@Immaculate1 It seems a gift made locally is both from the heart; as you support a local store, artist, or market, and it will remind your guest of their visit. As a person who travels a lot, I find anything that has to be carried takes up valuable luggage space, so the smaller the better and the lighter in weight, the better. My personal preference is something edible, so they can use it right away if they want.
I do not as a rule give gifts to guests, but I will give everyone as much time and effort as it takes to help them have a successful trip. The guests who have engaged in conversation, asking advice have walked away with the better experiences. For every guest who is a coffee drinker, I purchase freshly roasted, artisan coffee for their use while staying in my property.
I have, on several occassions, given a half pound box of locally produced, hand made chocolates, that I hand picked, so each gift was personalized. Though I prefer milk chocolate, I will buy dark chocolate if that is my guest's preference. I have no criteria for that, it just seemed right at the time. Several times I have taken a person traveling alone to lunch, just because they seemed like they wanted some company. Sometimes an experience is more important than a gift.
