What would you expect from a welcome hamper?

[Aracanum]

Starting a new job soon and part of the role includes making up welcome hampers for holiday cottages.

What kind of thing would you expect or want from a welcome hamper? Branded of unbranded items? Locally sourced or supermarket standard?

My predecessor has some fabulous reviews stating she went above and beyond even including dog treats for guests with dogs. So, I'd like to also go above and beyond. What kind of things could I do to go above and beyond in general?

All depends on your budget and the price they are renting for!

If the maximum spend is £10 I would rather a selection of useful things than one loaf of ridiculously overpriced far too crusty bread and jam in a bizarre flavour.

If customers can customise even better. We don't use milk, I can't have caffeine and due to a tooth issue artisan sourdough causes me issues!

Evening arrival - small local cheese, wine

Morning arrival - pastries or croissants and butter and jam

I would expect tea, coffee, milk as a standard, not an arrival package

Definitely local products and basics that people would like after a long journey. Is, there anything distinctive that's made in the area? Most cottages in Cornwall will have things like local scones, jam and clotted cream etc.

when i go to a holiday cottage i go shopping on the way there so have all the stuff i need when i get there for me as long as theres a kettle so i can make a cup of tea im not bothered maybe im easily pleased as i like the brands i buy

We arrived to a lovely fresh Victoria sponge and it felt like such a treat. Agree with the pp who said flowers. Even if just a jam jar with foliage or something seasonal, it's a lovely touch. I always buy flowers if there aren't any because it feels cosier.

Locally sourced. Basics, but nicer ones, possibly info on where to buy anything particularly notable.

Dog treats are a great addition because they stand out as a thoughtful touch without being pricey. People are far more likely to review the hamper well because of it.

Definitely local products.
We went to an air bnb in Cornwall and they left a hamper from the local farmshop, included
Scones
Clotted cream
Cornish butter
Raspberries
Jam
Meringues
Prosecco
Tea/ coffee/milk

Was a really nice touch and we stocked up at the same shop before we left to bring home

We stayed in a seaside house that had new buckets and spades on each child's bed and chocolate and wine for adults, it was great and the buckets and spades have come on lots of holidays since (there was a note that we could keep them -we didn't steal them!)

A different one was a very pretty house that had a teatowel with a watercolor of the house printed on it to take away (I think they had postcards too) which is a lovely reminder of our holiday when you're drying the dishes.

I would say that while some of these suggestions are lovely, don't go too over the top. Obviously depends on the owner's budget etc but we have arrived at holiday cottage type places and received things that we can't use, which seems like such a waste:

• can't have any biscuits/bread etc because I have coeliac disease
• we don't eat meat (veggies) so bacon etc would be wasted on us, and depending on dates may not be suitable to then give to the next guest
• People may be vegan/teetotal etc
• Not everyone drinks caffeine

So I would say if you are planning to include more than just a few bits and bobs it would be useful like a pp said to ask them in advance of any allergies/requirements to make sure that stuff doesn't go to waste.

I would say treats would be more useful than bread, jam etc, unless you specifically say in the listing what is in the welcome hamper. We would bring things like that with us, so we’d end up with too much for one holiday. If it’s meant to be a surprise I would include things like snacks from a local farm shop (sweet and savoury) and some nice soft drinks or a bottle of wine. A small bunch of flowers or a little plant in a pot (for them to keep) is a nice touch too. Yes to dog biscuits!

I would also agree to check dietary requirements before, but if you’re not able to do that then I definitely wouldn’t leave any meat. We are vegan so admittedly much fussier than most people, but most of the stuff that has been listed would be wasted on us!

I would like something nice that I can sit down with after I've finished unpacking and toast to a great holiday to come.

So, nice teabags and scones/jam/cake if it's likely to be afternoon and maybe a bottle of sparkly and some petit fours if it's likely to be evening.

I always bring the basics with me, so bread, milk, butter etc would likely go to waste unless I knew to expect it.

It completely depends on your budget though, and whatever you do to be honest your guests' definition of "above and beyond" will be massively different depending on their taste.

I love a good welcome hamper!
I echo what others have said about local. If you are going above and beyond, then some savoury nibbles to go alongside sweets/ chocolates are also lovely.

We have always loved it when we are given a home made cake but I have learnt from Mumsnet that this would be greeted with horror by many and immediately binned.

A bunch of flowers or a plant is also nice.

Locally sourced. Don't go overboard - if it is not to people's tastes AND expensive they will think they have paid over the odds. We rented an apartment once and the welcome basket was lovely;

• mini jams and marmite
• small home made loaf
• selection of crisps, nuts, crackers and rice cakes
• small box mini chocolates
• mini prosecco
• small bag mixed cheeses
• bottle sparkling water
• tea, coffee and herbal tea sachets
• milk

We used it all (no allergies thankfully) and it was a lovely touch we weren't expecting.

I take my own tea, coffee, milk, food to a self catering - I certainly wouldn;t expect them to be provided wholesale

Nice bits like a few tea bags and a small jar of nice coffee - bread etc are nice to have - I guess I don't stay in fancy cottages!

We have a little Airbnb which has tea/coffee/snack making facilities though no cooking facilities. In the welcome pack we leave bread, mini Dorset cereals, premium biscuits, mini Tiptree jams and marmalades. There is a selection of classic and herbal teas plus fresh ground coffee. In the fridge is milk, orange juice and butter. If we know it is an anniversary or birthday we will leave a gift of Belgian chocs or similar. Also small Easter, Christmas and Valentines gifts.

@Stuckhere2021 We would love to leave home made bread but technically we would need a food hygiene certificate.

Tea, coffee and some sort of fresh juice and a few chocolates or biscuits. Theres so many people with allergies and dietary requirements I wouldn’t bother baking anything or including anything ‘fresh’ such as bread. At least with biscuits and chocolates if you don’t have them you can take them home as they are packaged up.

Dog biscuits for people with dogs are a great idea!

Agree with keeping it local and good quality basics. The wine may well be welcomed but if it’s not good wine, then it will detract from the feeling of quality. And if it’s good then it won’t be very cheap and will eat into margins (if that’s something you need to consider?

People can be extremely fussy with wine; it may well be much cheaper and more crowd-pleasing to find a local brewery or cider/perry farm and put a couple of bottles of those in instead. Keeping it local etc.

If there’s a reputable local vineyard and the budget allow, then a bottle of that would be interesting to try and worth including as it’s merely you showcasing the fayre of the local area and won’t reflect badly if they think it’s grim!

Good luck in your new role btw!

Agree a budget for it firstly and then work to that.Is it possible to bulk purchase if you see good offers. Enough to make a cup of tea or coffee and a little treat such as good quality biscuits would be a minimum.

Id suggest putting in nice stuff that has long dates, and is easy to tell if it's been opened or not.
We wasted so much stuff in holiday cottages over the summers (I used to do about a month in holiday cottages with the kids each summer).
Cake, milk, apple juices - stuff we wouldnt choose to use, and was just wasted.
Fizzy wine, odd flavoured crisps, marmalade, coffee. I hope it all got reused, but again I didnt touch it.

Cheese biscuits and chutney
Half bottle of wine/prosecco
Tea and coffee
Breakfast items maybe
Some snack nuts or crisps etc
Couple of posh chocs or brownies or fudge
I'd say locally sourced too

I don’t think you need to go too over the top as you might be buying things they don’t/can’t eat.
I would say always locally sourced and go for essentials
Milk
Bread
Eggs
Cake
Maybe local apple juice or the like if available

Assume that there would be teabags, coffee and sugar in the cupboards...

Depends on the budget.
Tea, coffee, milk , sugar, biscits.
Bottle of bubbly
Fresh flowers
Nice soap, shower gel, hand lotion
Slippers.

Fresh coffee, not instant. Tea bags, milk, OJ, eggs, fresh bread not sliced, butter and something local or home made - cookies or cake or honey. And more than half a centimetre of washing up liquid! More than 1 dishwasher tablet. Enough for the week. A bottle of wine and fruit are lovely too.

If it is just staples, then tea, coffee, sugar would be great, along with bread, milk, butter and jam. Depending on how luxurious the pack is, a bottle of wine or local cider/juice etc, cake, crisps, biscuits.

One of my clients provides a cream tea using produce from the local shops. They also put in stuff depending on the time of year, so at Easter, an egg for each child, or at Christmas a small stocking gift etc.