By the Unity Stays directors, Marcus Chong & Gadir Al-Khatib · Last updated 12 August 2026
In short: Expect self check-in by code rather than a reception, with utilities, broadband, linen, towels, a full kitchen, a washing machine and starter consumables included in the price. There is no daily housekeeping: apartments are cleaned thoroughly between stays, with a weekly service clean on stays of two weeks or more, and stays over a week are usually cheaper booked direct.
Arrival
Most serviced apartments use self check-in — a key safe or a smart lock with a code sent before arrival. Done properly this is better than a reception desk, because it works at any hour and a delayed flight is not a problem.
Done badly it is the single worst part of the category: a code that arrives late, a key safe that is stiff, an address that turns out to be the wrong entrance, and no one answering the phone. The difference is entirely in the operator's process, not in the technology.
What good looks like: instructions with photographs sent at least a day ahead, a code that works from your stated arrival time until check-out, a named contact who answers, and a clearly marked entrance.
What is normally included
The standard on a properly run property, which is worth knowing so you can spot what is missing.
- All utilities and broadband in the price, with no meters or extras
- Bed linen and towels, provided and changed between stays
- A full kitchen — hob, oven, fridge, and the equipment to actually cook rather than reheat
- A washing machine, in the property
- Starter consumables — enough tea, coffee, and bathroom supplies to get you through the first day or two
- A clean between every stay, and on longer bookings a service clean during it
Cleaning during a stay
This is the most common misunderstanding in the category, and it is worth being direct about.
Serviced apartments are not hotels and there is not usually daily housekeeping. That is part of why the nightly rate compares as it does. The normal arrangement is a full clean between stays, with a mid-stay service clean on longer bookings.
On our properties, stays of two weeks or longer include a professional weekly service clean. Anything shorter is cleaned thoroughly before you arrive and after you leave. If daily housekeeping genuinely matters to you, a hotel is the better answer and we would say so.
Questions worth asking before booking
The variance between properties in this category is far wider than between hotels of a similar grade, so a handful of questions does a lot of work.
What is the actual broadband speed, if you need to work. How does check-in work if you arrive at midnight. What is the parking arrangement, specifically, rather than what the listing implies. Is there a lift, if the property is not on the ground floor. How often is it cleaned on a stay of your length. Who answers if something breaks on a Sunday.
And for anything over a week, ask for a direct rate. Long stays are almost always priced below the nightly rate and platform listings rarely show it.
How ours are set up
Ours are set up for work stays rather than weekends. Fast unlimited broadband, somewhere real to work, full kitchens, laundry in the property, self check-in by code so arrival time does not matter, and one contact who answers rather than a support queue.
Where we manage a property for an owner rather than holding it ourselves, the standard is the same — same onboarding, same servicing, same guest support. You can see availability and book directly through our booking pages, or tell us the town and dates and we will tell you what fits.