What Your Overnight Guests Really Want in the Guest Room!

Sharing is caring!

Wether it is the holidays or you are simply hosting guests in your home any time of the year, you need to know what they will need.

You want your guests to feel at home and comfortable. But you may not know what exactly to put in a guest room or how to prepare for them.

So I put together a complete list of what to put in a guest room. This way you are prepared for those overnight guests coming to your home, and they will enjoy their stay with you much more! 

By the way, I have experience both being a guest and also hosting guests for the past 20 years! In this post I’m putting together all of the things I have learned over the years.

Fun fact, in college I played in the symphonic band, and one of the highlights was traveling around the country on band tour. Each night we stayed in different people’s homes for a span of two weeks.

This gave me lots of practice as a guest. I quickly learned what a guest needs in someone else’s home.

Many of the hosts that I stayed with were very well prepared for their guests and helped us feel at home!

Here’s what I learned.

Preparing for your overnight guests:

Most of your work will be done before your guest ever arrives. It can feel like a lot to do and you may not know where to start.

So one of the best things you can do is break everything down into manageable steps. Then finish one step at a time until you finally complete each step. 

I find it helpful to spread out the tasks over a couple of days prior to the guest arriving. For example, if your guest arrives on Friday, you’ll want to assign these tasks to Wednesday and Thursday when you have the time to accomplish each of them. 

Example Schedule for Hosting:

WEDNESDAY: 2 days before guests

• Clear out clutter in the guest room
• Dust

THURSDAY: 1 day before guests

• Vacuum/sweep and mop the floors
• Clean guest bathroom

FRIDAY: Guests arrive! 

• Change bed sheets that morning

What to Put in a Guest Room

You can’t meet all of your guests needs and you won’t be able to make them feel completely at home (which is okay because it’s not their home!)

However, there are some general guest room items that your guests REALLY want you to have!

The most important part of any guest room is the bed! So be sure to have clean, comfortable sheets, plenty of blankets, and lots of pillows.

This way they will hopefully get a good night’s sleep.

The rest of the items on my list are not essential, but they will help your guest feel at home and not have to ask you for a lot of things.

In the Guest Bedroom:

• Extra blankets

• plenty of pillows

• Wastebasket

• Alarm clock

• Box of tissues

• Lamp on side table

• Wi-fi password

• Set of towels and washcloth

• Empty hangers in closet and space to hang clothes

• Small fan

• cleared dresser top or table to store their things

• luggage rack

In the Guest Bathroom:

• stocked up on toilet paper

• fresh hand towel

• extra shampoo

• soap

• toothpaste

• toothbrush

• cleared space for guests’ belongings

In the Kitchen:

• coffee, cream, sugar or hot tea

• water bottles or cold canned drinks

• snacks (granola bars, fruit, crackers)

• cleared space in refrigerator for food or medication brought by guests

When to Stock Up on Supplies

Before hosting, you can be on the look out for sales on toilet paper and stock up. If you need an alarm clock or lamp for your guest bedroom, head to your local thrift store to save yourself some money.

Purchasing these items early will help you find a good deal. Plus, you’ll have less to prepare at the last minute before your guests arrive.

Tips for Small Spaces

What if you have a small space for a guest bedroom? That’s okay! You can make a room appear bigger by eliminating the clutter or extra furniture in the space.

Sometimes guest rooms become clutter magnets. Do your best to get all of that clutter out of the room.

If you keep it simple, your guests will be able to enjoy the limited space better.

Also, you may have to do musical beds when your guests arrive. If you don’t have a designated guest bedroom, here are some options:

• hide-a-bed couch in the living room

• futon in an office

• foldable mattress in the basement

• air mattress in an office

• your kids sleep on sleeping bags in the living room and allow guests to sleep in their beds

• set up a room divider

Okay, now I want to hear from you! What do you like to add to a guest bedroom when you host family and friends? Leave your thoughts in the comment section below! 

Overwhelmed at home? Get ahead on the housework with the free BALANCED MOM CHECKLIST!

Sharing is caring!