I like to take a cue from my favorite boutique hotels and leave a small basket of fruit and some high end snacks (roasted almonds, wasabi peas etc) for guests to snack on so they don't have to travel down to the kitchen if they get peckish.

I know that I value a desk (even if tiny) and a chair to use my laptop when travelling. WiFi access would be great if you already have it. Also make sure that there are enough empty outlets to charge laptop, cell phone, or any other gadget the guest may bring along. I find that the best combination of the above advice is a small desk with a chair near a wall outlet, and a 6 outlet surge protector either mounted to the top of the desk with 2 sided sticky tape, or just laid flat (if it will stay that way.) Your guest, of course, may not have need for any of the above, but its always a nice tough to accommodate the business travelling family member. Good Luck!

A clock. On the wall, or an alarm/radio, either way, I personally am not a watch wearer and I dislike having to fish my phone out every time I want to know what time it is. I like an easy glance.

A night light! :) My mom is my most honest house guest and after my parents stayed in my new guest room for the first time, her only request was a night light so she could find the facilities easier. Also, extra blankets - my mother tends to be cold-blooded so I have learned to always keep a few extra quilts in the closet just for her.

Spend the night in the room yourself and see if you find anything missing (and pretend you have a suitcase to deal with.) Have an extra blanket hung over a chair, a light that is reachable from the bed, more than one pillow on the bed, plus a clock that can be seen in the dark and has an alarm. I like a bright room in the morning, but I try to remember some people like absolute blackout - things like that.

Also, don't forget the bathroom - have a place for travel toiletries and room to hang both a towel and washcloth to dry. A little night light also is nice to be able to navigate an unfamiliar bathroom at night.

And make sure you have coffee, filters, teas, milk, sugar for the morning - either out on the counter, or show them where they are in the cupboards. Even if it turns out they don't even drink coffee or tea, there is nothing worse (for a guest) to not have these supplies. Yes, I speak from experience and even bring my own coffee when I visit certain family members who have proven unreliable on this front.

Fresh flowers, of course. And a few travel-sized toiletries (like a tooth brush and paste) can come in handy for visitors.

i really like that black mirror!

That room is really charming, I love it.

In my imaginary guest room, there is a carafe on the nightstand with fresh water, some magazines to flip through (something my mom has loved when she visits), extra hand-knit afghans, fresh flowers from the garden (when I go home in the summer, my mother always puts lilacs in my bedroom, and it is heavenly), and a lightly scented candle.

No one would be visiting me with the intent of working while they're here, so providing comfort and relaxation to my guests are of utmost importance to me.

I keep seeing that bed frame!!! SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHERE I CAN FIND IT!!! *begs*

I second the snacks idea - there is nothing worse than waking up starving in the middle of the night and not knowing where food is, what you should eat, etc... (A family friend has a story about resorting to eating sweet-n-low in the middle of the night - not too pleasant!)

I never bitch about re-posts, but I feel that this subject has been pretty exhausted in the last 4-5 months, especially around the holiday season. These are all excellent suggestions above, but I don't see anything that hasn't been already suggested in comments responding to prior (and pretty recent) posts. Maybe I'm being too whiny... just strikes me as a really frequent theme.

Only my two cents.

Snacks and water have made for our FAVORITE stays in guest rooms. Pick up a few neat bottles of water...not just your average Dannon bottles. There are some cool ones on the market. Just to make your guest smile, ya know?

Also, maybe a couple of magazines or a neat fact book or something interesting.

And definitely somewhere to put a suitcase or dufflebag rather than on the floor.

Wow, I'm lucky if I get a bed when I'm staying with people.
Ideally, a bed and pillows!
Extra blankets nearby (learned this the hard way during a long summer night in Illinois sleeping next to the open living room windows; it gets so cold there at night!).
A safe place to set my glasses (before I got lasik anyway!).
A tv so I can watch while I fall asleep.
Somewhere to charge my cell phone.
Food is a good idea cuz guests don't always feel comfortable searching the kitchen when they are hungry.
And I'll say it, some extra tampons never hurt (just in case).
If you have dogs, a lint roller please!

snacks, which are extra good if its a friend who is an expat, they will be so so excited to see their favorite home snacks!

protogarrett, it looks like the city block bed from CB2. I don't see it on their website anymore though, but it was covered here on AT.

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/beds-mattresses/city-block-bed-from-cb2-025904

oh yeah, a full length mirror would be great!

I love the dash of yellow!

I'm with you TrueTex, all I get is a bed and a towel when I'm a visitor.

I would like to second the post by home body & suggest you spend a night in your guest digs yourself. To that end-and I know this seems needless to mention-please make sure you are providing adequate sleep space and comfort for the number, size and needs of your guests.
For example...
I recently stayed with a relative who made up a bed for me on their loveseat. The challenges of such an arrangement were as follows:
1. Even though I am barely over 5 feet tall, it was waaay to short for me (I was also at least 7 months pregnant which made it all the more uncomfortable).
2. I know it was a pullout sofa (I helped them pick it out) so...why wasn't it pulled out?
3. Just next to the loveseat was quite a large empty space, enough to easily fit 2 queensized air mattresses. Lying there wide awake at 2am, I pondered giving them one as a thank you gift, then decided against it.

I can only chalk it up to their being inexperienced hosts-they did do all kinds of other things to make me feel welcome, like keeping snacks & my morning coffee on hand. But I really do believe that trying the accommodations for yourself is priceless-I learned by doing this that my own guest room was way to bright, and so hung blackout drapes so my guests can sleep in if they like.

a QUIET clock! (no wind-ups please!)

-a clock
-a bedside table and lamp
-fresh water
-snacks
-towels and toiletries
-good curtains that block out the light
-a phone
-reading material
-a tv is nice
-extra blankets or varying weights
-nothing scented that can't be removed from the room or put away if the guest is sensitive to scents
-call me crazy, but if it's a couple visiting, then maybe some condoms in the drawer jusssst in case. Oh come ON, you yourself told them to "make themsleves at home", right?

my wife likes to put out a some framed pics of us with our guests from a previous vacation or a night out with them.

holy cannoli, margo. 7 mo pregnant, you need just the smallest of courtesy, not to mention the most obvious ones! they must be a bit dense.

I've read good advice to sleep in the guest room for a few nights to make sure everything is in place!

Wowsa - such deluxe ideas!

I'm an extremely easygoing houseguest. The ONE thing I absolutely love but rarely see is a lamp next to the bed. I.e. I can turn off the overheard light, but comfy in bed and then switch off the light within arm's length.

I *hate* having to stumble between the lightswitch and the bed in a strange place. My .02. :^)

1. Two flat pillows for stomach sleepers and two thick pillows for side sleepers. My neck often hurts when sleeping at someone else's house from not having a good support pillow for my side sleeping, and my husband often ends up not using a pillow at hotels because their thick pillows aren't great for stomach sleepers.

2. I'm not going the TV route, but perhaps a radio or ipod with speakers or something to make some background noise. I feel so awkward staying at someone's house with my husband and feeling like we can be heard by everyone. A little music or something can be fun and take the edge off of them feeling like they can't talk to each other without everyone else hearing.

3. And definitely a talk with the guests before they come, if possible. Are they flying? If so, are they trying to bring only a carry on? Maybe offer to provide some toiletries so they don't have to try to pack them, then find out what are their favorites. Little things like that you'd just never know without asking, and will make their stay so much more comfortable. If these are cousins or people you don't know too well, then this would also be a good opportunity to talk about food allergies/pickiness if you'll be feeding them or allergies to pets if you have pets.

4. The pet-thing made me think that a plastic matress cover is a necessity in our guest room. We bought a used matress so covered it with a plastic matress cover so my sister could visit. She's super allergic to everything, so this helps make sure there's not something in the matress bothering her allergies.