When you travel, do you book places through AirBnB? I do. To me, it’s a great way to drop into the life of the location you are staying in. Live like a local. And as a plant lover, I find myself drawn to properties that have live plants in them. As I flip through the list of photos that are trying to entice me to book, I find myself lingering on rooms that are decorated with plants.
Because when I travel, while I may want to live as a local, I also like to feel at home. And at my home, there are plants. Lots of them.
When I went on my last trip, I was looking for a house that was walking distance to great restaurants, coffee shops, shops, and a good bakery. But while flipping through photos of houses, the adorable little bungalow with the comfy couch and backyard terrace stopped me because it had houseplants in several rooms.
Not a lot of them. Not a jungle. But a few well-placed pots of succulents, a jade plant, an agave, and a ponytail palm to add life to the space.
Plants infuse a sense of personality, too. Because face it, some vacation rentals are pretty soulless. They feel like they are decorated for efficiency, low-maintenance, and neutrality. Some places are just rooms that a lot of people pass through, sleep in the beds. A place that no one is actually yearning to live in.
The house we rented made me want to stay. And come back. And the little green foliage plants on the kitchen sill over the sink, on the bedroom nightstand, and in the living room on a shelf were all little welcome committees to me. They made me feel at home, even when I wasn’t. That’s nice.
Written by Karen Weir-Jimerson
