The hospitality tray, or welcome tray, is often the first thing guests use when they arrive: a cup of tea after the journey, a coffee in the morning before heading downstairs. It is a small budget with a big effect on how the room is perceived.
What goes on the tray?
The basics, to adapt to your guests:
- a kettle of 0.8 to 1 litre;
- two cups and saucers or two mugs, with two spoons;
- a selection of teas and herbal infusions;
- coffee: instant, in pods, or in capsules if the room has a machine;
- sugar, sweetener and possibly milk portions;
- optional extras: biscuits, bottled water, hot chocolate.
A storage box for sachets and capsules avoids a jumbled look and speeds up restocking by housekeeping.
Choosing the tray
| Material | Strengths | Which properties |
|---|---|---|
| Solid wood | Warm, upscale | Boutique hotels, four and five stars |
| Melamine | Resists stains and moisture, smart in black | City hotels, mid-range |
| ABS | Light, economical, easy to wash | Budget hotels, residences |
Choose a size that takes the kettle, the cups and the sachet box without anything spilling over the edge. Our welcome trays come in solid wood, black melamine and ABS, with matching kettles and boxes.
Choosing the kettle
It’s the most-used item on the tray and the one most often checked in audits. Points to check:
- Automatic shut-off at the boil and boil-dry protection.
- A 360° cordless base: guests lift the kettle without handling the cable.
- A stainless steel interior or concealed element: easier to descale.
- Reasonable power, so it doesn’t trip the circuit in a room where the hair dryer is running at the same time.
Descale regularly: a furred-up kettle heats less well and makes tea taste bad.
Tray or coffee machine?
Capsule machines appeal to business travellers and higher categories. They need closer restocking and regular cleaning. In many hotels, the right answer is a tray as standard and a machine in superior rooms and suites.
Where to put it
On the desk, the console or a dedicated unit, close to a socket and away from the bed. If your furniture is made to measure, a dedicated space with a built-in socket avoids extension leads and visible cables.
Pair it with the minibar
The tray takes care of hot drinks, the minibar of cold ones: together, they make the room somewhere guests can settle in. See our guide to choosing a quiet minibar.
Tailoring the tray to your guests
- Business travellers: good coffee, black tea, bottled water, a few biscuits.
- Families: hot chocolate, herbal infusions, extra cups.
- International guests: a variety of teas, instant and capsule coffee, sugar and sweetener.
- Eco-minded hotels: fair-trade products, less packaging, a reusable storage box rather than individual sachets.
Hygiene and restocking
The tray is checked at every clean:
- Wash the cups (or swap them for clean ones) after every departure.
- Rinse and empty the kettle, and descale it regularly.
- Restock sachets and capsules, checking the dates.
- Wipe down the tray and the storage box.
A tidy tray, with a box that presents the products, can be checked at a glance: housekeeping saves real time.
Common mistakes
- A kettle placed straight on the desk with no tray: water and coffee marks on the furniture.
- Sachets piled loose in a cup.
- No socket nearby, so an extension lead is needed.
- A kettle that’s too powerful for a room with old wiring.
In short
- A safe kettle that’s easy to look after.
- A tray to suit your positioning: wood, melamine or ABS.
- A selection tidied into a box that’s easy to restock.
Add trays and kettles to your selection: delivery in 3 to 5 working days if the items are in stock.
