What Makes a Good Guest?

A good guest follows the householders rules. The thing is, the person having guests shouldn't even have to tell guests how to act. The guest should be clean, neat, and courteous.

A good guest is one who shows an interest and is polite. A great guest is one who mucks in, doesn't mind a bit of graft and takes the rough with the smooth. The word "guest" is a loaded one really. My expectations from a 5 star hotel are different than a few days volunteering. I expect to be treated like a minor god by the former and as one of the family by the latter. Treat others as you would be treated yourself and you can't go far wrong in my opinion. One thing that I discovered from my daughter's spell in the US is that their vocabulary is much more demanding than ours. "Can I get a coffee", rather than "Please may I have a coffee". To my ears that borders on the impolite yet is certainly not meant that way. So maybe we have to learn to make exceptions for culture too.

that's pretty neat! i participated in several volunteer activities before but not yet in a farm. i bet it's fun. our house, i should say is like an open house. many of our families, relatives, friends and associates stay at our house sometimes for a few days or throughout the entire school break or holidays. so i'm pretty much accustomed to having lots of house guests. and true, most house guests are wonderful... but not everyone. there should be some form of house rules but to inform them of that is like treating them as kids. lol but as adults, young or old, they should know how to be a good guest in any home. i should say, at the very basic... respect. one should be able to observe the house routines/activities especially mealtimes and such. it is difficult and so much added work if people will have their meals at different times than the usual. one should be able to pull his/her weight around the house (or in your case, around the farm). a volunteer should have the spirit of volunteerism and not just in for the free ride, or for the free meal. one should also be appreciative, and not always complaining or in the rant. respect on people (host and fellow volunteers alike), respect on time/schedules, respect for the animals (if in a farm), respect for the house itself (by observing cleanliness and keeping things in order), and respect for the cause (getting things done as they should. otherwise it depicts the purpose of volunteerism). and lastly, with everything that we do, one should be able to enjoy!

Whenever I am in any situation where I feel like I may be entering into someone's "personal space" I usually try to always treat them as I would like myself or my personal space to be treated. Like if I am in their home I always ask if they want me to do anything, most often they say no but it is the offer because to me that is courteous. because I would want someone to feel comfortable and honest around me so I try to do the same. But it is sad like you said some people just do not have any manners.

I always rememener a saying a teacher in school said, 'When in Rome do as the Romans do'. You cannot go wrong and it still holds true today.

Guests means Guests what is good and bed. I think elder follow all manners only child may be forget.

some one that not only appreciates your hospitality but lives by your rules and offers to help around the house or at least give you some money for food

Top of the list for me would be: Don't go raiding the fridge/cupboards. Add to that, Don't use up all the toilet paper and not replace the roll.

Everyone says that I am a good guest....I leave everything the way I found it...make sure to pick up after myself....offer to help when I see there is an opening for help...and go off by myself when I can see they need some space!

When I am a guest I try to make myself as unobtrusive as possible. I want my hosts to enjoy having me, not have their routines or household disrupted. I do my own chores and clean up after myself, even wiping the bathroom sink after I use it. I try to make every room look as if I haven't been there. It's little things that make a difference. For instance, when I was about 10 my sister in law told me that not washing off the soap bar after I use it is very irritating. I have done so ever since!

Hiya GM, You do get the odd one or more than the odd one I know because having worked in Hotels I have seen quite a lot of what you should not do but they still do that anyway I mean things that no educated person with good manners would do. Me I would behave and be as natural as I can be and respect other People´s property as if it were my own. I am not perfect goodness knows we can all spill things and food can fall off Plates by accident too. If that happened I would quickly clean it all up by myself. If I spilled anything say onto the Bed I would go and tell them right away as well as I would not know if what they had on the Bed is dry cleaned or if the colours run or what you never know. Just being careful that´s all but still being me not ultra correct but respectful and not being noisy either (grin). Do I sound too perfect well I can say that I am not but I would not like to have to put up with "bad behaviour" myself either to a point. So that´s it and oh not stay in Bed till really late the next Day or ask for silly things to be done for me when I can do them myself. Hope you have lot´s of good Guests GM. Have also had to put up with very rude People and I used to wonder are they like this in their own House?