The problem
Every changeover means texting the cleaner the date, checking they've seen it and following up when a booking moves. At 14 bookings a month and 10 minutes each, that is 140 minutes a month, and one missed changeover means a guest arriving to an uncleaned cottage.
What the AI does
Turno is a cleaning scheduling app for short-term lets. Its pricing page lists auto scheduling synced with your booking calendars, photo-guided checklists and cleaning records, inventory and maintenance management, and automatic payments to cleaners. You invite your own cleaner as a teammate, and Turno creates a cleaning job for each checkout. Your cleaner works through the checklist and adds photos, which you check before guests arrive. Turno also has a marketplace of cleaners if you need cover.
A worked example
An owner of 3 holiday cottages in Pembrokeshire uses one local cleaner and arranges about 14 changeovers a month by text. They add the cottages and their cleaner to Turno, paid annually, and pay the cleaner directly as before.
Before
14 changeovers a month arranged by text at 10 minutes each: 140 minutes
After
About 30 minutes a month checking the schedule and the cleaner's photos
What it's worth
About $49£37€44A$71C$70 a month saved, against an $24£18€21A$35C$34 to $31£23€27A$44C$43 cost. That is 110 minutes, about 1.8 hours a month, valued at $27£20€24A$38C$38 an hour. With your own cleaner on 2 or more properties, Turno is $10 (about $11£8€10A$15C$15) per property a month, or $96 (about $96£72€86A$138C$135) per property a year: about $24£18€21A$35C$34 a month for 3 cottages billed annually, or $31£23€27A$44C$43 monthly.
How to set it up
- Start Turno's 14-day trial and add each cottage with its booking calendars.
- Invite your cleaner as a teammate and agree that they'll accept jobs and complete checklists in the app.
- Write a photo checklist for each cottage covering the things guests notice: beds, bathrooms, kitchen, welcome pack.
- Each week, check the cleaning schedule against your bookings, especially after any change or cancellation.
- Before each arrival, look at the cleaner's photos and follow up on anything missing.
What goes wrong
- Turno is free for one property, but with your own cleaner on 2 or more properties each property is charged.
- Platform fees apply to payments made through Turno, and the pricing page doesn't give the amount. Paying your cleaner directly avoids them.
- A schedule is only as good as the calendar sync. Check that late changes and cancellations have come through.
- Your cleaner needs a smartphone and the habit of using the app; agree this before you switch.