Preparing Your House For An Extended Vacation: How-To Guide
Learn the 9 Things To Do Before Leaving for a Vacation
By Taylor Fuller | Published: August 17, 2023 | Updated: February 23, 2026
Preparing your house for an extended vacation cruise can seem like a huge to-do for a relaxing getaway. However, with a little forethought and a comprehensive checklist, you can leave for your vacation feeling confident and worry-free — no matter if you're leaving your house for six months of adventure or just a one-week reset! Take the lead on your travels with the best house checklist before leaving on a vacation for an extended period of time.
Key Takeaways
- ● Creating and fulfilling a comprehensive house checklist before your vacation ensures you leave your home ready for an extended vacation without last-minute stress.
- ● Getting ready for your vacation with proper security measures like locking doors and windows, using timers and arranging house sitters or pet sitters helps protect your home while you’re away.
- ● Routine maintenance tasks, such as checking smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, adjusting thermostats and servicing vehicles, prevent problems that could have arisen during your absence, had you not prepared in advance of your extended vacation.
- ● Emptying and cleaning your fridge, pausing mail and deliveries, and unplugging appliances can reduce potential issues and ensure energy efficiency.
- ● Preparing your house for an extended vacation helps prevent unexpected issues from arising, giving you peace of mind to fully enjoy your getaway.
- ● Plan your Royal Caribbean Cruise knowing what to do to get ready for a vacation.
Household Preparations Before an Extended Vacation
1. Start With a House Checklist Before Your Vacation
The first step is to create a house checklist before vacation. It's great to make this as soon as you know your plans and the length of your trip. If you know your departure date, you can begin getting things together. Depending on the time of year, there may be different needs to factor in. If it's winter, you may have to prevent freezing pipes; if it's summer, you may have to cover your pool. So, sit down and write out a list to cover all your bases before your holiday.
2. Empty Your Fridge and Freezer To Get Ready for a Vacation
Right before you depart, make sure you empty your fridge and freezer. Throw out or use any perishables, and check for things that will expire while you're away. This is also a great time to give your fridge a deep clean. Take all the drawers and shelves out and give them a good wash. If you empty the freezer completely, make sure to defrost it so it's not working overtime while you're away.
3. Set Your Thermostat To a Reasonable Temperature Before an Extended Vacation
So many smart thermostats now have a great feature called "away mode." It ensures that your home is heated or cooled appropriately while you're away. In the winter, it will help you avoid frozen pipes, and in the summer, it can help to keep things at a moderate temperature without blasting the air conditioner.
Managing Mail, Subscriptions and Utilities
4. Put a Pause on Mail and Subscriptions Before an Extended Vacation
If you're only leaving your house for a week-long cruise, you can simply ask a neighbor to grab your mail for you. However, leaving your house for a week is different than leaving your house empty for three months, so you're definitely going to want to contact the post office and pause your mail while you're away. You should also pause your newspaper deliveries so they don't pile up in front of your door — a sign to burglars that nobody is home. While you're at it, make sure to pause any subscriptions you may have that you know you won't be using while you're away — this includes physical subscriptions such as magazines and meal kits, but cancelling Netflix or other streaming services for a few months is also a great way to save some money that you can use toward your vacation instead.
5. Unplug Appliances When Preparing for an Extended Vacation
When you're preparing your house for an extended vacation, unplug anything non-essential. Anything that's plugged in will always be using electricity, even if it's not in use, which can affect your electric bill in the long run. Go around your home and unplug electronics such as TVs, computers, etc. If you want to unplug your fridge while you're gone, make sure it's empty first and leave the doors open so it doesn't smell when you get home!
Safety Measures While You’re Away
6. Organize a Pet or Plant Sitter To Get Ready for Your Vacation
If you have pets, a live-in house sitter may be a great choice to keep your animals comfortable and give you peace of mind while you're away. If you don't have pets, a house sitter is still beneficial if you'd prefer to have someone come and check on your house periodically. They can collect your mail, adjust the thermostat and even water your plants. For pet owners, create a checklist before leaving on vacation so that your sitter knows when your pets need to be fed and walked. For plant owners, group your plants together according to when they'll need to be watered to make it easier on your plant sitter. It's also a great idea to leave everything they'll need in one place so they don't have to rummage through your belongings.
7. Before an Extended Vacation, Ensure Your Vehicle’s Protected
Before you go away for a while, you should definitely make sure your car is in the best shape possible. Make sure it has gas and that the oil was recently changed, and give it a good cleaning. Then, if you have a garage, lock it away. If you're going on an extended cruise vacation, try to organize having someone come and turn it on and drive it around the block at least once a month so that it's ready for when you return.
8. Get Ready for Your Vacation By Securing Your Home and Tidying Up
One of the best things you can do to prepare your house for vacation is to double-check that all doors and windows are locked. Consider setting up WiFi-enabled cameras and setting your lights on random timers. While you're going around your house checking to make sure everything is secure, tidy up. Take out the trash, empty the dishwasher, put laundry away, vacuum and wipe down surfaces. It is so much better to come back home from traveling to a clean house.
9. Preparing Your House for an Extended Vacation Must Include Testing Smoke and CO Detectors
No matter how long you're gone, you should check the batteries of your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and test to ensure that your alarm system is working. This is really important to check regularly but especially before leaving for a long vacation, so you can go on your adventure worry-free!
Find your home away from home when you explore cruises with Royal Caribbean.
Related Articles
How to Plan a Cruise for the First Time
READ MORE
What is Included on a Cruise?
READ MORE
Where Should I Go on Vacation? 6 Things to Consider on a Royal Caribbean Cruise
READ MORE
