We’re on our first THS sit (yay!!) so sorry if I get carried away with the excitement!
The setting: Beautiful semi-rural bush property. The nearest supermarket is an easy 20 min drive. We’re only here for 4 nights with 2 cute little dogs. We walk them on the property 20 mins a day. Tranquil and serene.
The hospitality: Lovely greetings (and hugs!), beautiful amenities, and enough fresh provisions and treats for a week - totally unexpected and feeling very spoilt
The question: I’ve looked up hospitality on the forum and have a good sense of what’s reasonable in terms of pantry basics, etc. Is this level of hospitality (fruit, veg, steak, salads, chicken, falafels, dips, cheeses, cold meats, pizza, chocolate, cookies, crisps & more). Is this common on THS sits but just not mentioned? Help me manage future expectations!
@DeeMcC - welcome to the community! We’re both sitters and owners and our experience is that it’s all over the map. The main thing is to have clear understandings developed on the front end through messaging and calls. For example, we try to be very clear that our sitters are welcome to use any and all fridge and pantry items and asked to not use things from the freezer. We’re clear that if anything in the pantry is used up, we’d like to know about it so we can restock when we return. Some sits we’ve been on have similar policy and others don’t state a policy, so in those cases we limit our use to a bit of spices and oils or other things that don’t make sense to buy because so little is used, for example on a weekend stay would be comfortable using some coffee or tea. As with all parts of a sit, good upfront communications is probably the single most important thing to do right and to but worry about over doing.
Glad your first sit was such a great experience!
Best,
Bruce
You’ve definitely been spoilt @DeeMcC so enjoy it! Be mindful though not to judge future owners’ hospitality by this as we can still be made to feel very welcomed and comfortable by owners who don’t go overboard but still deserve 5*.
Thanks @temba - totally agree! Clean, basic and welcoming with great communication would be my benchmark for 5 stars in hospitality I’ll put this in the uncommon basket. I’ll edit my post to add what they left us!
How exciting and congratulations on your very first sit!
And it is great that for your first sit, you are having a positive experience.
I have had HOs who have given me a warm welcome hug upon arrival to sits–and others who have not. I have had HOs who have asked if there was any particular foods or beverages that they could provide upon my arrival–while others have not. I have had HOs who have been generous in leaving me homecooked meals, gift cards, wine, and gift baskets—and other HOs who have not.
Just as no two sitters are alike, no two homeowners are alike in terms of their generosity and hospitality. While many HOs will roll out the red carpet, there are many who won’t.
What will help you manage your expectations is to not expect for every HO to treat you the same way as the HO of your first sit. Putting expectations on future HOs (because of your previous ones) can lead to disappointments.
As you have experienced in your first sit–unexpected generosity and hospitality is always appreciated and welcomed.
Excellent advice @BruceT - totally agree that it’s all about communication. Its really helpful to hear how you manage this area as both sitters and hosts. Thank you for your perspective
That’s a lovely perspective @sharondc and definitely agree that each sit will be different. I was thrown by this very generous hospitality but then wondered if this was common. Each will be a unique adventure!
I’m so happy you have a great experience!
I’ve just started out, and for my sits no one has been like that, and no hugging.
I do have nice hosts. They have been nice and friendly and offered clean homes (like they would probably normally do, not professionally cleaned). Nobody has left/ given me anything bought for me as far as I know, although I have been offered to use condiments. It has been pointed out that I can use condiments, which I have interpreted «… only».
Some hosts might be very hospitable people and/ or it might be the culture where they are. Some will offer «more» to get a sitter if it is difficult to get a sitter for their dates, but then I guess it will be stated in the listing.
In my experience your host is «far and beyond», so I would enjoy it and not expect it.
Great to have your update and lovely to hear that you’re having such a fabulous first experience with THS. I do just love the variety of sits and experiences on THS which can take you to different countries, explore different cultures and meet all types of wonderful people from all walks of life. As sitters we’ve been privileged to have met such genuinely lovely generous hosts, some of whom have turned into really great friends. Comparison is the thief of joy as they say so be sure not to compare hosts and sits too much. People show their appreciation in many different ways, it could be with welcome gifts and treats or it could be a stellar review. In any case have a blast and wish you many more amazing adventures
Hey @DeeMcC, glad this one worked out so well after your previous debacle
I have found, personally, that in Oz I get left a gift/food/other things on 99% of my sits but not quite as much as you have graciously been left! Have been surprised on sits in UK and Europe that sometimes I don’t even get left milk or basics even when sitting for a month or so (Not always but usually). I know many people have the opposite experience but it has definitely been something that I’ve noticed here.
I think you can put this current experience into the “wow” category as these homeowners have definitely been very generous. Each sit is so very different worldwide and I’m sure you will get the good, the bad and the ugly, enjoy the good
That’s exactly what I told the hosts @Garfield! I said this is above and beyond! But then I wandered if this is what hosts interpreted as “hospitality” from their end and that it was common on THS. As with all things, I realise it’s just very individual
So true @avocadotoast I think my giddy excitement got me carried away thinking, is this the unspoken secret of house sitting?! When I first started reading the forum there were stories of freezers stocked with lobsters and gift cards and welcome baskets (as well as disaster stories of course)! But we’ll be very open and realistic about managing our expectations
This has been our experience .
One host left us a fridge full to bursting with of expensive food , meats , pies, cheeses along with bread , cakes, pastries, chocolates , wine ( several bottles ) and seasonal vegetables all bought specifically for us .
Some other sits we have not been left anything at all (which is ok) .
Most often our hosts have left one item such as a bottle of wine , a box of chocolates or biscuits or a cake or a bunch of flowers .
I’ve declined offers for groceries shops and mention in my profile that I don’t cook and appreciate fridge and freezer space.
I have been left with goodies and/or wine on various sits, but I’d prefer not to be. I like to pick my own food — eating out or getting deliveries is one of the pleasures of travel for me. I eat according to mood or cravings.
As a HO, I’ve left that amount of food too because I wasn’t organised enough to plan meals so that food in the fridge would gradually get used up by the time I left. It’s too much trouble to separate out specific items so I just show the sitter where everything is and tell them they can use what they want. (I do make sure to throw out anything that’s gone off.) If the sit is just for 4 nights, your HO probably assumed you wouldn’t be able to consume everything in that time.
@Maggie8K Our last sitters were looking forward to cooking in a big French kitchen and went overboard buying food. Then they discovered all the restaurants and ended up eating out all the time. They left enough stuff behind for me to make a big donation to the local food bank.
I am in my 29th sit and I completely agree.
The most generous HOs I have met were in Australia but also the worst and the not so good experiences. As @ziggy said, experiences are varied worldwide.
I’m curious. Are these HOs new to THS? If they aren’t, was this level of generosity mentioned in the reviews?
I’m asking because when owners go above and beyond, I now ask if they want details mentioned in the review or they prefer general statements. Once they told me they preferred not to set high expectations.
Enjoy the sit and all the goodies. I am sure you will continue having great experiences only probably on different aspects or with different standards.
Hey @ziggy - haha, knew you’d appreciate our experience here with generous hosts after our anticlimactic non-first sit As a fellow Aussie, you’d appreciate that our goodies include TWO packets of Tim Tams, Smiths chips, Byron Bay cookies, and a slab of vanilla slice This is definitely the “good”! Hopefully already had the bad, and wont be hanging out for the ugly
Welcome @DeeMcC and it’s great to hear you’re enjoying a fabulous first sit.
You’ve encountered a very generous and welcoming pet parent who clearly is a warm and thoughtful person. This has set the bar high for your future sits, so it’s important to realise there is nothing ‘common’ about hospitality; it’s as variable as is human nature! Some hosts are generous to a fault and their hospitality is a demonstration of their own character and their appreciation of sitters, whilst others are less so. It’s simply a matter of having no expectations beyond a nice clean home and pets, with reasonable responsibilities and clear communications, then anything else is a lovely bonus.
I’ll put this in the uncommon basket. I’ll edit my post to add what they left us!
I think my giddy excitement got me carried away thinking, is this the unspoken secret of house sitting?! When I first started reading the forum there were stories of freezers stocked with lobsters and gift cards and welcome baskets (as well as disaster stories of course)! But we’ll be very open and realistic about managing our expectations 
As a fellow Aussie, you’d appreciate that our goodies include TWO packets of Tim Tams, Smiths chips, Byron Bay cookies, and a slab of vanilla slice 
Glad it all worked out for you after the last non-event