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8 Thanksgiving Host Tips to Make Your Celebration Go Smoothly

21 Nov 2022 By: Diane Gottsman

If this is your first time hosting Thanksgiving dinner, you may be worried about pulling everything off and being a gracious host while appearing to be at ease in front of your guests. No doubt that preparing an important meal, especially over the holidays in front of your friends and family, is a bit nerve-wracking. The following are some tried and true, time-tested Thanksgiving host tips to make guests feel comfortable and the meal memorable.

Thanksgiving host tips | People Talking Celebrating Thanksgiving Holiday Concept

8 Thanksgiving Host Tips to Make Your Celebration Go Smoothly

A Designated Space for Coats

When guests arrive, direct them to a particular closet or space to hang their coat and purse. Some people may feel uneasy about leaving their belongings in a private area with a group of strangers, but with close friends and family, seeing purses all over the house feels messy and unkempt. Don’t put anything in your handbag you wouldn’t want others to see!

An Area for Wet Boots and Umbrellas

The weather may not cooperate, but that doesn’t mean your guests should walk through your front door with muddy shoes and a wet umbrella. Offer to take their umbrella or have an umbrella stand and guide them to an area where they can leave their wet snow shoes or boots to dry.

Always Accept Help When Offered

Assortment of homemade fall pies. Apple, pumpkin and pecan. Top down view table scene on a dark wood background.

If your guest(s) offers to bring their famous pumpkin bourbon pie or a batch of their brownies to share, say yes. Taking even one thing off your plate is helpful and can free you up to make other dishes and relieve you of unnecessary stress. If you would prefer everyone bring a dish, don’t hesitate to ask for potluck help. “Pot luck” is defined as a communal gathering where each guest contributes a dish to be shared. Thanksgiving is the perfect time to share their homemade bounty. It’s also helpful to accept help when offered to set the table or clear the table.

Order Out

A host should not feel guilty for making some dishes and ordering others. If you know the local deli makes the very best macaroni and cheese casserole, order early and freeze. Stay out of the last-minute long lines for a smoked turkey or side dishes to thaw and put in the oven.

Stick To Recipe Favorites

Writing moms recipes for keepsake

A major dinner party, especially a holiday meal, is not the time to experiment with recipes you are unfamiliar with cooking or eating. Create a timeline, shop early, buy your ingredients and stay true to the holiday classics your friends and family have come to love and expect. A mandarin gelatin mold may not scream Thanksgiving in your family, but it wouldn’t be the holidays without it at our table.

Cook Turkey Parts Rather Than the Entire Bird

It’s not uncommon for some people to want the leg and others the breast, but there are limited amounts of each. The breast tends to be dryer while the thighs and legs are juicy, and there is always someone unhappy with the wings. Consider cooking the most popular parts in your family and leave the rest. It is also easier to cook and more time efficient. A whole turkey often sits in the oven for 3 to 4 hours while turkey parts cook in approximately one hour and a half. You don’t need a carving board and won’t run the risk of cutting your finger when slicing the bird with an electric knife.

Set Up a Coffee Bar

Let your guests help themselves to their own coffee by setting up a coffee station where they can serve as many cups as they wish. Pretty mugs, a variety of sugar and sugar substitute, creamer, both flavored and plain, small napkins and coffee spoons or stirrers is all you need. A hot chocolate station is a sweet surprise for younger guests (with their parent’s assistance).

Send Them Off With a Great Memory

If the host is relaxed, their guests will have twice as much fun. Remember that people have chosen to spend Thanksgiving with you because they enjoy being around you. Make sure you are having as much fun as your guests. Don’t stress over small or big details that may not have gone the way you had planned. No one will remember the food, but they will fondly recall the laughter, fun and special memories of being together.

For more information about working with Diane, America’s “Go to” social and professional (manners) skills authority, please visit The Protocol School of Texas. 

For more Thanksgiving Host Tips, you may also like Thanksgiving Etiquette Q&A. See what Diane is up to by following her on Instagram and Facebook. Find etiquette inspiration on her Pinterest account and keep up with her latest tweets. For more of Diane’s etiquette tips, refer to her posts on Inc. and HuffPost. 

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Diane Gottsman

Diane Gottsman is a national etiquette expert and modern manners professional, sought out industry leader, television personality, accomplished speaker, Huffington Post blogger, author, and the owner of The Protocol School of Texas, a company specializing in executive leadership and etiquette training. Diane is routinely quoted in national and international media including The New York Times, The BBC, CNN, Bloomberg Business Week, Kiplinger, Huffington Post Canada, U.S. News and World Report, and Forbes. She is the resident etiquette expert for two popular morning talk shows, SA Living and Good Day Austin. She has been seen on The TODAY Show, HLN Headline News, WGN Chicago, and CBS Sunday Morning. Her clients range from university students to Fortune 500 companies and her workshops cover topics ranging from tattoos in the workplace to technology at the dinner table and the proper use of social media.