We live in different worlds, mtn.

We've rented many places around the US. Mostly through VRBO. Many times we've gotten gift baskets with snacks and water. A bottle of wine from a few places(mostly repeat rentals). The best was from the Nantucket house we rented for years. When we told them we had adopted 2 children, they left Nantucket T-shirts and hats for the kids and a really expensive bottle of wine for us!

Umm, my brother got a sleeping bag. On loan.

I have the bath stocked with necessaries like shampoo and conditioner, new toothbrushes, mouthwash, toothpaste, scrubbies, lotion, etc. I also have eye masks and the airline sleep socks in the end tables, and white terry robes in the closet as well as spare pillows and blankets.

Came in handy having the necessaries as our neighbor had a surprise overnight at our house. Her house was next to a house that caught fire and was full of illegal fireworks. The fire started at 6pm and the last rocket went off at 7am the next morning. The fire dept wouldn't let her even go into her house, so she stayed with us.

But for other food type items? They have free rein of the kitchen and can help themselves to whatever they want.

Hi Annie,

That's a great list. I recall once KSWL posted something like that, the well-outfitted guest room. I was thinking especially of amenities, for guests in your home w/o you.

Has anyone seen this show? Really, they all acted as tho a "gift pack" , maybe like what we call shwag, was de rigeur!

Czarina, that is sooo sweet.

BPath, haha.

Roses, You should see the show!

I guess I don't stay anywhere expensive enough to get gifts and special treats, just the usual hotel toiletries. VRBOs - usually not even that. People who stay with us at our cabin don't get any gifts either. Usually they bring me gifts, usually consumable, which I like because I don't want or need any more stuff.

We've received gift baskets at self catering accommodations in England that usually contain some basic staples like tea, coffee, milk, jam, fresh baked bread. Mostly the things you need for a cup of something warm upon arrival and a light breakfast in the morning. Occasionally a bottle of wine. Once we were given a gorgeous Victoria sponge cake, wrapped prettily and waiting for us on the table in a little Cotswold cottage. On the one or two occasions where nothing was left for our enjoyment, it felt a bit like we'd been cheated. You really do get used to such niceties quite quickly!

I always paid more attention to the goodies hotels left for the children. Two hotels left stuffed animals for the boys, pretty close to back to back, and from then on my sons were disappointed when nothing as cute appeared in following hotels.

One of my favorite hotels leaves canning jars of their home made granola sometimes. Aside from that it's all the usual thank you for booking- of which a bouquet of flowers is always my favorite.

My favorite was at a lovely agratissimo in Tuscany many years ago, where we found a nice bottle of wine (bottled on the premises), some cheese and bread for us in the kitchenette. It was much appreciated after a day of flying. On the other hand, we stayed in Airbnb''s in Poland, Austria, Prague and London in the summer of '17 and, aside from toiletries, we did not have any treats waiting for us. I do not expect them, but they definitely leave a favorable impression!

In September, we stayed in Airbnb's for part of a CA trip. When we checked into our airbnb in San Diego we had a lovely basket of waters, crackers, cookies, granola bars. Again, much appreciated because we arrived after midnight and did not have the lay of the land yet.

I saw a couple of episodes of the Instant Hotel when it first came out. It is based on the concept of competing for the best host score. In the world of airbnb's it would amount to getting a super host rating. We like staying in Airbnb's when we travel. IMO, they are still not as evolved in the US as they are in other countries.

We have frequent guests at our Cape house, mostly while we are there, but sometimes when we are not. In either case, I provide a guest basket in the bedroom with candy, cookies and specialty soaps (from local artisans.) If the family includes children, I leave new beach sand toys (we already have a collection of beach toys, chairs, towels etc.) I leave a chilled bottle of white or rose wine in the refrigerator and a bag of Cape Cod Potato Chips on the counter.

One time we arrived at our Cape house on a Friday night to join our out of town guests. They had already polished off the wine we left and were happily on their second bottle out on the deck.

When my very best friend comes to stay, I leave a gift for her in the bedroom. It is usually jewelry bought locally, just a pair of earrings or a bracelet.

I like having guests and am looking forward to the spring/summer season!

I do leave lots of nice enough "stuff" for my guests. Good toiletries, toothpaste/new brush, razor, a basket of snacks/bars, cold water and soda, plenty of extra towels, pillows, blankets, throws, robes and slippers, some decent reading material, access to cable, Hulu, Netflix and Amazon Prime in their room. I have been thinking about adding a small tray of sparkling wine and fancy cupcakes.

We've stayed at some pricey ski resort houses and I don't remember there being anything other than the usual basic kitchen supplies. I always try to rent homes with laundry and many times they don't even have detergent. I don't really expect anything other than a very clean place, working HVAC, decent shower fixtures and water pressure!

We did stay at a resort in Carmel that was dog friendly and we brought our small dog. They provided a dog basket with water bowl, blanket, a toy and a few other things.

Some great ideas here. I like the homemade granola idea. I'd rather leave fruit than candy but in summer that can be iffy if it might spoil. And Beagles, how sweet is that bowl! That's really terrific of that host, and especially sensitive.

While I would say that the hotel rating/price does correlate to what kind of goodies they give you (heck i think everyone gives soap at least!), and in particular resorts may be more likely to give little gifts(hats, pareos, tote bags), for Air BnB it seems to be more of a "thing." We have been to a few very modest Air BnBs and some ultra-luxe ones, and there was always a little gift/s.

In re Instant hotel, I read that the gift bags had a $100 limit, and there was one in each bedroom. Most houses had 3-4 bedrooms but I don't think any of them were more than , tops, $600/night. So whatever was going on in the shows, it makes no sense on an ongoing basis.

Other than the usual toiletry items, I don't provide anything extra. I do have a pretty room with a most comfortable bed made up with lightly starched and ironed sheets, plush white towels, and they receive, IMHO, excellent meals and experiences. It actually makes me uncomfortable when hosts go overboard with this kind of thing which is probably why we always try to graciously decline invitations to stay with people.

Although we've received most of the extras mentioned above, I honestly just don't care. I abhor waste and with very few exceptions these items are wasted on us. One exception is a bottle of wine and a fruit/cheese platter which is always appreciated. Oh, and chocolate which I'll always be eternally grateful for. But dark chocolate only, please!

Oh, I just remembered another. While in New Zealand last year, I remarked to the proprietress how much we liked our sheets. In spite of our pleas not to, she gifted us with a new one. That was very special and we love it!

Beagles, all the extras your host supplied were exceptional. That would mean the world to me!

We travel a lot to France and rent apartments/houses from ex-pat Brits there. On my 60th birthday, the couple who owned the apartment we rented cooked a dinner for us to reheat (a guinea fowl, as I recall) vegetables and a beautiful cake from a patisserie.

We went to Sarlat-la-Caneda in the Dordogne river region of France for our 40th wedding anniversary. We rented an apartment from a lovely British couple who brought us champagne, flowers and chocolates.

We've also stayed in places that share canines and/or felines with us. Those are fun, and we let them on the furniture.

"...cooked a dinner for us to reheat (a guinea fowl, as I recall) vegetables and a beautiful cake from a patisserie."

Love this!!

Seagrass, I would love to know more about your rentals. Is there a site you use?

I can't copy and paste it for some reason but it's affiliated with Trip Advisor now and goes by Holiday Lettings. UK https://www.holidaylettings.co.uk

I saw the show the first season, and I thought I could have done much better than any of them. Not bragging, it's just they weren't good at all, IMO. The mother/daughter who won the first season-I thought their house was cheap and tacky. So, I wasn't interested in seeing the 2nd season. I only like watching those type of shows to get ideas above what I could think of myself.

Other than a fruit and wine basket left for us, I don't remember any goodie bags.

eta: Actually, now I remember a nice basket of cookies, granola bars, etc left for us at a hotel in Laguna Beach. Probably more places we've stayed, I'm getting old and can't remember LOL.

I miss KSWL. Here is the link to the blog about guest rooms: http://jpdschoolofdesign.blogspot.com/search/label/guest%20rooms

and the discussion:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/what-makes-a-good-guest-a-good-host-guest-room-dsvw-vd~3182348?n=71

Bonnie I read those lists from your first link and I'm laughing - I want people to VISIT not move in! Make them too comfortable and they'll never leave! Only half kidding - we do everything we can to make our guests feel welcome and comfortable but seriously some of the Dos and Don'ts are over the top IMO and out of reach for many. The notation on "a carafe with cool water" is just silly - how long will it stay cool and should keep running in to re-fill with fresh, cool water?!

I don’t give gift bags for my guests, although many times I’ll buy them something local that they’re admiring while they’re here. I always put a vase of fresh, seasonal flowers in our guest room, as well as a few magazines, and a recent dining-and-regional attractions guide for the area. I also keep a number of books on New Mexico and our local area for anyone interested, on the book case in there. On the nightstand, I keep a box of Kleenex, a small bottle of non-perfume-y hand cream, and small open container that holds a pen, pencil, small thin flashlight, emery board, etc. It’s a nice-sized nightstand, as I always myself appreciate a nice area next to the bed for my water, book, reading glasses, etc. Because we have very low humidity here in New Mexico, I also add a carafe of water and drinking glass or bottled water. In our guest bathroom I keep a nice-sized basket of things our guests might need during their stay with us: small bottles of Tylenol, Tums, etc. Band-Aids, sunscreen, (new, sealed) Chapsticks, small toothpastes and toothbrushes. Several shampoo, conditioner, and bar soap samples in case they don’t care for the shampoo and bottle of liquid soap that I keep in the shower, or haven’t brought their own. I always remind my guests before they come that I have a (very nice) hairdryer and an always-washed-and-ready, generic terry robe in the guest room closet, if needed. I’m happy and surprised how many of our guests save packing space in their suitcases, and use the robe and hairdryer. We travel frequently, and what I DON’T like in guest rooms, besides knick-knack clutter, is not having a nightstand on both sides of the bed for DH and myself. And, not having decent lamps on the nightstands to read by. Also, a full-length mirror in the guest room is great. I’ve hung one on the wall behind the door in my guest room. Not enough space and/or hangers for our clothes is another irritant although I’d never, as a guest, complain to our family or friends about it. So, that's what our guests get when they come for a visit, but no gift bag.