The bathroom is a sometimes overlooked aspect when it comes to furnishing an Airbnb. It’s not nearly as fun to build out as a game room or backyard amenities. However, your guests will appreciate having all the bathroom amenities they need to feel at home. Let’s take a look at a list of the bathroom essentials for Airbnb’s!
The Non-Negotiable: Toilet Paper!
Let’s start off with the most important part of the bathroom checklist: TP. It should be pretty obvious that you need to be supplying this stuff. But how fancy should you get? Honestly, we went with middle of the road for our Airbnb and didn’t hear any complaints. The Member’s Mark Bath Tissue got us no bad reviews and we also didn’t have any plumbing issues related to a stopped up toilet. Based on our personal experience I’d say that’s a pretty safe bet and one we’ll use moving forward.
Our property is a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom and sleeps up to 5 guests. In terms of how many rolls to leave, we ask our cleaner to have at least 4 rolls per bathroom for normal stays. Then we add extra if guests are staying longer than 5 days. We haven’t had any issues where guests take the extra rolls and haven’t had any complaints of running out of toilet paper. Adjust the amount you leave based on how many guests can stay at the property.
Now onto the more fun stuff!
Toiletries
Have you ever stayed in an Airbnb that didn’t have shampoo and conditioner? Even though we bring our own it still feels like the host could’ve provided some. After all, they didn’t know that we brought any. For that reason, I’m including toiletries on the essentials list.
For this, you’ll want shampoo, conditioner, and body soap/wash for pretty obvious reasons. Help your guests stay clean! You can find bulk packs that contain all 3 items on Amazon for a great price! We like to leave one pack per bathroom. We treat these as ‘in case guests forget’ items, so we don’t feel the need to provide one per guest. In future properties, we are going to test out larger containers that stick to the shower wall similar to newer hotels. This is also an option. If you’ve tested this let us know how things worked out!
We also like to include makeup wipes. This was a tip we received from a fellow Airbnb host and it has saved us a ton of trouble. Guests will use the wipes to remove their makeup instead of our hand towels! We didn’t have to replace a single one in the last year. You can purchase bulk makeup wipes for a great deal on Amazon. This is especially great if you plan to provide your guests with light colored towels as the makeup stains show up much more. Which brings us to our next item:
Bath Linens
This is another item you don’t want to skimp out on. Bath towels are a huge amenity in your Airbnb, so be sure to get some nice ones. We like to get hotel-quality bath towels that dry easy. We don’t get bath sheets as they would cause issues when it comes time for laundry. Just be sure they are at least normal size. Some brands have smaller towels which don’t help guests dry off as easy. And towels are certainly one of those items that are used enough that a guest would complain if they aren’t high quality!
The towels we purchase also come with hand towels and washcloths. Even if you don’t have a rack for them, we recommend at least placing a hand towel next to the sink. It can be very frustrating to wash your hands and not have something to dry off with!
We like to provide one towel per guest with two extras, one hand towel per bathroom plus one extra, and one wash cloth per guest with two extras. If guests are staying for a week or longer we will provide a couple extra of everything so they can have a fresh set of towels.
Another thing to keep in mind while purchasing bath linens is cleaning. When a changeover happens, it’s much easier to have extra towels handy. So while we set out the above amounts, we like to purchase extra. For example, our house allows up to 5 guests and has 2 bathrooms. So we purchase 12 bath towels (2 sets of 5, with 2 extra), 12 washcloths, and 5 hand towels (2 sets of 2, with 1 extra). Adjust your numbers so you have enough for 1 clean changeover while another is in the laundry.
I’m also going to include mats in this section. Some guests have different routines when showering, and if that includes getting out before they’ve dried off then your floor is going to be wet. And wet can be slippery. Not having a mat by the shower is asking for trouble!
One item that’s not necessarily a ‘bathroom essential’ but goes in line with this is beach/pool towels. If you have a pool, be sure to provide towels! And we added a few beach towels to our linen closet for those guests who wanted to head out to the beach.
Cleaning Supplies
This category is arguably more suited for the kitchen space, but we wanted to include it here just so you don’t forget. We like to provide basic cleaning supplies for our guests in case they want to clean up during their stay. This is as opposed to offering mid-stay cleans. The supplies include:
- Broom
- Swiffer
- Basic cleaner (no bleach, lightly scented in case some guests are sensitive to the smell)
- Dish soap and/or dishwasher pods
- Hand soap
- Plunger
- Toilet brush
- Laundry detergent (see note below)
Nothing crazy, but enough to get the job done. We didn’t feel the need to provide deep cleaning products, but enough for a surface clean. After all, our cleaner helped start them off with an immaculate house. So it never really got too dirty throughout guest’s stays anyways.
One thing we did receive a private note in an Airbnb review for was laundry detergent. In hindsight we could’ve gotten laundry pods and left a couple to see if that helped improve guest satisfaction. But it was only towards the end of our time running our property that the guest left the review. It’s definitely worth testing out to see if it works for you! The laundry pods will also allow you to regulate how much detergent gets added and will (hopefully) prevent guests from purchasing their own. There are some sketchy detergents out there, so it may be best to provide guests with your choice!
Decorations
Don’t leave the bathroom barebones! As with the other rooms in the property, you’ll want to add some pizzazz to the bathroom. We did put a couple of signs on the bathroom walls, but another way we decorated was to add a bright colored shower curtain. We are by no means interior designers (and definitely going to work on that front with our next property), but we felt it was an easy way to add that pop of color to the grey walls.
You could add things such as plants (real or fake), toothbrush holders, additional mirrors, shelves above the toilet, and more. People can spend quite a bit of time in bathrooms, so make sure they enjoy the look of yours!
Should You Provide Appliances And Other Amenities?
Did you know that Airbnb allows you to select amenities that you have available to share with guests? Maybe so, but did you know that even things such as hair dryers are on that list? We wanted to make sure we at least had the relevant amenities to our bathroom that were on that list.
Alongside the hair dryer there are currently amenities you can select for a bidet, baby bath, and changing table. The list is much more extensive than when we first went through setting up our listing, so it’s likely to continue to grow. You also don’t have to only use items listed on Airbnb. If you feel that adding a straightener or towel warmer will improve your guest satisfaction, go for it!
The Full List
Instead of having to sift through all of the sections above, check out this complete list of Airbnb bathroom essentials!
- Toilet paper (Member’s Mark Bath Tissue) – For up to 5 guests, 4 rolls per bathroom with extra if guests are staying longer than 5 days. Adjust if more guests.
- Shampoo
- Conditioner
- Body Wash/Soap
- Hand soap
- Makeup wipes (will help save your towels)
- Bath towels (medium-sized or larger, but avoid bath sheets to save time on laundry) – 2 per person with 2 extras
- Bath mat
- Broom
- Swiffer
- Basic cleaner (no bleach, lightly scented in case some guests are sensitive to the smell)
- Dish soap and/or dishwasher pods
- Hand soap
- Plunger
- Toilet brush
- Laundry detergent (see note below)
- Decorations
- (optional) Appliances/amenities
- Hair dryer
- Bidet
- Baby bath
- Changing table
- (optional) Additional ideas
- Hair straightener
- Towel warmer
Build A Bathroom Guests Will Love
This list is just the essentials. While we feel most of these are necessary, it by no means is a complete list. We recommend studying your competition and adding additional items to meet or beat their listing. While it may not be the most important aspect of your property, you want guests to have everything they need to feel comfortable. We hope this list helps you with that!