Hosting Guests in a Tiny Apartment

Well I have clearly been slacking on my blog duties and a lot of this has to do with busy weekends filled with guests. First Michael came to visit before a job interview (happy to report he got the job and is moving to New York soon!) and then Jocelyn and Cory came to spend the weekend with us. We love when friends and family come visit, but it is admittedly a challenge to host overnight guests in our very small apartment. Hotels in New York are expensive and most of our friends in the city get asked fairly often to host friends, family, friends of friends who are passing through, etc. Of course it's never possible to say yes to every request but here are some things I have found helpful when you're hosting overnight guests.

1. Clean your apartment! I am always grateful for the excuse to do a deep cleaning but this can also just be shoving clutter into the back of the closet/behind the couch/under the bed/wherever guests won't see it. It is easy to feel apologetic and make excuses for your little apartment, but when it is clean and organized, I always feel better about the first impression it is giving.

2. Major points if you manage to clear a space for your guest's suitcase (this is an ongoing challenge for us).

3. Buy fresh flowers and light a candle or two. I always do this when we have friends over for dinner but it does the trick for overnight guests too. It takes the first impression from "wow this place is small" to "wow it's so nice and cozy."

4. It's ok to ask people to bring their own sheets. When Jocelyn offered to bring towels, I thought that was pretty silly, we are well stocked, but bringing sheets was so helpful. It saved us from having to dig in the upper reaches of the closet for a fresh set and drag them to the laundromat afterwards.

5. But if you do ask guests to bring their own sheets or towels, maybe make them a nice breakfast? We like to bake some scones in advance or hello, Trader Joe's pumpkin pancake mix is delicious.

6. Make dinner reservations. I love using guests as an excuse to try a new restaurant. Also, after a long day wandering around New York it's nice to know where you are going for dinner. It eliminates the lengthy "what should we eat" conversation and you don't have to wait an hour for a table to open up when you are starving.

7. Having guests is also a great excuse to do things around the city as a tourist. Visit museums, see a show, or just go for a walk in a new neighborhood. When your apartment feels crowded with three people in it, it's important to get outside, for everyone's sanity.

8. Be honest about your routine. We try to avoid it but we occasionally have guests during the work week. I have found it is much easier to be up front about my morning schedule. "I wake up at X time and I need to make coffee/blow dry my hair/do other loud activities." There's honestly no such thing as tip-toeing around in an under 400 square feet space, so manage expectations for sleeping in right away.

9. Goes along with number 8. We do our best to run errands and take care of chores before we have guests but it is not always possible. Sometimes you have to pick up your dry cleaning and buy another bag of coffee beans. I used to feel guilty about this, then I realized our good friends and family absolutely do not care, and don't mind stopping for an errand with me.

10. But do not take your friends to Trader Joe's in Manhattan. This is reserved for family, aka people you can yell at who will forgive you. Just trust me on this one.


There you have it, my best advice for hosting guests in tiny New York apartments. And now a photo of Jocelyn, Cory, and Sean in our kitchen.