By Jason Fitzpatrick

How to Be the Perfect Host in the 21st Century

How to Be the Perfect Host in the 21st Century Being a good host in the 21st century isn't what it used to be. Your guests have to deal with Wi-Fi passwords, confusing home theaters, and more. Next time you've got guests, blow them away with your sophisticated, 21st-century hosting skills.

Photo by {Away until inspiration comes}.

While many traditions have gone by the wayside over the years, being a spectacular host has never gone out of style. With a tiny bit of planning and thoughtfulness, you can go from being just a person that put a roof over your friend's head to being an awesome host that makes their time at your place memorable.

Preparing for house guests is a dual effort. Most people think only of the preparation for part like tidying up but not the preparation of part like getting information from your guests. Both are important but we'll start off discussing preparations made on behalf of the guest.

Put Together a Guest Information Packet

What's the first thing many people do when they sprawl out on their hotel bed after a long trip? They flip through the information packets provided by the hotel. We've taken a cue from the hotel industry here and put together our own informational guide for your guests.

If you're going to get one thing from this post, make it our handy printable guest information packet. It's an editable PDF full of all the information your guests may need when you're not around—things like Wi-Fi passwords, emergency numbers, instructions for using your complicated home theater setup, and good places to eat and relax nearby.

If you're a graphic designer by trade and you'd enjoy making your own welcome packet, knock yourself out. For the rest of you, we've already done the heavy lifting. Download the Lifehacker Guest Information Packet and you'll be able to whip together a really handy guide for your guests in a matter of minutes.

Whether you're filling out the packet we've provided for you or you're building your own from scratch you'll want to include information that helps your guest be autonomous. Our guest packet includes spots for useful information like informing your guests about household quirks. It takes a few minutes for the hot water to get all the way from the basement of your apartment building? Make a note that they should run the hot water while they brush their teeth to get it shower-ready. Have a dog with a delicate constitution? Make a note that table scraps will make everybody miserable. Militant parking regulations? Make sure your guest knows their rental car will get the boot if they park on the street after 2AM.

How to Be the Perfect Host in the 21st Century

In addition to filling out the packet, you may also want to include fliers and handouts for local services. The easiest way to do this is to visit your local tourism board. If you don't have one the second easiest way is to visit one of the nicest hotels in the area. Hit up the reception desk and say "I've got family visiting for a week and I have no idea what to do with them. I'll trade you a cup of coffee for one of those awesome visitor packets you guys have." Only the coldest of hearts would fail to empathize with a bewildered person facing down a week-long family visit.

And while it's common for people to have GPS and mapping tools on their phones, don't forget to include a map in your information packet. Often times the big New Comer/Welcome to Town type magazines will have a simple and well-annotated map in them, grab a copy to use the map for your packet. Photo by ngader.

Stocking and Setting Up for Visitors

How to Be the Perfect Host in the 21st Century
Let's take another cue from the hospitality industry. What's most notable about a stay at a nice hotel? The staff of the hotel has anticipated your needs. Nice hotels make sure that you have adequate towels, toiletries, and other necessary items. It's awkward to feel like you're always pestering your host for stuff. You want to make your guests feel as autonomous and comfortable as possible. What should you have on hand? Photo by JAGwired.

Internet Access: Whether you set up a bulletproof guest account on your primary computer, share your wireless node with your guests, or loan them a spare laptop for surfing, internet access is practically like food and water on the modern pyramid of needs.

Fresh Towels and Linens: Provide lots of towels. Think about how many towels you might use in a few days and provide them with a nice fresh pile accordingly. Refresh all your towels before they arrive by giving them a baking soda and vinegar wash and then cut back on detergent to keep them smelling fresh.

Nobody wants to sleep on sheets that smell like they've been smashed up against a container of Ben Gay and scented candles, so if you've got time, give them a quick refresh by washing them, tumble the comforter in the dryer with a dryer sheet or hang it out in the sunshine before they arrive.

If you're feeling extra generous and your budget allows, a nice plush guest robe and inexpensive slippers are destined to put you on the Host of the Year nominations list.

A Shower Tote: You probably don't want all your guests toiletries spread all over your bathroom and they'd probably feel weird leaving them there. Provide a small shower tote, like the kind college students use to cart their toiletries to the bathroom, for your guest. They cost next to nothing—especially when purchased during back-to-school clearance sales—and they provide a convenient way for your guests to carry their things around without repacking everything into a little travel toiletry bag.

A Guest Basket: People forget stuff—toothpaste, razors, floss—and asking for personal hygiene items is embarrassing for many people. Your guest shouldn't have to run to the corner store right after a cross-country trip or feel awkward bugging you for a razor. Think of your guest basket like the little toiletry trays hotels provide—but on steroids. Include things like travel size containers of toothpaste, mouth wash, shampoo and conditioner, disposable razors, packets of single-dose medications like pain relievers and antacids, a bottle of water and a few snacks like some protein bars or a small bag of trail mix—maybe even a pair of cheap sunglasses depending on how hard the partying is going to be.

How to Be the Perfect Host in the 21st Century

A few years ago my wife and I started providing guest baskets for all our overnight and extended-stay guests and it has been a universal hit. You can make the basket as utilitarian or extravagant as you like. Photo by Jelly Dude.

Space to Unpack: Nobody likes living out of a suitcase. If at all possible provide your guests with a space to unpack, like drawers in a guest room dresser. Barring that, a luggage rack at least makes your guests feel like they aren't digging around on the floor looking for their clothes.

Simple Breakfast Offerings: Stock up on some easy-to-prepare breakfast foods like bagels, pastries, cold cereals, etc. Make sure to point them out to the guests when they arrive and encourage them to eat whenever they wish. While lunch and dinner might be fairly standardized, most people eat right after they wake up and guests rise at all hours.

A Recharge Station: People have gizmos and gadgets galore. Make sure you've got, at minimum, an empty power strip and an outlet for them to recharge. You'll get extra bonus points if you have a basic universal USB charger and a mini USB cable on hand. (This Belkin Mini surge protector with built-in USB charging ports is a perfect fit.)

Research Your Own City

How to Be the Perfect Host in the 21st Century
You live in your city. Unless you're a New Yorker who's never lost your love of the wonders of The Big Apple, there is a good chance you've been on auto-pilot for awhile. Hosting guests is a great way to rediscover your city through the eyes of a traveler instead of the eyes of somebody just trying to make it work on time every morning. Photo by Tony the Misfit.

Hit up local-search sites like Yelp and Urbanspoon and look for a new, unique place to eat, shop, and explore. Goby is a fantastic site that aggregates calendar listings so you can easily find everything from gallery openings to outdoor events happening right in your backyard. Make sure to check out our top 10 tools for finding stuff nearby and our tips for finding the best spots in a new city.

Hosting guests encourages you to see your city in a whole new way, a way that was likely buried under the grind of working. Use your weekend or week of hosting as a chance to explore all those interesting gems tucked away right around the corner.

Communicate Before and During the Visit

How to Be the Perfect Host in the 21st Century
The fastest route to a horrible visit with guests is poor communication. Before your guests even arrive at your home you should shoot them an email or call them and ask some basic questions. The two most important questions (if you don't already know the answers) are about meals (and food allergies) and the general goal of the visit. Photo by Milica Sekulic.

Talking to your guests about dietary requirements gives you a chance to get a head start on meal planning and also feel out whether or not your guests will want to partake in local dining experiences or if they'll be dining in with you. It's much better to find out that your guest has an allergy before you've prepared a huge meal they can't eat.

The other important thing is to get a feel for what your guests want to do when they visit. Do they want to take it easy and lounge around your apartment pool, take in all the cultural sights your city can offer in their three day stay, spend tons of time with you catching up? Knowing what your guests have in mind for their visit can help you stave off any hurt feelings or boring down time. If an old college friend really wants to spend time catching up with you but they're visiting during the work week, make it clear that you want to go out and catch up as soon as you get off work and have some sort of simple potential itinerary for them during the day while you're gone. They might do something else but at least you've given them a starting point. (Incidentally, this is where having the Lifehacker Guest Information Packet filled out is a great help.)

Planning out a rough schedule for the visit doesn't mean you have to stick with it but it does provide a good starting point for you and your guests to communicate and establish when everyone is available for fun and when outside obligations interfere with vacation time.

Even if you don't have a guest room or the budget to buy extra supplies for a guest, remember that the best way to be an awesome host is to have fun. Take the tips from the above guide you can use and save the ones you can't for later. If you're having fun and you've put in an effort to make your guests' stay even better you'll already have gone miles above and made their vacation memorable.