The following article was originally published in the May/June 2019 edition of The Compass. It has been updated with additional recommendations from Cameron Station neighbors.
How Many Stars Do Your Guest Accommodations Rate?
Originally published in May/June 2019 edition
It’s late spring in the nation’s capital, and while the cherry blossoms are always a major draw, this beautiful area attracts visitors all year long. Chances are you are often welcoming overnight guests to your home, but how often have you thought about the comfort of your guests’ accommodations?
My husband Tom and I are fortunate to have family and friends in warmer climes whom we travel to visit in the winter. Accommodations range from a pullout couch in a home office to a spacious bedroom with a private bath and a door that opens to a patio and pool! We are comfortable in every home, truly, but it did get us thinking about what amenities we really appreciate along the way, and whether we provide the same at the “Sheraton Sugrue.”
Following is a totally subjective list of things we value (not require!) when we are guests in someone’s home.
Photo courtesy of Julie Blanner (julieblanner.com)
- A mirror in the bedroom. If you are traveling solo, this is probably not an issue as long as there is one in the bathroom. However, if you have a traveling companion and one needs a mirror to shave and the other to apply make-up, not having to wait to get into the bathroom is a great stress reliever.
- Reading lights – on both sides of the bed. Many people like to read before going to sleep. If you have a backlit Kindle, this is probably not a concern. But having to use an overhead light or your cell phone’s flashlight to read that newspaper or novel is hardly sleep-inducing.
- A bedside table or nightstand. Or any convenient place to put down your reading material and maybe a glass of water. If you have a bed of regular height, your guests can probably put them on the floor. However, some of today’s mattresses are so thick and high, you may find your guests on the floor, too, as they lean over to put their items down.
- Outlets. People travel with so many electronics these days, and having somewhere convenient to charge them is key.
- A choice of pillows. Some folks are allergic or have neck problems so providing a variety is a nice accommodation (i.e. soft vs. hard or feather vs. polyester).
- A decent mattress on a sofa bed. Our daughter recommended a replacement mattress for our pull-out sofa, which has a top that inflates like an aero bed; but when deflated, the entire mattress rolls up inside the couch. It is very comfortable and so easy to use.
- Wastebaskets. Trash receptacles in the bedroom and bathroom, or at least one location.
- A tissue box.
- A clock with a lighted dial. It may be hard to see a watch face in the middle of the night, and some folks prefer to tuck their phones away.
- Extra blankets. Even in summer, some folks like to sleep beneath covers in every season.
- Reading material. Magazines, books, or even a day-old newspaper is a boon to those who may have already read everything they packed.
As you can tell, we believe you don’t need a king-size bed with 600-count Egyptian sheets, nor an en suite bathroom, nor a 54-inch bedroom TV to make your guests comfortable, but that is just our opinion! If you have other ideas, we would love to hear them and will include your recommendations in a future blog posting. Here’s what we heard from some neighbors in 2019:
We value a charging station, a multi-plug power strip with extension cord. The cord allows it to sit on the nightstand so guests don’t have to crawl around to find a plug. It works well, too, for those who use a CPAP machine. —Sonja T. Risser
I have a small sign in my guest room with our WiFi username and password so guests can easily log in. You can purchase a sign template from Etsy or just DIY. —Tricia Hemel
This article was originally published in the May/June 2019 edition of The Compass. To view more of The Compass archive, click here.
Interested in contributing to The Compass? Contact the editor at thecompass@cameronstation.org or reach out to the Communications Committee at communications@cameronstation.org.
Pat Sugrue is an original owner, moving to Cameron Station with her husband Tom in the fall of 1999. She was a member of the first Compass Crew, and later served as Editor-in-Chief for nine years. Pat’s professional career was in advertising – 30+ years in ad agencies in every department except art (no talent at all!); but her favorite position was copywriter, which she felt made a good fit for The Compass. She warns that she is here to stay, regardless of the format!
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