You may be doing more traveling away from your apartment for the holidays than having people coming in, but there will still be the occasional time when you have a friend in from out of town crash at your place. Apartments can be tricky spots for having guests (I used to squeeze a full size inflatable air mattress into my living room for guests) but a warm welcome doesn’t necessarily have to be flashy or expensive. More often than not, it’s simply attention to detail and remembering what it’s like to be a guest yourself.

I noticed recently while staying at a friend’s place that she had a little basket in her guest room that was full of travel size toiletry items. I thought this was such a nice touch because when you’re traveling, especially when flying and everything has to be TSA approved, it’s easy to forget to bring some of your essentials.

Even if you don’t have a guest room, you can still keep a small basket in your bathroom or hall storage to put extra travel size products for guests. These can be leftover shampoos, conditioners, etc. that you have collected from previous vacations and hotel stays. As a guest, it’s nice to have a backup supply instead of being nervous about asking your host to borrow something.

Little gestures like these are not expensive at help make your friends feel welcome in your apartment!