6 Simple Tips To Help Overnight Guests Feel At Home
Good morning, beautiful friends! One of our family goals this year is to show more hospitality, so we are working to invite others over more often. Whether we have friends over for a meal, youth from church over for an evening or an overnight {or extended stay} guest, we really love having others in our home.
My Mom exemplified how to make guests feel at home all through my growing up years. Being a pastor’s family, we had a lot of house guests. Those days bring back such great memories. 🙂 Here are 6 Simple Tips To Help Overnight Guests Feel At Home…
1. Relax And Be Yourself
Seriously, yes. Just relax and enjoy having guests. Tell your family to relax as well. The crumbs on the floor or the dust you see under the end table across the room will probably go unnoticed. Breathe!
2. Determine Food Preferences
Ask if guests have food preferences or food allergies ahead of time because it makes menu planning and grocery shopping easier and you don’t have to worry about serving guests a food they are allergic too. Also, find out if they like tea or coffee. If they will need breakfast, Easy Homemade Granola or Breakfast Casserole are always a hit.
3. Give Guests Their Own Space
Whether you clear out a bedroom for a guest and put the kids on the sofa bed, or if you have a designated “guest room,” try to give guests their space to relax and spread out their things.
4. Make An Overnight Guest Basket
It’s so fun to put together a basket of extra toiletries, towels, washcloths, a bottle of water, granola bars and maybe a piece or two of chocolate. 🙂 This thoughtful gesture will help guests relax and enjoy their stay.
5. Provide Reading Material
Place a few interesting magazines and/or books on the bedroom nightstand that your guest may find interesting. It’s always fun reading something “new” before drifting off to sleep.
6. Let Them Help!
Plan a few small, simple tasks that you can ask your guest to help with. Without fail, they will ask you what they can do to help, so be ahead of the game. Putting a little bit of thought into this inevitable question will help you to be prepared and it will enable your guest to feel helpful and at home.
I hope these simple tips have inspired you to help your next overnight guests feel at home, so you can relax as well!
Do you have house guests frequently? Do you have a tip to add to the list?
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Love this post and I wish I had read it a week ago. Our family is in town this week for our son’s high school graduation. I’ve have almost killed myself (and my family) trying to make everything perfect!!!! I also believe that the kiddos should give up a room for guest (especially grandparents). It’s a sign of respect and a good lesson in hospitality. Love reading your blog!!!
#6 is so true–if you have everything done before people come, then everyone sits around and twiddles their thumbs and stares at each other and it’s awkward (unless you’re my dad who could make conversation with a wall!). But nearly everyone wants to be helpful, so if you have something they can do (even setting the table or asking about drinks), it makes them feel at ease, and talking becomes much easier. Love the idea of putting out reading material for overnight guests, too–will definitely remember that one 🙂
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Another way to help guests feel at home:
If there are more folks in your home than bathrooms, make sure that you shower and get ready before your guests. That way, no matter what the day’s plans are, they can get ready at their own pace and not feel like they’re getting in the way.
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Great tips! I love 1 and 2!
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Great tips, Myra! I’m lucky to have a guest room and nice extra bathroom availible for guests. I have 2 plastic boxes (marked his and hers) with gender specific extras inside. I purchased disposable razors, and travel size lotion, shampoo, etc., plus toothbrushes and toothpaste. I store these in the bathroom closet and point it out when guests settle in.
So true! I am a pastor’s wife and our home is open to guests often. I really like #6 – this is something I have just figured out in the last few years. I have learned more about them as I dry the dishes they have volunteered to wash – more than I think I would if we just sat and chatted.
Love you blog, Myra!
Hugs,
Heather
Love these ideas! Wish we had a guest room, but all of our family and friends are close by so even if we did no one would need to sleep over 🙁 Oh well, I can still make guests feel at home when they visit during the day 🙂
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This is so true, “The crumbs on the floor or the dust you see under the end table across the room will probably go unnoticed.” Or at least I really hope it is. 🙂 I love hosting but feel like I will be more comfortable with it in a couple of years when the kids are both able to a) help more with chores and b) both keep themselves entertained for more than 15 minutes at a time so that I can both make dinner and clean it up! 😉
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These are great tips, Myra! One that I’d add to the list is to have plenty of linens available for guests. I keep our guest bath stocked with fluffy towels. If you don’t have a guest room, a basket is the perfect place to keep rolled-up towels. I think sometimes people feel pressured to have towels that perfectly match the decor in their bathroom, but I’ve noticed that nice hotels always have big, fluffy, WHITE towels. These are easy to obtain, can be very affordable, and are easy to keep clean. 🙂
I’m sure guests in your home are really happy to be there!
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I grew up having guests all the time and we now have guests a lot. (Although not nearly as much as my missionary parents!) One thing my mom always did was leave a welcome note and some chocolate or other token on their beds. Even if it was a team of college students, each person got their own personal note. Such a small thing, but it really makes people feel welcome!
Great tips! Love the basket idea especially.
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Great tips ahead. everytime I had a guest in the house I always say “Please feel at home” but they are ashame. So I think this tips of yours are perfect and useful. Thanks a lot for sharing!
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Your post brings back a ton of precious memories!!! 🙂 We always included/invited our guests to join our family routines: things like–holding hands around the table when we ask the blessing; having our family devotional time; and tending the animals at the barn. 🙂 Keep a guest book–and remember to have every guest sign it before he leaves. When our kids were little, they loved being the one to present the guestbook and pen for the signing…and now, we can track the dates of special visits. Finally, every now and then, check out the mattress on the guest bed…. 🙂
#6 is so important. When I was a young wife (eons ago), I thought hospitality meant waiting on my guests hand and foot. Needless to say, I was exhausted and rarely enjoyed having company. My mother-in-law finally took me aside and said she much preferred helping out, rather than feeling like we hadn’t spent any time together because I was so busy. I changed my approach after that, and started looking forward to her visits as a result.
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Love the ideas and love having people over for the night. Thanks for sharing. Wanted to let you know I linked it up for my Weekend Wanderings post.
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