Living ‘on holiday’ as one young lady in my acquaintance likes to put it, referring to our idyllic islands, means that we all have our fair share of guests coming to stay through the Summer months.
Whilst greatly anticipated from both sides, to make sure your guests feel at home and that you don’t need a holiday as soon as they leave, follow my simple rules.
1. Get the guest room ready; make sure it has a full length mirror, ample towels, a stash of painkillers / insect bite cream etc., and space to sit that isn’t the bed. Plenty of storage and hangars are a must, living out of case is no fun.
2. Before you take your guests on a tour of the country, take them on a tour of the house. Show them where the laundry room is, where the iron and ironing board can be found, the foibles of the bathroom and kitchen, how to use the TV and rules of the library, if you are lucky enough to have one. Give them your wireless code and have adapters ready for them to charge phones etc., Let them know where they can smoke (if you have such friends).
3. Check their toleration levels of pets – you may love it when your dog sleeps on your bed; your guests may not.
4. Have candles and a torch or two in the room, just in case of any power cuts.
5. Do give them a set of keys and the alarm code. They may want their own space for a few hours here and there.
6. Prepare some foods in advance that can be stored in the fridge or freezer, so they can help themselves or simply for maximum convenience after a day out.
7. Have a self-service breakfast so your guests can help themselves when they rise.
8. If they are phoning their family / colleagues, you don’t need to stay in earshot, and on no occasion, butt into the conversation.
9. Have the previous week’s newspapers for them to catch up on what is happening locally, and of course, tell them about indulge.com.mt
10. Don’t feel you have to babysit your guests, they are away from their routine, but they will understand you are still a slave to yours. Accept help when offered and give them suggestions of places they may like to go to maximise their stay.
