Are you preparing for house guests? Whether you’re getting ready to host overnight guests or family and friends staying over the holidays, here are ten simple tips for how to prepare for visitors.
Have you ever stayed with friends or family and was counting the days, hours and minutes until you could leave?
No-one ever wants house guests to have a bad experience staying in their home. Here are ten tips to make sure your guests are happy.
Preparing For House Guests
1. Clean the House
Would you like to stay in a dirty hotel? Well, consider that your guests would like to stay in a clean home. Use the house cleaning checklists as guides to deep clean your house concentrating on the guest bedroom, guest bathroom and kitchen.
Make sure to clean areas of your home that are often forgotten e.g. door handles and light switches. I once visited a house where it was blatantly obvious that the owner NEVER cleaned the light switches. Seriously, they were black when they were supposed to be white! And, I’m not even exaggerating. Thankfully, I was just visiting for a little while and not staying over.
Make sure the house smells nice as well. You may not be able to detect odors in your home but people who are visiting sure can.
- Clean the mattress in the guest bedroom
- Sprinkle baking soda on carpets and then vacuum to remove stinky smells
- Spray Febreze on soft surfaces such as chairs and curtains
- Crack open the windows to let fresh air in
- Change pet litter and clean animal cages or bedding
- While you’re at it, bathe the pets too
2. Guest Bathroom Essentials
Make sure the guest bathroom is fully stocked with the following:
- Toilet paper – It’s so awkward to rummage through someone’s cupboards or to have to go ask for toilet paper. Place extra rolls in a visible location near the toilet. A basket or container on the back of the toilet or on the floor can be decorative and functional at the same time. You can also stack a couple rolls on the top of the toilet tank.
- Towels – Place clean fluffy bath, face and hand towels for your guests to use in the bathroom and make sure they know where extras are.
- Toiletries – It’s always a good idea to have travel-sized toiletries for guests in case they forgot something. Things like toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner and lotion are good options. Have extra toothbrushes, brushes and combs on hand as well.
- Feminine hygiene products – Ladies we’ve all been there—stranded without products to use. Have a variety of feminine hygiene products in the guest bathroom, just in case.
If you don’t have a separate guest bathroom, remove your family’s dirty towels and replace with clean fresh ones. Do the laundry so the basket is empty.
Use these bathroom organization ideas to tidy up your personal items e.g. toothbrushes, hair tools etc. Don’t leave them scattered all over the bathroom counter. Follow this daily bathroom cleaning checklist so this room stays clean and tidy.
3. Guest Room Essentials
Clean sheets on the guest room bed are a must. As well as, extra pillows and blankets.
A sitting area is always a nice touch if there’s space for it. This can be as simple as a cozy chair by the window with a few books or magazines laid out in a basket nearby. Ensure the room has adequate lighting. Use brighter light bulbs or add a lamp here and there.
Have stationery readily available for your guests in case they need it e.g. a notepad, some pens and perhaps Post It notes.
4. Adequate Storage
If your guest bedroom doubles as a storage room, clear out the clutter so there’s adequate storage in the closet and drawers.
Have a small guest bedroom with limited space? Use under-the-bed storage for your stored items so they are out-of-the-way and are not an unsightly tripping hazard. You may find some of these storage solutions for small spaces helpful too.
5. Wi-Fi Passwords
When preparing for house guests, take the time to print or write the Wi-Fi password for your home onto card or paper. Laminating the Wi-Fi card makes it more presentable and the lamination protects the card.
Alternatively, place the printed password into a pretty frame. Both of these options save you from having to repeatedly print new ones. Whatever you choose to do, place the password in your guest’s room so they can freely connect to the internet, if they wish.
6. Groceries
Stock up the kitchen with food for your guests especially if they will be staying for an extended period. Before you shop, find out their favorite snacks, if they have any allergies, eating preferences e.g. vegan diet or have any religious influences that you may want to consider.
If your house guests do not eat pork, you may want to avoid cooking it while they are there. Of course, they may not ask you to do this and it’s totally your choice. Just something to think about.
7. Extra Key
You don’t want your visitors to feel like prisoners while they stay with you. It’s good host etiquette to give them an extra key so they can come and go freely. This also saves you the hassle of having to be awake or at home to let them in the house.
8. Keep Pets Away
You may love your pets but not everyone else will. If you can, restrict your pets to certain areas of your home while your guests are present.
Plus, pets shed hair and, let’s be honest, they can stink, so it will also help to keep your house clean and smelling fresh.
9. Communicate
Let your kids know that you will be having guests over and what kind of behavior you expect from them. Make sure they tidy their toys after use and help keep the bathroom clean especially if sharing with your house guests. They may be accustomed to doing those things anyway but a little extra encouragement never hurts.
Also, let your guests know of any major house rules e.g. no smoking indoors and what your family’s daily routine is like. If you know your house is chaos in the mornings, warn visitors beforehand so they’re prepared and not overwhelmed. If you serve meals at specific times, inform them of this as well so they can decide if they want to participate or not, depending on their schedule.
Don’t expect your guests to know things you have not discussed with them. If you want them to pitch in and clean, let them know ahead of time. I personally don’t let my guests lift a finger but I do know some people who don’t think that way and that’s fine. It’s your house, your rules. But, don’t be upset that your house guests haven’t grabbed the vacuum the whole week they’ve been there if they didn’t know that’s what you expected.
10. Respect Guests’ Space
When entertaining house guests, give them some space! If the guest room is also your home office, temporarily relocate your office supplies to another location. Don’t expect your visitors to be up and out of their rooms by 8:30 a.m. because that’s when you start working.
If you have kids, especially young ones, keep them out of your guests’ way as much as you can too (at least until a decent hour).
Preparing for house guests makes your visitors’ stay more enjoyable for them and for you. Follow these ten tips to ensure your guests are as comfortable as possible and they’ll be glad they came.
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