I like to think…“when in Rome, do as the Roman’s”. I am not just trying to give the guests a nice place to stay, but a “whole Portland experience”… Since Portlandia has been on, the interest in things Portland has spiked and it helps us airbnb’ers. Even if I do not leave much in the way of breakfast foods, I do leave only local craft brews, local coffee, local treats, magazines, art prints and fruits. Even the daily Oregonian newspaper(a holdover). I want them to feel like they “got it all”, and it does not cost much. If I did the full breakfast thing and baked treats, I could not afford to do so…
I need to go around yours. Haha
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Shawn - as a new member of this Forum, this is one of the first posts I saw. Since seeing it, I have been spending near-to-nothing providing a welcome snack of local fruits and my own concoctions of this to flavour cream cheese with, and fresh baked bread. We are in a remote area in Central America and by the time guests get here they are cranky, thirsty and hungry.
Thanks for your post - our guests love it!!!
I agree that the expectations of ‘extras’ should be relative to the type of space. I rent out an entire house and do not reside there, so everything is set up for guests to function on their own. There are little decorative, instructive notes throughout the house so guests don’t have to constantly be asking me questions, I have a basket of the snack size chips in the kitchen (don’t think communal chips and crackers is the way to go), fruit and OJ in the fridge, a candy dish of jelly beans on a hutch where guests will find a key, menus to local eateries, etc…, and a basket in each bathroom with spare toothbrushes, toothpaste (found baby toothpastes for .25 cents at a Big Lots!), floss picks and razors. And it’s funny, most people don’t bother with the food (but it’s great to offer it anyway), but most of the time I’m replenishing the bathroom items! They seem to really appreciate that.
I went on and on here simply to put out ideas in case hosts are looking for any. Happy hosting haha!
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Go to trader joes and get their $3 bottle of wine @ 12 bottles. Goes a long way and its good table wine~
My unit sleeps 10, most bookings are for a week. My unit is in a tourist town.
I fill a cookie jar with cookies for each new booking. I keep refrigerated cookie dough on hand so it’s simple. I stock the fridge with 10 water bottles. I keep a decorative “bucket” in the master bath with small travel toiletries including some Advil and Tylenol. The Advil and Tylenol are ALWAY depleted as are the cookies. I also get an inexpensive bouquet from Walmart. My reviews reflect those “extra touches”
The kitchen has 10 Keurig coffee pods, sugar and individual creamers and and big jar of condiments. All those extra packets of soy sauce from Panda Express and ketchup from McDonalds are put to good use! I also have a modest assortment of seasonings on hand. Enough to get through a meal, anyway. Beer glasses are in the freezer. I also leave a dishwashing pod and a Tide/Downey pod for each day of the stay. I also keep a modest assortment of paper plates and plastic cutlery as some guests prefer the convenience.
It is peach season here, in southern Missouri, I’m thinking of leaving a bowl of fruit. I also add a few extras at the holidays.
The cost is, roughly, $10/visit and I do think it is worth the expense. I enjoy doing it, it’s important to me. If the guests “take everything” I just chuckle. When all the toilet paper for a three bathroom unit disappeared in March it was ridiculous. I’m pleased they left the lightbulbs…
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Our amenities for a 2-bed, 2-bath casita @ $138 night (includes local county tax of 4%): We do the bottle of wine, 6-10 range, few bottles of interesting beers and sodas, quantity depending number of guests. Snacks are usually just individual bags of nuts, 18.50 for 30 at Costco. We don’t do coffee pods, too much waste, but a jar of good coffee beans, grinder and French press, couple jars of good loose tea and packaged creamer. Sometimes dip & crackers. We supply shampoo, conditioner, liquid shower and hand soap, dish soap, toilet paper and paper towels but no other paper goods. All linens 100% cotton and includes several sets of place-mats and napkins. Several small insulated bags plus thermoses for picnics. We also keep an online subscription to AllTrails.com.
Now during Covid, well once rentals start again, we are supplying hand sanitizer, pocket-sized packets of wipes, masks and gloves.
It’s nice to go the extra mile with thoughtful stuff, the cookies and flowers are sweet, but I have to say all the single-use items you provide are an environmental disaster. You are adding to the plastics waste stream unnecessarily. Consider pump bottles or shower dispensers that can be refilled from bulk containers, a Brita filter jug for drinking water instead of 10 plastic water bottles per booking, a carton of coffee cream instead of the individual creamers, and a non-dispòsable pod coffee system.
Even a lot of hotels are on the reducing environmental impact program.
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You might want to check your local regulations on being a Bed & Breakfast and supplying all that food. We purposely limit the snacks and beverages to avoid being a BnB. There can be a whole other set of regulations–and inspections and fees–if you’re supplying meals. Cities and towns are eyeing STRs for added revenue and if they find you’ve been running a BnB without being registered you could be facing some big penalties.
Depends on your location of course. First thing I did before renting a single day was talk to town hall.
Now I ask myself why am I answering a four-year-old post? Duh!
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Oh dear, so am I. 
As it says in the FAQ:
Please spend some time browsing the topics here before replying or starting your own, and you’ll have a better chance of meeting others who share your interests.
I did want to comment though about local regulations. In my area I am not allowed to provide anything that is prepared in my own kitchen. I’d need a commercial kitchen and regular inspections.
Treats are great to provide but it’s best to stay within the local laws.
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Packaged toothbrushes since it’s them most inconvenient item to forget. My price point doesn’t allow me to do much beyond our casual breakfast. However, before COVID, when it was buffet style we encouraged guests to grab the pastry, fruit, etc anytime. Blueberry muffins for late guests who came in after stores closed were popular. We offer cold bottled water that some love and others who don’t like plastic can just ignore. We put wrapped candy in a small dish in each room.
We host business guests and they love our “grab and go” basket of snacks when they don’t have time to eat before work. It usually consists of granola bars and the basket is placed near the front door. And so now with Covid lots of occupants work from home and the snacks are gone much faster. HA! Either way, “Surprise and Delight” is the motto.
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I provide a self service organic bread, dairy, and cereal breakfast. If guests are lucky and I have time to bake while they’re here, they may get fresh baked organic sourdough whole wheat bread or muffins, and if they request ahead of time I’ll make a batch of sourdough batter for pancakes or my perfect-for-b&b garage sale Cuisinart waffle iron.
Homemade baked goods always get rave reviews. At my price point, no way I would spend $12 on snacks since they get breakfast.
I do the same : ) I agree with you, guests love the snacks even if they only eat a third of them. I started doing the basket of snacks after my trip to Sedona. We arrived late and everything was closed. We were so grateful when we arrived to our Airbnb and the host had left us a goody basket and a bottle of wine. We were so grateful to be able to eat something after a long day of traveling.