Comfy-Cozy Home: Tips for Welcoming Your Guests

Wanna know the secret to making a guest feel extra-special? …Chocolates on the pillow- Classic.

But there are plenty of other ways, sugary and non-, to warmly welcome your guests in your Hoppify home. Your guest positive experience, is your long term benefit.

MUST-HAVES

These are pretty much essentials to a good guest environment:

• Sheets, towels, bath mat: You don’t expect your guests to come equipped with a sleeping bag, do you?? Needless to say, the linens you lay out for guests need not be brand new, but should not be shabby-looking or threadbare. Towels should not smell like old towels (uch, that smell).
• Blankets & pillows: Some people find it difficult to fall asleep in an unfamiliar place– and if it’s freezing cold with not enough blankets, or suffocatingly hot with no ventillation, you’re going to have some cranky guests on your hands. Have the right balance of blankets for the place and season you’re in, with some options. Similarly, have a couple different types of pillow to allow for personal firmness or softness preferences.
• Instructions, WiFi passwords, & codes: Very important– all these should be readily aparant at the outset of the stay! You will want your guests to see any rules of the house or specific instructions on paper right away, so they can’t complain later that they didn’t know how to get let themselves in from the backyard and that’s why they broke a window, or that they didn’t know they weren’t allowed to play the heirloom bamboo guitar. Consider a cute frame to display a WiFi password or access code, and a small binder or portfolio listing the “house rules.
• Keys: Have a few sets of keys made with eye-catching keychains (so they can’t lose them amongst their own so easily!). If it’s a group of people staying, they might appreciate to have more than one set of keys to split amongst themselves.
• Toilet paper, tissues, tampons, soap: Stock up on plenty of T.P.– how embarrassing for everyone involved if you ran out?? Tissues in the bedroom is an easy addition. Having a small army of feminine supplies would mean the world to a damsel in distress. And soap– that’s just, duh.
• Plenty of Outlets: Especially if your place is on the old side and you have few existing outlets, extension cords/surge protectors would be a good idea. (Too many guests plugging in at the same time can cause fire, so please practice safe electricity!) Today, when pretty much everyone keeps a cellphone by their bed, a charging spot at a nightstand would gain your guests’ eternal love.
• Soundproofing: When you share your home with many newcomers, you’re going to want adequate barriers between your space and theirs to not see and hear each other 24/7. For everyone’s sake, consider carpets, wall hangings, and curtains. Remember moving into a new place, nothing but hardwood surfaces and bare walls, and being able to hear your voice echo? Soft materials absorb sound, so without cluttering or taking away a room’s aesthetic, plushing the room a bit is something to keep in mind when considering good neighborly relations.

NICE-TO-HAVES:

These are for hosting all-stars to consider for completing the atmosphere of ultimate hospitality:

• Guidebook, maps, local points of interest: These are all fantastic ideas, and potential talking points, upon an out-of-town guest’s arrival. Any wisdom that could guide them on their way to exploring your city a little easier will come across as pretty darn thoughtful. Why not decorate the wall with posters of the metro system or bike routes, while you’re at it?
• Toiletries: Any spare toiletries a traveler might forget, like body wash, toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, razors, and lotions, would be a nice touch to your guest bathroom. Maybe fan out in a little basket atop the toilet?
• Alarm clock: In the unlikely event a traveler doesn’t have a phone with them, it would mean a lot for them to be able to know what time it is and wake up at a reasonable hour, as their jet lag allows.
• Mini-fridge, water bottles, mints: If you want to step up your hosting game to five-star hotel level, we’re talking mini-fridge, we’re talking free water bottles, we’re talking mints and yes, maybe even chocolates on the pillow. Party at your place!
• Good scents: Just a general note to say, make sure your place smells nice, whatever that means to you! This could be as simple as remembering to take trash out in a timely fashion and refreshing your scented wall plug-in, or as fancy-schmancy as potpourri, spray and candles. A guest will always remember the B&B that stank– and not fondly.
• Fresh flowers: If you have the means, why not? Flowers are one way to perk up a room instantly and bring a smile to weary guests’ faces.
• Breakfast items, coffee: Again, these are totally not necessary, but you might consider giving your guests the full bed and breakfast experience by adding the breakfast, or at least access to the Keurig. Even just keeping a few boxes of cereal and a fruit bowl out and saying “these are for you!” can be very charming.

And Lastly, Feel It Out

Spend a night in your guest room, and see how the shoe fits before you ask someone else to wear it! How’s the temperature? Could the old mattress use a foam topper for added comfort? Is it clean enough that you would let your own mother spend the night there? And, who knows, if your reviews are good enough, you might want to charge Mom next time she does want to stay!