Whether you're a guest or an owner, it can be difficult to know what to bring to a vacation home. As an owner, you'll need to provide enough to ensure your guests have all the necessary items to make their vacation enjoyable. If you're a guest, you want to avoid over or under packing - although there are some staples we recommend you bring, regardless of what a vacation home provides.
Here's our guide on what owners need to provide in their vacation rental home and what visitors should bring when they're on vacation.
The Owner’s Guide: What to Provide
Simply providing your guests with a clean home in a nice location isn't quite enough to make the most of your vacation home. There are items, information and appliances they’ll need to enjoy their stay. The happier their visit, the better chance of them becoming repeat customers and word-of-mouth advertisers for your vacation home.
Beyond the basic home appliances, furniture and a rudimentary first aid kit, there are some important items you'll need to provide your guests.
Bathroom Essentials
While there's usually no expectation for you to provide toiletries or tools beyond the basics in the bathroom, it's always helpful to make sure your guests have a supply of toilet paper available to last them for their first day or so. It's also worth making sure your guests have enough fresh towels.
We suggest you include:
- At least one hand towel in every bathroom.
- A towel or shower mat for guests to use so they don't slip on a wet floor.
- A full-sized shower towel for each guest.
- Smaller face towels and towels for their hair.
- Airing cupboards or storage with enough towels to last the vacation.
Also if required, make sure cleaners drop off fresh towels every few days at the same time.
You could also include a hairdryer in each bathroom, hair styling tools such as a flat iron or curler and hand wash or soap. Cotton swabs and pads as well as face cloths also make a nice addition and show an extra level of care and attention to detail.
Make sure any towels you provide are of good quality and are washed in hypoallergenic detergent to protect your guest with allergies or sensitive skin fro
Bed Linen & Blankets
Your guests will expect to walk into a bedroom with beds that are already made with freshly-washed sheets. Guests will need to have access to another set of bed linens should they need it, extra blankets and a few spare pillows. It’s standard for the beds in a vacation rental home to have one or two pillows per person, but some people may need extra support such as those with breathing issues and other medical needs.
Many who rent out their vacation homes store these extra linens and items above or on the top shelf of the bedroom’s closet where they're within reach but aren't obstructing the main storage space for the guests’ belongings.
The Kitchen Basics
Your guests may choose not to cook for themselves at any point in their vacation, but it's better to be prepared in case they do. At a minimum, provide them with basic cookware. A standard set of cooking pans and pots are must-haves along with smaller items that may be easily overlooked, such as a tin opener, bottle opener, spatulas and similar items.
If you have an outdoor area, a basic set of barbecue tools would also be good to include. But in the interest of health and safety, you won’t need to provide any materials for them to light the barbecue with.
You’ll need to provide a basic set of dinner plates, smaller or side plates, bowls, cutlery, drinking glasses, wine glasses, and plastic cutlery and crockery for children or outdoor use. If your property attracts younger families, you may want to only provide high-quality plastic dishware to save money and protect guests from potential breakages.
Keep It Clean
Although it’s unlikely your guests will be deep-cleaning your vacation home, they'll need some basic cleaning supplies to maintain hygiene should the need arise. A dustpan and brush are a necessity, as are sponges, anti-bacterial surface sprays as well as a mop to avoid slips. These items need to be easily accessible, yet out of sight in case families with young children are in your vacation home.
If you work with a cleaning company, make sure your guests know when they'll arrive to maintain the cleanliness of your vacation home.
Touch of Luxury
To add a touch of luxury and market your vacation home for a higher price point, extra thought and care is required. Your welcome book is your guest’s guide to life inside and outside of your vacation home, so be sure to create a welcome book that's comprehensive and leaves nothing to be desired.
Include information and items such as:
- Common phrases in the country's language.
- A floor plan so they can get to know your vacation home a little more.
- Places to buy necessities, food and supplies.
- Recommendations, such as restaurants and activities.
- Emergency contact numbers.
- Free WiFi.
- A variety of batteries and chargers for their devices.
- New pool floats.
- Disposable camera.
- A media device with access to your favourite streaming services
- Smart TV with streaming services.
- HiFi system
Providing tools for when your guests go swimming at the pool on or near your property and a set of beach towels specifically for beach and water park outings is also another well-received and appreciated added extra from guests. If you choose to brand your towels with your vacation home’s name and contact information too, you can use the towels as a subtle form of marketing.
Remember, as a vacation homeowner, you'd need to invest in all of these things yourself which can include repeat purchases for anything that's disposable or something each set of guests will need. This also includes making sure your welcome pack is always up-to-date with all of the relevant information inside.
Alternatively, a less-hassle option is to enter a rental program. Providers such as Hilton have the reputation, experience and team to ensure your vacation property gets more bookings than you could if you marketed it yourself - and at higher rental rates.
The Guest’s Guide: What to Bring
Knowing what to bring for your vacation can be difficult, especially when every hotel or vacation home provides different things and varying levels of service. Always check their website and read up on the laws regarding what you can bring into and use in the country you’re visiting.
For first-time vacation home renters, our guide on what to bring will help you cover all of the often overlooked things to remember to pack for your break.
On Arrival
When you arrive at the vacation home, you’ll likely want to unpack and get settled in first. While shopping for food and similar necessities will be on your to-do list, there are items it’s best to take with you instead of waiting to buy, such as one or two rolls of toilet paper, trash bags and a few reusable bags for your shopping.
Freezer bags and some plastic boxes are also a good idea. They can hold any snacks you’ve brought with you as well as loose items you may be unpacking such as cables, jewellery, pharmaceutical items, hair ties or keys.
Eating & Cooking
If you plan on cooking at your rental vacation home - even just small meals during the day - there are some kitchen items you should pack. Although many vacation homeowners will try to provide you with the basics, it’s never guaranteed you will have exactly what you want, so items such as a tin opener, bottle opener, plastic spatula and cooking spoon are important to pack. If not, you might have to go out and buy them.
If you’re an amateur chef who plans on cooking full meals most days, you may want to bring other essentials. Just be sure to not pack your own knives and check the regulations on what you can bring with you into the country.
Don’t miss out on your home comforts while away. It’s very common for vacationers from all countries and cultures to bring their own snacks with them on holiday, as local stores commonly won’t stock your favorite chips or candy - many British people even take their own tea with them on vacation!
Laundry & Washing
Before you pack for your vacation, find out if there's a dishwasher, laundry and enough detergent to last the first few days.
Another handy cleaning-related item to pack is clothes pegs to dry out your wet clothes and laundry. While there may be some at the vacation home already, owners or managers of the home are not likely to advertise this and it's unlikely that this would be readily provided.
At Bemrudiana Beach, all of our guests have access to on-site laundry and washing facilities.
Additional Must-Haves
Some key additional items you should also pack include:
- Socket adaptors.
- Your own beach towels.
- Pool sliders.
- Batteries and chargers.
- Medication and basic first aid supplies.
Unless otherwise stated, it's unlikely a hairdryer or hair styling tools such as a flat iron will be provided, so be sure to check your rental home’s list of features online and pack accordingly.
If your vacation rental is in a rental program and/or managed by a professional management company, most of these items should be available. When you're researching where to go on your next vacation, it might be a good idea to look for a property managed by a reputable company, such as Hilton.
It allows you to not only get in touch beforehand to make sure the vacation home has everything you need. Plus, you'll have peace of mind on everything from security right through to world-class amenities.
One vacation rental home that falls under a rental program is Bermudiana Beach Resort, Tapestry Collection by Hilton. It's the first condo-hotel resort on the vibrant island of Bermuda. With its long history evident on every street you cross and every smile you see, Bermuda is the perfect location for the latest prestigious addition to The Tapestry Collection by Hilton.
As an owner, you can put your condo into the rental program where they're managed and marketed to resort-quality standards. It's a convenient and effective alternative to managing a vacation home rental yourself and allows you to achieve a higher nightly room rate and better annual occupancy too.
But that's not the only reason you should consider Bermudiana Beach Resort. Interested in finding out more? Check out our handy infographic below.
Why Bermudiana Beach Resort?
Amenities, laws and regulations, more information on the location and condos - you likely have a lot of questions on what a condo hotel is. If you want to find out more in the hope of owning your own slice of paradise, check out our detailed visual infographic that details what exactly Bermudiana Beach Resort is.
Get your copy below.
