Hosting

Visitors and groups require a Volunteer or Member to host them during their stay. Hosting is important work, with the host acting as the main connector between the visitor/group and the community. This page collects recommendations about what should be covered by when for a good experience for all. It is written for hosts, but we welcome any curious visitors that may be reading! 😊

Individuals

Before committing

For a visit to work well, it needs to work for the Host, the Visitor and the House. Don't let enthusiasm get in the the way of good judgement! Consider:

• your own capacities (can you be fully present for the first days and mostly present for the time staying? Do you have sufficient energy and good will to get to know and care for someone new?)
• house's capacities (fullness, mood, illness?). Try to ask house's capacities during CoMe or on Mattermost and better arrange a fixed time frame with visitor (that can be prolonged later).
• and Visitor's intentions and expectations (do they understand the nature and unusual features of Kanthaus?) Try having a call to get a better impression of them.

Before arrival

• 📜 Visiting page (phancy physalis!)
• announce time of arrival and departure:
  • in digital calendar (people),
  • on visitor board, and
  • in Mattermost ~in-house and/or at CoMe
• reserve a sleeping spot for the first two nights, private unless otherwise agreed

Upon arrival

• be there to open the door and welcome 😊
• basic needs: water, food, toilets, etc
• find out preferred name, pronouns
• show sleeping place
• help them store their things (shoes, jacket, bag)
• give Wifi password
• find out food requirements and preferences

First full day

• house tour (ca. 1-2h)
• show physical calendar, to-do board, responsibility board, Visitor task list
• tell them that they can esp. approach you as their host for questions
• everything communal unless labeled
• get set up (door access, plate shelf & other storage solutions, potentially office space)

Until 1st week

• join Mattermost
• help find an agreeable way to contribute
• sleeping place information & empowerment
• 📜 Collective Agreements
• 📜 Position attributes table
• 📜 Positions and evaluations
• Visitor check-in after 7 days (an informal exchange about how people are feeling, with a focus on feedback in either direction. Should cover all points above not yet covered.)
• Self check-in (how do you feel with the Visitor and with hosting? Mind that you always can and should ask other VolMems for support or to take over hosting if needed.)

Until 2nd week

• 📜 Meeting culture
• 📜 Additional norms
• Visitor check-in

Until 3rd week

• 📜 Emergency protocols
• Visitor check-in

Every additional week

• Visitor check-in (with the option to instead have an evaluation with or without applying for Volunteer, note that Visitors as well as VolMems can and should ask for an evaluation if useful e.g. lack of communication level)

Before departure

• ask them to write in the guestbook
• tell them to check all places for personal things (sleeping rooms, offices, towel + bathroom shelf, plate shelf, shoe rack, vortex)
• ask for email address for potential future contact

Groups

(Doesn't work hosting at Kanthaus? See Other places for groups)

Clarify the basics

• communicate and find out the following:
  • what is it that they are doing?
  • how many people are coming?
  • when will they arrive (earliest) and leave (latest)?
  • which room(s) will they be using for day-time activities?
  • which room(s) will they be using for sleeping?
  • (when) will they participate in dinner preparation?
  • will they bring food or help us recover it?
• communicate to KH residents about the group coming
  • make a Mattermost post in ~kanthaus and/or a CoMe point
  • put it in the nextcloud calendar in the following format: Group name (n ppl) [host]

Before arrival

• reserve the room(s)
• keep KH residents posted about changes in group size, arrival time, room usage and/or duration of stay
• check the room(s) you offered them for usability, cleanliness and clean them if necessary

Upon arrival

• be there to open the door and welcome them :)
• show them where they can leave their stuff
• show them the room(s) they will be using
• invite them to use the rest of the house as well
• give them a key/tag and/or teach them the door code

During

• give a house tour if wanted
• regularly check in with them to make sure everything is fine
• be available for questions
• make them aware of the guest book and invite them to leave an entry

After

• check the room(s) and leave them in a usable state
• check privatizable storage areas and clear names if necessary

Other information

Visitor task list

There's currently a pad with potential things visitors could do while in Kanthaus. This list is meant to be comprised of tasks which can be done with little to no help from experienced residents. It’s things which are small, and accessible; not super urgent, but still useful. Some tasks have names next to them which can be read as an invitation to get in contact with residents.

Communal agreement

There was a communal agreement on hosting duties. It was removed after a constitutional change in July 2025.

Hosts—Volunteers or Members which agree to host a Visitor—are responsible for taking care that their Visitor and the other residents have the best time possible. This responsibility includes tour-guiding, question answering, helping to avoid common problems and resolving tensions. Hosts are also responsible for organizing a check-in for the Visitor after the Visitor has spent ~7 days at Kanthaus. The check-in round is an informal chat in which the Visitor, their host and one or two Volunteers/Members see how things are going for the Visitor and other residents. Hosting Duty should be explicitly transferred if the current host leaves for more than 2 or 3 days.