (discussed here)  and increased the prices.

I am happy to report a positive result.

All my guests this year have been French and only one family staying 1 week opted for the towels as extra (total charge 30€) and all the other guests brought their own.

Nobody batted an eyelid at the towels being optional and some guests expressed their surprise at the bedding being supplied.

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I've just read through this post and I have to say ( as a gite user rather than an owner), some of you seem very unlucky in your guests. As expressed by others who use gites I would prefer to book one that supplies towels and sheets and an extra cost would not deter me-its just the convenience of turning up and not having to make beds.

I always appreciate the welcome pack even though I do shop before we reach the gite normally.

I think the thing here is respect on both sides. I always stick to the arranged arrival/departure times and phone if any problems arise. Due to getting stuck in an horrendous traffic jam in Paris this year we phoned ahead to say that we wouldn't arrive until 7pm -at which the gite owner took my shopping list of really needed items for the first 2 days and went and shopped for me because the shops would be shut when we arrived.I always clean,replace(and leave behind) packs of toilet rolls and ambient grocery products( coffee, oil ect.)

Not having towels and bedding provided would make me look at a different property first. ( however this would be outweighrd by properties that didn't accept children. Mine have now left home and I appreciate not having small children around and I am sure that parents would rather holiday somewhere were they are not worried about their childrens noise annoying others)

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