The Ultimate Vacation Rental Supplies Checklist

We recently did a post on the most popular vacation rental amenities, and essentials were one of the highest-ranking results. Essentials, or vacation rental supplies, are so important to keep on hand. You never know when guests are going to need something and if you have some spares on hand, you’re cruising for a great review! 

But what vacation rental supplies should I keep on hand?

Well, it depends on your target guest. If you’re catering to families, then you’ll want to include products that are needed for kids. Things like wipes, extra cleaning supplies (kids are messy sometimes), and perhaps even a few spare nappies. 

For business travelers, items like coffee machines, disposable coffee cups, stationery items like pens and paper, power strips, and plug adapters. 

If you offer romantic cabin rental which is geared towards couples, then a corkscrew, wine glasses, bubble bath, and fresh flowers. Outdoor furniture is also a nice idea for romantic cabins, just be sure to include some furniture covers to protect

Some hosts target event parties like bachelorettes, and in this case, we would encourage leaving disposable razors, make-up wipes, plastic shot glasses, and a medical kit with ibuprofen and Alka-Seltzer. You can even keep some Gatorade in the fridge to help with their hangovers! These are the little touches that will help your vacation rental stand out from the crowd.

For easy browsing, we’ve decided to divide this list into categories, so you can easily browse and select which vacation home amenities you need!

The Ultimate Vacation Rental Supplies Checklist

Kitchen Consumables

• Teabags, individually wrapped – Chamomile, green and black tea are especially popular.

• Coffee – Ground, instant, or pods, depending on your kitchen appliances. 

• UHT Milk – Or a milk alternative like almond or oat. 

• Sugar – Individual packets would work best. You could also include sweeteners if you felt that your target guest would appreciate them. 

• Salt & Pepper – A set of grinders will work a treat, just be sure to keep them stocked! 

• Spice Basics – Dried basil, Italian herbs, rosemary, chili flakes, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. You’ll only need these if your listing’s kitchen is big enough to cook a meal!

• Ice – Either in pre-filled trays or a bag bought from the convenience store. 

• Hand sanitizer – It must be 70% alcohol or higher if you want it to kill germs like COVID.

• Bottled water – You can buy water in cans and glass bottles now, and they are infinitely preferable to plastic bottles.

Bathroom Amenities/ Bathroom Supplies

• Toilet paper – This is the most important of your bathroom supplies. We usually work on half a roll per day per guest, and then a few extras to be safe!

• Air freshener – Glade does some great deodorizing options and in terms of basic amenities, air fresheners are critical.

• Toothpaste – Keeping a few extra small tubes of toothpaste is a great idea as a backup for guests. 

• Toothbrushes – Again, keeping a few spare toothbrushes will help guests in a pickle and might earn you a five-star review. 

• Anti-bacterial handwash – Anti-bacterial handwash is always a good idea in a bathroom, especially in times of COVID. 

• Soap/Body Wash – Soap bars are better for the environment, but some hosts prefer refillable bottles of body wash. You need to make sure you have at least one. 

• Shampoo & Conditioner – There’s nothing that screams ‘cheap’ faster than horrible shampoo and conditioner. You can get refillable bottles and use well-known brands, or you can buy miniatures. Make sure you recycle whatever plastic you can!

• Make-up wipes – These will save your towels and your sanity! 

• Darker colored face cloths – Face cloths, or flannels, are a great thing to have in your bathroom, and opting to have them in black saves them from make-up and other damaging facial products like suncream. 

• Toilet cleaner – Having a bottle of toilet cleaner in the bathroom is a nice way to ensure that your cleaners won’t have a very unpleasant clean-up job once the guests have left!

General Consumables

• Tissues – A few boxes dotted around the listing should be fine.

• Plug-in air fresheners – Having automatic air fresheners will keep your listing smelling nice, even when you’re not there to keep it clean. 

• Hand sanitizer – Dotting a few bottles of hand sanitizer will make guests feel safe and that your listing is clean. 

• First Aid Kit – You never know if your guests will need emergency medical help and having a first aid box on hand is a great safety net. 

• Matches/Lighter – If you have a gas stove or a BBQ, then make sure your guests can light these appliances if they want to use them. 

• Power strip – People need lots of plug space, so a power strip would be a great help for guests!

Cleaning Products (For Hosts & Cleaners Only)

• Bleach – It’s best if you don’t leave this somewhere accessible in your rental property. If parents are not paying attention and their children get hold of bleach, the consequences could be severe.

• Floor cleaner – The heavier duty, the better. Guests can cause a lot of stains and a high-quality floor cleaner will make sure your rental property stays sparkling clean.

• Glass cleaner – Smudges in vacation rentals are as common guests. Glass cleaner can be bought at a store or made at home with vinegar and water.

• Microfiber cloths – Having a microfiber cloth just means you won’t be fighting with dust while you clean. They’re super handy and very cheap on Amazon.

• Cleaning wipes – Cleaning wipes are more expensive than regular cloths so it’s a better idea to reserve them for cleaning your vacation rentals rather than leaving them for your guests.

Cleaning Products (For Guests)

It’s sometimes a good idea to keep a few cleaning products in your vacation rental property to enable your guests to clean up if they need to.

• Anti-bacterial surface spray

• Cloths or rags for cleaning

• Toilet cleaner – Ideally, this would be left in each bathroom for easy access.

• Dishwashing powder or tablets for the dishwasher

• Dishwashing liquid

• Sponge for washing dishes

• Laundry detergent – Only leave a few doses per guest, it is not your responsibility to cover all of their laundry costs while staying in your rental property.

• Trash bags – Guests cannot be expected to clean up after themselves if you haven’t provided any trash bags for them to use.

In Conclusion

It’s important to be aware of the types of bathroom supplies, kitchen supplies, and general Airbnb supplies that your guests are using the most. This will help you ascertain which amenities and supplies you need to keep stocked inside your property.

Most guests will bring the majority of guest toiletries that they’ll need for their trip, but keeping a few extra amenities in one of your cupboards could drastically increase your likelihood of winning a five-star review.

The likes of shower caps, mini body lotion, conditioner sets, and bath products are cheap and most online shops ship worldwide. You could also make the decision to stock eco-friendly products to further enhance the guest experience.

How Can DPGO Help?

DPGO was founded by a group of real estate investors and experienced vacation rental hosts so we know a thing or two about the successful running of rental properties.

Our list of vacation rental supplies is just one of our many posts on how to run successful rentals. We’ve covered everything from families to house rules and how to boost ratings. 

If you need a little extra help with boosting your success, we’ve got you covered! We’ve designed a few usage options that allow you to only pay for the things you need! Our Free Usage plan allows you to access in-depth rental data for free! If you want to make use of our dynamic pricing services, you can choose between a payment plan of $1 per booked night or 0.5% of the total booking value.