How to: Be a good Guest

Last week we covered hosting, but what happens when you’re the one looking for a couch to crash on.  Here are some tips for how to be the best guest ever and always get invited back. It all boils down to being respectful of your host. 

Contain Yourself
When you first arrive, your suitcase will probably be tucked to the side of the room while you grab dinner, relax, and catch up with your host.  But as soon as you start digging through your belongings for your pajama pants or toothbrush, chances are your stuff will sprawl.  So especially if you’re camping in regular living space, make an attempt to fit your belongings back in your bags and keep your bags out of the way.  Your host will appreciate the lack of laundry explosion in the middle of their living room. 

Be Flexible
While you as the guest may be on vacation, your host probably has a daily routine they stick to.  Try to wake up when your host does, eat when they do, and don’t stay up too late with the television on if they work early mornings.  The more you adapt to their routine for a few days, the more time you’ll get to spend together too, and isn’t that why you came to visit anyway? 

Come With a Plan
Don’t rely entirely on your host to shuttle you around the town and be your personal tour guide.  While they may offer and have the time to take you to everywhere, if you don’t have any ideas for what you want to see, you might be out of luck if they have to leave for work one day. Have a backup plan for sights you can see on your own.  Even if you don’t need it, it’s better than a backup plan of Judge Judy marathons while your host and tour guide is at work. 

Don’t Overstay
Benjamin Franklin once said that fish and visitors start to smell after three days.  But while your stay might be longer than that, it’s important to stick to whatever schedule you established with your host before you showed up.  If you say you’re going to stay until Thursday but then decide to stay until Saturday, you might be interfering with plans your host made thinking you’d be gone already.  So unless your host is really, honestly insisting you stay an extra night or four, leave when you said you would. 

Other Tips:
Clean up after yourself and always leave things the way you found them.  It doesn’t hurt to offer to help with chores either!
When taking a shower, remember that someone else pays for the hot water.  Take care of the basics as quick as possible so you don’t run up the bill.
Bringing a gift (flowers, food, toilet paper, wine, etc.) is a nice gesture of appreciation.  Even if you can’t afford something fancy, just offering to make dinner one night is a nice way to say thanks.
Never forget to send a thank you card!