A landlady’s life

Planning is (only) half the vacation

In our series “A land­lady’s life” we turn the topic of vacation hap­piness around. Land­lords and land­ladies from our network write what moves them — between exci­tement and sheer despair.

in March 2022

Vacation is the most beau­tiful time of the year, they say. For my family, it’s always a bit of an adventure, pro­bably also because we’re bad vacation planners. For example, we once drove south on a camping vacation with a packed car and kids in the backseat. On the highway, we still didn’t know whether we should dis­cover Croatia, which was unknown to us until then, or whether we should rather drive to familiar Italy. Shortly before Bavaria we had to make a decision. It became Croatia and a fan­ta­sti­cally beau­tiful vacation com­pletely without pre-planning.

From the land­lady’s point of view, we are the sheer horror. How am I sup­posed to suc­cessfully run a business and coor­dinate employees if guests only decide on their vacation desti­nation on the highway? I live from the fact that people decide long in advance not only for a place, but also quite con­cretely for an accom­mo­dation. They dili­gently sift through the wide range of options, weigh up the pros and cons, make inquiries — and book. With me. Even after many years, it’s still a little dance of joy. I’m par­ti­cu­larly fasci­nated by guests who already know in January where they’re going next fall. Because this is so strange to me, I have already written can­cel­la­tions, even though I didn’t even have a calendar for that year. If, on the other hand, someone makes an inquiry for two weeks from now during the high season and then asks spe­ci­fi­cally for a certain apartment, I get a pitying look and write a polite rejection, shaking my head at so much naivety. But when the question promptly follows, “Are you com­pletely full for next year, too?” it’s me shaking my head at myself.

So vacation planning is important. For the guest, who can be sure where his vacation is going, and for me, so that I can sleep peacefully thanks to a well-filled occu­pancy calendar. But some­times it gets a bit much with the planning. For example, when guests ask me what the weather will be like in the summer. I grew up in the city that is home to the German Weather Service, but unfort­u­nately my clair­voyant abilities only extend to the next day — and not reliably. Just ask my family! People from sou­thern Germany, on the other hand, as I can prove from my non-repre­sen­tative expe­rience, often don’t want to leave any­thing to chance. Mails with at least ten dashes, the answer to which would make even the most expe­ri­enced employee in the health resort admi­nis­tration sweat, are not uncommon. As a rental novice, I dutifully replied, did my own research, asked ques­tions. I am a service pro­vider, after all. Some­times I didn’t even get a response to my loving mini-guides, let alone a booking. Mean­while, I politely refer all general ques­tions to the swarm intel­li­gence of the Internet.

The right amount of planning seems to be a very indi­vidual thing, I’ve learned. And yet: vaca­tions are sup­posed to be a bit of a sur­prise, to break through the usual daily routine — and that’s where a little lack of planning helps. We call it spon­ta­neity in our family, it sounds more adven­turous. And after every vacation we bring back many incre­dible stories. You are welcome to try it out. But please, do not forget to book in advance with me in time.

Published: March 2022