Home - Home Away From Home

Just because you're traveling, doesn't mean you shouldn't feel at home

by Cristina Cañizares

My stateside career required me to travel constantly - 2-3 weeks out of the month, on average! It was rewarding but exhausting. Luckily those days are long gone, and today most of my traveling is done for fun not work! My road warrior days taught me a few useful travel tricks, most importantly how to make hotel rooms feel a lot more like short-term homes than crash pads. After all, I spent more time living in hotel rooms than I did my own home. Below are some of my favorite tricks for transforming rental villas and hotel rooms into comfy and familiar spaces.

Bring Home With You

Pack small reminders of home. Carry picture frames with pictures of loved ones or pets with you. Place them on top of dressers, nightstands and bathroom vanities to personalize private spaces.

Craft a familiar environment and drown out ambient noise with your favorite music. Bring along your iPod or mp3 player. Call ahead and find out if your villa has a docking station or invest in a pair of tiny-but-mighty travel speakers.

Take a set of your favorite pillowcases on your next vacation. They pack easily, and the familiar scent and texture will help you fall asleep faster. Avoid white, though, so as not to confuse your comfy linens with standard-issue hotel bedding. I learned this the hard way!

Bring what's important to you. If you're an avid cook and plan on cooking, bring along your knives or a can't-live-without-it kitchen gadget. Coffee drinkers, pack your favorite coffee and/or coffee cup. It makes it much easier to get comfortable if you're surrounded by what's important to you.

Unpack and Redecorate

You don't live out of a suitcase at home so why should you while on vacation? Take the time to unpack your things and put away luggage racks and suitcases. Use the closets, dressers and bathroom storage to keep your things neat, organized and out of sight.

De-clutter your rented abode. Place the room's compendium and advertising materials in an easily accessible drawer or cupboard. Move lamps, chairs and small furniture around to suit your needs. A lamp from a bedroom, for instance, can be used in place of harsh overhead lighting in a dining room, and a chair from the living room can be moved next to a sunny bedroom window to create a cozy reading nook. It's your home for the duration of your vacation; make sure it works for you. Just be courteous and put things back in place upon departure.

Liven nondescript tables and spaces with arrangements made from found objects such as local flowers, foliage, fruits and seashells. Use pitchers, glasses, platters and ice buckets as whimsical vases for your creations. Sarongs, throws, scarves and travel shawls can also serve to soften the look of sofas, decorative pillows and occasionally tables while injecting your personality into the space.

With a little planning and imagination your week's rental can be transformed into your very own home away from home.

Cristina Cañizares is a decorator and designer of home accessories. Read her blog at caribbeanchicliving.blogspot.com or contact her at hello@cristinacc.com.

March 2010