All too often, neglected secondary bedrooms become catchalls for old furniture, forgotten fitness gear, and other odds and ends, rather than inviting places for house guests to rest and recharge.
If you’re on a budget don’t worry; there are plenty of low-cost, high-impact suggestions that will make your guests feel welcome.
So whether you’re expecting to host visitors for a whirlwind weekend getaway or a more extended stay, these stylish guest bedroom ideas ensures a memorable stay.
Create a room that’s light and minimal
One of the easiest ways to nail a guest room is to compare it to what you’d expect a hotel room to look like. You wouldn’t want to stay in a hotel room that was dark and cluttered, so why should your guest room be?
Opt for light colors and keep furniture to a minimum. Even if you tend to use your guest room for storage, make sure it’s all stored properly and free up space in closets and drawers so that guests can unpack and feel at home.
Dress the Windows
Add inexpensive blinds, roller shades or ready-made draperies to any windows that aren’t covered. A guest in your home is on vacation or family event and will appreciate a dark room for sleeping in. If late nights are part of your plans, consider purchasing blackout drapes, which will more efficiently block early morning sunlight.
Fresh Linens and Choice of Pillows
Have freshly laundered linens, comforters, and pillows on hand when guests arrive. A choice of pillows, (add both firm and soft, cozy feather-filled pillows for ultimate comfort) blanket and towels allows guests to make themselves comfortable, without the awkwardness of having to ask.
It’s worth storing these somewhere in the room to keep clutter at bay, but make sure you let your guests know where they can find everything they need.
A robe is also a nice touch that guests can use when they’re having a bit of downtime during their stay. Very often when traveling, we simply don’t have any room in our luggage for a robe.
Experienced a chilly room overnight? Offer an Extra blanket
If you’ve ever stayed overnight in a chilly room, you’ve probably longed for an extra blanket. Make sure your guests can easily find one. A cozy throw, laid across the foot of the bed or thrown over a chair ensures your guests are able to get a good night’s rest.
Water, Toiletries, Hangers and extra TP
No guest likes to have to navigate to the kitchen in the middle of the night for a glass of water. Even if you’ve got nightlights set up, finding a cup in the darkened kitchen is a daunting task. Save your guests the hassle and put some water on their bedside table for them.
Provide basic items like travel-sized toiletries, individual Ibuprofen or aspirin packets, dental floss, and a sewing kit. A couple of sweet and salty snacks are also fun. Add to a basket some sunscreen, too much sun recovery moisturizer, hair dryer, Kleenex and extra toilet paper roll. Provide closet space with a set of matching hangers or empty dresser drawers.
Does time get away from you? A quick glance at a clock…
can give your guests the answer, to “what time is it?” Even though cell phones are omnipresent in our culture, it’s still nice to check the time without lighting up that addictive screen or maybe their phone needs a charge. A small clock in your guest room makes life a little more convenient – and a little less phone-dependent – for your guests.
Add fresh flowers
Flowers can make a room feel brighter, more homey and is an effortless touch you can add to make guests feel especially welcome in your home.
Choose a simple, not-too-fragrant arrangement that will look beautiful but won’t upset allergies. You don’t have to buy an expensive bouquet but remember to water them regularly as dead blooms won’t give off the best impression!
Mirror, mirror on the wall
If your room doesn’t have a bathroom en suite, you need to add one more item to the list of guest bedroom essentials: a mirror. Without a mirror, you force guests to face you without the opportunity to properly clean the sleep out of their eyes in the morning.
A bedside lamp
The right kind of lighting is vital to how it feels to look into and be in a room. Warm, bedside lighting (as opposed to harsh, cold, overhead lighting) can transform a space. Well-considered lighting is not only practical but provides the room with real ambience and warmth.
You want to make sure that your guest feels welcome immediately. Plus, a lot of people like to do a bit of reading before they hit the hay.
Nobody likes to have to get out of bed to turn the lights off before going to sleep. Add a lamp to the nightstand so your guests can stay cozy in
bed.
Make yourself at home, use our WiFi password
This cute little printable is customizable with your network and password. Placed on a bedside table in a classic frame, this idea will dress up the information and help draw the eye to it so your visitors can easily connect. Your company will certainly appreciate not having to bug you for the password.
The Key to Happy House guests
Leave out an extra set of keys so friends can come and go freely, and they can avoid the embarrassment of getting locked out.
A Trashcan
A trashcan might not seem like a natural fit on a list of guest bedroom essentials but traveling often creates waste. Give your guests a convenient place to toss boarding passes, receipts, granola bar wrappers and water bottles.
Sleep in it for a few nights
You’ll never know how inviting your guest bedroom really is until you test it out yourself. Sleep in it for a couple of nights, and you’ll quickly spot the things it needs. Your perfect Guest Bedroom will ensure a Memorable Stay.
Happy entertaining! And please add your own ideas and suggestions in the comment section of this post!
Hi,
Great post and very informative. Definitely agreed with the idea of sleeping on it prior to in order to get the feel. I will definitely utilize all these great ideas to get my guest room ready for our next guest. This is very help. Thanks.
V/r
Thank you Benson – for your compliment. I’m glad you found the suggestion helpful to stay in the guest bedroom yourself and see what is needed.
Stay well,
Nancy Hamar
Great information here! I think this is a great tool for those entertaining overngiht guests or even for a bed and breakfast or AirBnB.
Thank you Glenn – for the very nice compliment. I hope you have very nice accommodations in your travels.
Take care,
Nancy Hamar
I absolutely loved reading and looking at your article. It’s visual, attractive and classy. I’m in interior designing myself, and I am taking away some of your ideas for our guest bedroom designing.
Thanks
Habib
Thank you very much Habib for your compliment. I’m so glad this post was informative for you. I would love to read your Guest Bedroom Design articles.
Keep well,
Nancy Hamar
At this rate I’m going to want to spend more time in the guest room than our own room! Amazing what some of these little touches can do. A few of them are on our list for when the in-laws come visit again – though we might be shooting ourselves in the foot, as they may not want to leave 🙂
Thank you Gareth – for you comment. I’m glad you can use some of the tips for your next In-laws visit. I agree with you about the guest bedroom being nicer that your own bedroom.
Keep well,
Nancy Hamar
I really enjoyed this post. You’re right Such simple things can change a bedroom completely. Something as simple as a clock and the right lighting would certainly make me feel at home. When I stay in a hotel I always look at the lighting and spacious awareness e.g. mirrors etc. Great article.
Thank you Russ – for your comment. You are right, “such simple things can change a bedroom completely.” Your comment “When I stay in a hotel I always look at the lighting and spacious awareness e.g. mirrors etc.” that is interesting, as I do too. I especially like the lamp in front of a mirror for reflective lighting, that is very much the current trend.
Keep well,
Nancy
Thank you so much for this helpful article, Nancy! I often entertain and house overnight guests, and I always make sure to make the guest room look and feel as inviting as possible. I especially love adding fresh flowers and providing a hotel-style WiFi password slip-it seems so official! Haha You provide excellent tips, and I will definitely incorporate them into my next overnight excursion (which shouldn’t be for a while. Haha). Great read! God bless you!
Thank you C.N. for your compliment. I’m glad you found some tips to incorporate into your guest bedroom. Plus you already provide the ‘hotel style Wifi password slip’, one of my favorites.
Keep well,
Nancy
You are a natural at home decor, I loved your photographs and your awesome suggestions. How would you recommend a guy improve their living quarters with some nice eye-catching home decor ideas?
Yes, I am a guy without your natural home decor talents
Jeff
Hello Jeff – thank you for your compliment. I’m so glad that you felt the warm and cozy ambiance I’m trying to share with the readers. Yes, I do have lots of ideas for decorating a “Guys living quarters”. When time permits, please take a look at a previous post https://bedroomsbynancy.com/masculine-bedroom-decorating-for-100-00/
Happy Decorating or if you need more help, please contact me.
Nancy
Hi Nancy,
Thanks for this lovely article, I must say you utilize the photos very well & make it look so cozy. You also list out something I don’t even notice I should put in the guest room, so next time I would consider following all the tips in this article to decorate that room.
I find the things you mentioned here are sort of like a hotel room which is thoughtful for your guests. Is that something related to your career? Like an interior, so you can think thoroughly for the guest room?
Cheers,
Matt
Thank you Matt – for your compliment. I’m glad you found the coziness that we want our guests to enjoy. Yes, a luxury hotel with all the amenities but in your peaceful family home is the goal.
Keep well,
Nancy Hamar
Hello Nancy,
I really enjoyed your post. I had to giggle a bit at the part about the matching hangers. I told my mother I wanted matching velvet hangers for my bedroom when I started redesigning my bedroom. It makes everything look so much classier in my opinion. I also like the idea of fresh flowers 💐 I love to pick up a $10 bundle for my room because it makes the room smell fresh and look elegant.
Thank you for all your tips
Thank you Ember – for your comment. You are right, matching hangers do look very classy and organized in a closet. And fresh flowers are perfect for any room and their fragrance is beautiful.
Keep well,
Nancy
This is one fantastic article for anyone with a guest room. It is so true a guest room is always one of those places you end up storing all kinds of stuff in. The bigger the room the more stuff is in there waiting to be sold or thrown out in most cases. Kinda like the garage, I guess. I got to get the work on my guest room, thanks for the advice Nancy.
Thank you Rick – good analogy for some guest bedrooms. For me, I always think, I will use “this” someday, but that someday doesn’t come. Good luck working on your guest room and I hope your guests will enjoy the beautiful and relaxing room you provide for their visit.
Keep well,
Nancy