Preparing your home for exchange guests
Essential guide table of contents
Essential Preparation
Before leaving for your vacation it is very important that you prepare and clean your home thoroughly. Consider this as time well spent. Do as little, or as much as you need to, but never forget that the cleaner and tidier your home is for your in-coming guests, the more likely you will find it in the same condition when you return.
Preparation of your home
First, designate a space, a cupboard or room, which may wish to leave locked, that is clearly out of bounds for your guests. This is where you must keep any valuable or personal items you don’t wish your guests to have access to.
You may want to make your own checklist but here are a few points you may wish to consider. Most of these are obvious, yet what we so often take for granted, can be so easily overlooked.
Bedrooms
- Make sure you leave your guest(s) sufficient drawer space – one or two empty drawers should be enough.
- Clear an area in your wardrobe or closet where your guests can hang their clothes. Remember to leave some free hangers.
- Remove all personal items from surfaces and leave only what is functional. Your guests will need space for their own personal bits and pieces.
- Prepare the beds for your guests, leaving fresh bed linen and towels clearly visible.
Bathroom
- Leave your bathroom spotlessly clean.
- Clean out your medicine chest, leaving items your guest may need.
- Consider leaving some bars of scented soap, a new toothbrush (just in case they forgot to pack their own), shampoo and conditioner as a welcome gesture.
- Leave fresh rolls of toilet paper.
- It’s never a bad idea to leave bathroom-cleaning materials in a subtle, yet obvious place. With luck your bathroom will be gleaming when you return!
Kitchen
- Leave your kitchen counters organised and clear of clutter.
- Leave all household staples such as cleaning fluids, washing up liquid, dishwasher powder, detergent, fabric conditioner, paper towels etc. easy to find.
- Clean the oven and burners.
- Stack all the plates and crockery in the proper places.
- Empty the dishwasher.
- Might your guests want shoe polish and brushes?
- Leave the refrigerator clean and reasonably empty. It is always a much appreciated gesture to leave some food staples for your guests ~ milk, eggs, bread, butter, breakfast cereal.
- Make sure the iron, ironing board and especially the vacuum cleaner with new disposable bags and all cleaning materials are easily accessible.
- Fresh flowers, a welcome bottle of wine or champagne are great ways to greet your new guest.
Information regarding use of your television, video and all appliances are best detailed in the Home Information Kit.