Bought A Holiday Home? How To Turn It Into Your Dream Space
Investing in a holiday home is a dream for many travellers. When you’ve got a home away from home, you can hop on a plane whenever you like and spend time in a fabulous destination! It’s something worthy to save up for, especially if there’s a holidaying spot you favour over any other.
Once you buy one, however, you’ve probably got a lot of work to do! If the property itself hasn’t been specifically designed for a traveller like you, it’s likely to come with clutter and a bit of history. Overall, depending on the age of the property, you may have a bit of a fixer upper on your hands.
As long as you’ve got the time, and you’re not too worried about the budget, this doesn’t have to be a problem. After all, now’s the chance to turn the place into a paradise, and the dream space you’ve always wanted it to be. And that’s a project we can help with!
Make Sure You’re Energy Efficient
Energy efficiency is easy to apply in every country around the world. There’s a stronger focus on the way we consume nowadays than ever before! Once you invest in a holiday home and you want it to be the best version of itself possible, start with the flow of energy.
What provider are you working with? Are they a green generation company? Then think about how many appliances you’d like to fit to ensure you’re comfortable here. You’re going to need an oven and plenty of wall outlets to plug things into, but don’t forget about the washing machine, dryer, and dishwasher.
These are all modern conveniences that make our homes less stressful; if the one thing you want to do is relax, keep an eye on the energy rating of the items you buy!
Is There Air Conditioning?
Of course, this won’t matter if you’ve bought a holiday home somewhere that’s usually cold, such as Iceland or Norway. In fact you’re going to be more worried about the insulation, so check on that whilst you can!
But if you’ve bought property in a hot climate, this should be one of your first considerations. Air conditioning makes a big difference between heat that’s nice to spend time in, and heat that’s suffocating and makes you want to spend all day in the sea.
If it’s humid and the sun’s out, you can pop the air conditioning on for 20 minutes whilst you get some homemade orange juice ready. However, if you don’t have an AC unit to make good use of, you’re probably never going to extract yourself from the freezer!
Declutter Like Crazy
If the home came with furniture, whether wrapped up or covered in cobwebs, now’s the time to decide what you want to keep and what needs to go! Of course, if you notice a few vintage pieces amongst the rubble, you can turn to a nearby self storage centre to keep it on ice for a little while as you clear out the rest.
Once you’re done, you can either get the item reupholstered or revarnished, or sell it on to someone who’s going to truly appreciate it. Either way, you’ve got something a little luxurious for your holiday home! But in the meantime, try to be as ruthless as you can.
Get rid of as much as possible as quickly as possible; the sooner you’ve decluttered (including tearing off old wallpaper and removing old light fixtures), the sooner you can start to decorate in the colours and tones you’d love to relax in.
Install a Reliable Wifi Signal
The majority of holiday homes are either found on the coast or outside of the big city. That can make them wifi dead zones; if you have a 4G or 5G enabled phone, you’re unlikely to be able to connect when you’re here.
Don’t put up with this! Yes, when you’re on holiday you’re likely to do a bit of a digital detox. However, if you can never connect, you’re not going to be able to stick on Netflix or Disney+, which certainly won’t keep the kids happy!
Get a proper wifi router setup, and use a booster to maintain the strength of the signal the whole way across your property. If you can still get online when you’re at the end of the garden, you’ve set it up right!
Renovate for Proper Self Catering
How big is the kitchen in your holiday home? If it’s only a couple of cabinets and a stove, you’re going to want to renovate the space into something much bigger and much more functional.
You’re probably going to be hosting people here, and having a few parties – that’s what holidays are all about. As such, you’re going to need a self catering space that can keep up with you.
If you don’t have any room to sit down and eat, focus on this first. A kitchen table, if there’s no distinct dining room, is best for your purposes here. You should also think about getting a kitchen bar island fitted, so you can squeeze in some more storage and somewhere to sit down with your plate as well.
Create a Communal Outdoor Space
If there’s a lot of garden space around your holiday home, make good use of it! Turn it into a communal space where anything can get done. Popping up an outdoor kitchen, complete with a fitted BBQ and pizza oven, is part of the holiday home dream for many holiday makers. If you love alfresco dining, take this idea to the max here!
A communal outdoor space also affords your holiday home a lot more privacy. No longer will you have an open lawn and fencing; you can use panels, trees, and creeping plants to create ‘rooms’ within the landscape. Close it off with a 6ft+ trellis, use a liberal amount of greenery, and set up a private reading nook. Make sure the chairs you choose are super comfy, as you’re going to be spending a good few hours in here at a time.
Allow Natural Light into the Bedrooms
Bedrooms tend to be at the back of the house, with the master bedroom being the only one that’s south or east facing (a.k.a., the sides that get the most sun exposure). Because of this, you’ll want to focus on opening up the windows in any other bedrooms and letting in as much light as possible.
Refitting windows with slightly bigger versions is a good call, but you can also swap out the kind of curtains you use. The thinner and more sheer these items are, the better they’ll be to outfit a back facing bedroom. While a room like this is nice to sleep in during summer, every other season is going to be unbearably cold! If you’re travelling outside of peak times, this won’t make anyone happy.
A holiday home doesn’t turn into a dream space naturally. It’s something you need to work at, like everything else in life. Thankfully, securing the property is the hardest part. Once the deed is signed and in your hands, the ensuing renovation and decoration is going to be super easy! After all, you just need to think about what you want to do with the house, when you’re going to be using it, and what will prevent it from becoming a drain on your income. The tips above are primed to help with all three!
