How to Prepare for Overnight Guests

Creating an environment that is welcoming and anticipating the needs of your out-of-town visitors will ensure they feel comfortable and relaxed while in your home. Use this guide to prepare for overnight guests and to make the visit stress-free for you!

The holidays are coming! Does that mean you will have visitors staying with you from out of town? Are you ready? Don’t worry if you aren’t! I’m here for you!

Listen. I’m not going to lie. I wasn’t sure if writing a post about preparing for overnight guests seemed trivial or “extra”. But you know what?! I’m ignoring the feeling! I think going the extra mile to create an environment for my out-of-town guests shows I care for them and am truly happy to have them stay with me. Not to mention, a little bit of forward thinking and effort on my part also ensures they won’t have to run out for commonly used (but forgotten) items and helps to do away with a lot of the “Do you have…” questions.

Trust me on this; I’m a bit of an expert. We live 4.5 hours away from our family, so that means we have overnight guests A LOT! Since getting to us requires quite a bit of time and travel (and because we love them), we want our family and friends to feel welcomed and relaxed during their stay. Therefore, I try to plan ahead and have the guest room ready and well stocked with items they may need.

So, if you find yourself hosting guests soon, use the suggestions below to make your guest room (and home!) inviting for your overnight visitors.

Designate a Guest Space: I am very thankful we have a guest bedroom and bathroom in our basement, so there is generally no question as to where we will put our out-of-town guests. But occasionally we have more guests than that room accommodates for. (We had 10 houseguests once!)

If you don’t have a guest bedroom or ever find yourself needing more beds, blow up mattresses are a great option. I will set up blow up mattresses in our toy room or office for guests or even double or triple up my kids in a room to free up a bedroom for visitors. Whatever kind of configuration you decide upon, it is very important to set your guests up in a space that gives them some privacy.

This is our favorite blow up mattress. It is comfortable and has stood up to the inevitable jumping that takes place by our kids. It also uses a built-in electric pump which makes inflating and deflating a cinch.

Stock Basic Toiletries: I have extra toothbrushes, toothpaste, Q-tips, and razors always stocked in the guest bathroom. I also make sure to have body wash, shampoo and conditioner in there as well. And, most importantly, I make sure to have plenty of toilet paper under the bathroom sink!

Bottles of Water: Our guest bedroom and bathroom are in our basement. Not too far from the bedroom, is a kitchenette which I always have stocked with water, but just placing some bottles in the room will also do the trick.

Spare Charger: Since I am guilty of constantly forgetting my charger when I travel, I make sure to have an extra in our spare bedroom. Your guests will be very grateful. (Just be sure to label it as they easily get mixed up.)

A Space for Hanging Clothes: Our guest bedroom has a closet for guests to hang their clothes, so all I need to do is make sure there are free hangers for our visitors to use. If I didn’t have any closet space, I would probably consider buying one of these.

Plenty of Towels: Supplying too few of towels can definitely be frustrating for guests. These are an inexpensive option if you need more.

Wrinkle Releaser or Iron & Ironing Board: Having packed clothes means having wrinkles. I like to supply guests with my favorite wrinkle releaser and also let them know there is an extra iron and ironing board in the guest closet.

Fresh Linens On The Bed: No one wants to sleep on a pillow case with someone else’s drool! Please make sure the sheets are clean.

Groceries: When we have people coming in to town, I always make sure to plan out what we will be eating so there is no last minute scrambling. We will usually eat out or order in one meal and the rest I make. When it comes to breakfast, having muffins, bagels or breakfast bars on hand is always a good idea. You will also want to make sure you have plenty of snacks too!

Coffee/Tea: Since people are very particular about their morning drink, you want to make sure to inquire about their preferences ahead of time. Can you imagine telling a coffee drinker you don’t have any coffee? Yikes!

Happy Entertaining

-Brittany

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