If you’ve got visitors this holiday season, this is the place to get tips and ideas to help you prepare for guests at Christmas – with less stress and more ease. Ready?
Have Christmas guests coming? Got the family staying? – stressed?!
When we have visitors over the festive season – it can really take its toll. We feel like we need to do everything, otherwise it would be a failure on our side.
But that really shouldn’t be the case.
With a little planning up front – hosting at Christmas can go smoothly and you’ll enjoy it so much more.
These tips will help you to do just that!…
Prepare For Guests At Christmas With Ease
Tip #1 – Ensure All Visits Are In Your Diary
Write down when you have any loved ones coming to visit you, and whether they’ll be staying as overnight guests etc…. – ensure no one is overlapping or whether you have double booked.
It helps to have a wall planner for December so you can see at a glance who’s coming and when you’ll have your Christmas house guest(s).
Tip #2 – Get All Supplies Ready
Ensure you have the bed space and all bedding required for all your guests (ask them to bring it if you need to, and also ask if they have allergies – if you have feather bedding then this can be bad for some people so you need to know now so you can do something about it).
Other things to think about would be to have spare blankets by the bed in case they get cold at night – there’s nothing worse when you stay over at other peoples home and you don’t get a good nights’ sleep…
As well as getting their guest room ready, think about what you need to have for your guests in terms of cutlery, plates, seating etc…. – planning this in advance means no-one should end up eating their meal from a paper plate while sitting on the floor…!
TIP – Also make sure there’s space for your guests to feel at home easily. Have a hook or two in the hallway spare for their coat(s), and space for shoes – etc…
TIP – It’s also worth making sure you have the right amount of supplies not just for all your guests – but also in terms of turnaround time of you’ve got more than one set of guests staying. Things like bedding will need to be washed, ironed etc.. in between. So – if you know you won’t have time to do this, you’ll need extra!
Related: Guest Bedroom Essentials They’ll Really Appreciate
Tip #3 – Know Your Specific Guests Needs
Along the theme of allergies – ensure you know of any food allergies of your guests so you cater correctly.
It’s usually much easier to base a main meal around an allergy and cook once rather than have to think of two or more meals if you possibly can.
Also – a good thing would be to get to know what they like / dislike etc… so you can get things in and do things that they like to do.
Tip #4 – Have Items For Guests In Case They Forget Anything
It really is the little things that count the most, so ensure you have all the necessary items to hand if your guests forget anything.
Things like the following put in their bedroom are useful: –
- Travel sized toiletries (having these in a jar in their bathroom or bedroom makes it feel very welcoming)
- Hair dryer
- Magazines / books
- Clock with alarm
- Mirror
TIP – Also worth mentioning here is that if you have some guests that aren’t expected – whether it be that they bring more people than you thought, or some totally different people arrive at your door – you want to be able to welcome them too. Having supplies ready, and making sure there are plenty (including maybe a blow up mattress if the bedrooms fill up) – means you can welcome anyone in!
Tip #5 – Guests Can Help Out
Get your house guests involved in helping – at this time of year everyone can muck in to make things easier, and no one really minds.
Also – it’s not just helping you out – it’s helping themselves that’s just as critical.
Ensure guests make themselves at home and are happy to make their own drinks etc… if they want one.
This saves you always asking and them feeling they can’t ask too much etc… (it’s worth having some snacks around that they can grab if hungry as well – and maybe even a bit of mulled wine on the stove for some gorgeous Christmassy smells AND some Christmas cheer).
Related: 101+ Christmas Planning Tips To Help You This Season
Tip #6 – Get Some Entertainment Ready
You shouldn’t ever feel that you have to entertain your guests 24/7, because you don’t know what may or may not happen while they’re visiting – and so some wiggle room is always better than having a strict schedule of what you’ll be doing.
And – they probably wouldn’t want you to anyway!
All that being said – it’s worth having a few ideas of what COULD be done, so that you can come up with some suggestions without having to think on the spot.
Whether this be out of the house, or in the house – have some things ready to go – as that will really ease things for you.
OUTSIDE THE HOUSE
See what’s going to be open and at what times during the time your guests are staying with you. There’s nothing worse than giving them an option that can’t be done…
INSIDE THE HOUSE
Have some entertainment for them to hand such as music, games, magazines, cards etc… so they can occupy themselves if you need a little time out to do other things.
TIP – Make sure that you have some relaxing down time if possible as well, as it can be exhausting to be a host all the time for your guests. Whether you want to have an earlier night or a lie in, or just a few minutes during the day – let them know, and make sure they have things to do as well. You may well be surprised that they will be wanting some down time just as much as you, but don’t want to ask!
Tip #7 – Clean Everything
Having everything nicely clean and tidy will give you that real sense of pride in your home and in opening it up to your friends and family over Christmas.
Not need to go crazy though – they are a LOT more interested in seeing you than how clean things are – but it IS worth doing a bit because it will make them feel very welcomed and special that you made the effort.
- Check the bathrooms. Wipe all surfaces, add a nice soap, bath mat and fresh towels etc…
- Check all bedding is clean and fresh – and the beds are made
- Wipe all surfaces in the bedroom, or wherever they will sleep. Make sure there is some surface space for them to use for their stuff, and for their glass of water by the bed etc…
- Vacuum carpets and mop the hard floors – this is a quick win between guests as well, as it it really makes the house feel cleaned.
- Do a general tidy / pick up – so that surfaces are relatively clutter free
Related: Do You Feel The Need For a Cleaning Frenzy Before Guests Arrive?
If you have to prepare for guests at Christmas, I hope these tips help
It’s worth spending some time during the Christmas preparations getting things ready for your visitors, so you can relax when they’re with you and actually enjoy their company.
Christmas with people you love is to be treasured – so get things sorted out before hand – and have some fun!
And don’t forget to grab your free Christmas Tips eBook which has these and loads more inside – ready to help you have the best Christmas ever!
