Bringing home owners and house sitters together
Sitter available
Happy Dutch couple Elizabeth and Maarten
Netherlands
Testimonials
They have 8 testimonials (view below)
Pet experience
Cat(s), Chicken(s), Bird(s), Fish, Rabbit(s), Guinea pig(s) – Experience with own cats
Police check
They have a police check
Availability
From: 17 Nov 2024
Until: 31 Oct 2025
(see their busy times below)
Occupation
Retired
References
They don't have referees/references
About this sitter
We are a happy and active couple in their seventies living in a nice appartment in The Hague in The Netherlands. After our professional lives we want to enjoy the goods things of travelling and staying in other countries. Elizabeth has been a professional nurse and advisor for prevention of tropical diseases for the Dutch government. Maarten has had several management functions and for the last 17 years responsible for logistics of commercial products for a big Japanese company in Europe. We are both into Tai Chi(Maarten is
an instructor). We are non smokers and non alcohol users. Elizabeth likes drawing and Maarten reading and gardening. Maarten is working as volonteer host in the main theater of The Hague. Both we like walking in forrest/mountain/beach and visiting modern art museums. In a visit of 2 months to Nepal winter 2017 we have fallen in love for this country.
Why they want to house sit
We like to live in another country/city for periods of time.
This can be for weeks but also for months.
Exploring the region but also just being around the house is what we like most.
Their experience
Yes, for only housesitting assignments. This because we had always our own dog with us. For several years we have stayed for months in Italy in summertime for houssitting in a property of an italian family. So, we are experienced in staying abroad for longer periods of time.
Unfortunately both our dog and cat died and now we can make other choices by taking care of pets and property for others.
In summer of 2017 we did a 5 months sit in Italy and in winter a 5 months sit on Crete. In august 2018 we are for two weeks housesitting in a countryhouse in Holland. Early October 2018 were a week in Belgium. In November 2018 we had a double sit in Crete. In dec/jan2019 we had sit in Canada. In spring/summer 2019 we had a 4 month sit on The island of Mauritius. Due to “ corona” no housesitting thusfare in 2020. We are open again for new sits depending on your local corona ruling. Just recent we finished a six week assignment on Tenerife. A new start of more future assignments? In meantime we have done more housesits. Sometimes recorded at mindmyhouse and sometimes through other routes. You can read some testimonials in our profile. With several homeowners we were asked for repeating sits. Our last housesit was in France for 6 weeks and another of 7 weeks is planned for October 2024 in Sweden. Please read our testimonials!!
What can they bring to the assignment
We are offering to keep the house/garden tidy and take care of the pets if applicable. We are well experienced with cats. We both like to work in the garden(also for vegetables). We respect your properties and will take care that these are safeguarded during our stay and your absence.
Last updated:
9 Oct 2024
Available to house sit
Belgium, Caribbean, Costa Rica, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Iceland, Indonesia, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Mauritius, Nepal, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand
Availability dates
From: 17 Nov 2024
Until: 31 Oct 2025
They have indicated that they are busy at the following times:
17 Dec 2024 to 15 Jan 2025
Do they charge?
They don't charge for house sitting services
Personal details
Age: 66-75 years old
Family status:
Couple
Languages spoken: English,German,some French
Membership
You need to be logged in to see this info :)
References
You need to be logged in to see this house sitters' references.
Sitemap
MindMyHouse.com – https://www.mindmyhouse.com/owners/sitter_listing/26213
Testimonials
Very competent House sitters
I want to give my very best testemony to Maarten and Lizbeth. They cared for my house in the very best way from 24th of September to 1 of November 2024. My sheep were very healthy and happy when I got back. They also close down my garden before the winter, organisere my workshop and much more. When I arrived home the house was clean and tids. They also kept me informed about the situation during my leave. They were lovely and friendly, had a wide range of knowledge and experience and people I want to recommend them to nearly any house keeping they apply for in the future! Sincerely Lars Öivind Knutsen
Lars Öivind, Sweden, 5 Nov 2024
Amazing housesitter who we can't recommend highly enough.
Thank you Maarten and Elizabeth. You are a couple who I would highly recommend to anyone considering having sitters. They had great communication skills before, during and after the sit. The house and our huge garden looked absolutely amazing on our return. Many surprises greeted us around the garden. Our garden and pool have never looked better and we believe they really enjoyed the tranquil countryside around us. Our independent cat, who rarely tolerates anyone, would sit on them every evening enjoying all the cuddles. Lynn their friend, who stayed for a pre arranged visit, also contributed greatly to the upkeep of our home. They were all very caring, friendly, conscientious, honest and exceptionally tidy. We will definitely be letting them know future sitting dates.
Helen, France, 13 Jul 2024
Great experience
Maarteen and Liesbeth are great, trusted and pleasant house sitters. They took care of our cat Orland and our property, watering plants and doing small home jobs. The communication was very easy and I can only recommend them. Nice and kind people who I hope to host again one day. Don’t hesitate to choose them! All the best from Elena, Tommaso and Eva
elena, Italy, 26 Sep 2023
Maarten & Elizabeth are special! We felt so lucky to have them look after our cat and garden. Their positive and relaxed attitude is a true blessing!
From the moment Maarten & Elizabeth arrived at our house, we knew that we'd made the right choice. There was an instant connection. We always prepare a briefing document for our house sitters. Maarten & Elizabeth were keen to go through it in detail, which immediately proved to us that they were very serious about doing a good "job". But not only did the cat look happy and healthy when we got back, and the garden look even better than it did when we left, Maarten & Elizabeth had taken it upon themselves (after seeking our approval) to do some amazing repair and maintenance work as well! Not sure there is much else to add, but say that we would love to have them back!
Jane, Spain, 19 Sep 2021
Another successful house sit!
We feel very fortunate to have had Maarten and Elizabeth house sit for us. Thank you both for looking after our home and cats so well and also keeping in touch with us during our trip. We would highly recommend Maarten and Elizabeth to anyone wanting to leave their home and pets in safe, capable hands.
Sue, Mauritius, 8 Sep 2019
Wonderful house sitter connection! Positive and productive couple with a "Joie de Vivre" attitude.
We arrived home to a clean home with the wood stove ready to go, champagne laid out, and lovely decorative touches around the house. Maarten and Elizabeth went out of their way to help out, repair, and improve our home while we were away for over a month. They were extremely patient, flexible, and accommodating as our house was 3/4 the way through major renovations and needed tidying up to say the least. Many repairs, fixes, and small touches were done in the home and around the property that showed just how much they respected and cared for our property. Our cats were so calm, quiet, and relaxed when we arrived home and our numerous chickens were all well and accounted for. Highly recommend them for most any sitting arrangement as they truly adjusted their lifestyle and learned a way of living to fit the environment completely. Thank you Maarten and Elizabeth!
Kim , Canada, 25 Jan 2019
Good to know your home is in good care.
Maarten and Elizabeth stayed in our house for a fortnight. They took good care of the house, the garden and our cats. When we came back in the house we found a very clean, tidy house and a well kept garden. They did also some chores, like mowing the gras on the dyke and pruning the hedge around the vegetable garden. We can surely recommend them as a house and pets-sitter.
Han en Erik , Netherlands, 28 Aug 2018
Testimonial Summer 2017
Maarten and Elisabeth took care of our house in Le Marche, a province in central Italy, for four months in 2017. Our property is situated fairly remote from the village it belongs to, accessible only over a foot bridge and a steep slope of about 400 m. The house is quite big, so is the surrounding garden of about 1 acre. This diligent and industrious Dutch couple did a wonderful job ??. They not only kept the house in pristine order, they also fixed what needed repairing or replacing. All necessary garden work (lawn mowing, cutting back plants, clearing ditches etc.) was mastered in a very satisfying manner. Any unexpected challenges, like broken water pipes or dying lawn mowers, were met with head-on action and enthusiasm. Due to their outlook on life as Qi Gong aficionados Maarten and Elisabeth convinced us with their friendly, quiet and co-operative attitude. They are a very circumspect couple, even kindly getting involved with the local neighbourhood. And not to forget: Elisabeth adding beauty and serenity to our rooms by leaving a number of very charming drawings and water colour paintings. Full marks for these perfect house sitters. We would not hesitate in the least to welcome them again – as repeat sitters or guests, too.
Katharina, Germany, 24 Sep 2017