Cabin supplies list: what a shared vacation home should always have
You arrive at the cabin late on a Friday, the kids are hungry, and there's no coffee, one roll of toilet paper and an empty dish soap bottle. Nobody did anything wrong. The last family simply didn't know they had used the last of it, and you didn't know to stop at the store. In a shared vacation home, supplies run out quietly unless someone keeps track.
The fix is a short, agreed list of what the house should always have, a rough idea of how much, and a habit of writing it down when something runs low. Here is a cabin supplies list you can copy, plus a restocking routine that works when several families take turns.
Why a shared house needs its own list
At home you notice when the paper towels are almost gone because you're there every day. At a cabin, the person who uses the last roll may not be back for a month, and the next family has no idea. A supplies list does two jobs: it tells everyone what they don't need to pack, and it gives you something to check against before you leave.
Keep it separate from your personal packing list. What each family brings for a trip is covered in our lake house packing list. This list is about what lives at the house.
The cabin supplies list
Adjust it to your house, but most shared cabins and lake houses do well with something like this. The "keep on hand" column is a starting point – a level where you restock before you run out.
| Category | Item | Keep on hand |
|---|---|---|
| Paper goods | Toilet paper | At least 2 rolls per bathroom, plus a spare pack |
| Paper towels | 2–3 rolls | |
| Tissues, napkins | 1 box, 1 pack | |
| Kitchen basics | Coffee, filters, tea | Enough for one full weekend |
| Salt, pepper, cooking oil, sugar | 1 of each, opened is fine | |
| Foil, plastic wrap, zip bags | 1 of each | |
| Trash bags and recycling bags | 1 full box | |
| Cleaning | Dish soap, dishwasher detergent | 1 bottle, half a box or more |
| All-purpose cleaner, sponges, toilet cleaner | 1 of each, sponges in a pack | |
| Laundry detergent | Enough for a few loads | |
| Bathroom | Hand soap, shampoo for guests | 1 per sink |
| Basic first aid kit | Check bandages and pain relievers each season | |
| Safety and power | Flashlights, spare batteries | 1 flashlight per bedroom, a pack of each common size |
| Light bulbs | A few of each type the house uses | |
| Matches or a lighter, fire starters | 1 box, 1 pack | |
| Outdoor | Sunscreen, bug spray | 1 each in season |
| Propane or charcoal for the grill | 1 full tank or bag in reserve |
A pantry shelf of long-lasting food can also save a late arrival: pasta, a jar of sauce, canned soup, crackers, oatmeal. Agree that it's for emergencies and gets replaced, so it doesn't turn into a free-for-all.
Things that don't belong on the list
- Fresh food. Milk, bread and produce go bad between visits. Each family brings their own and takes leftovers home, or throws them out before leaving.
- Personal favorites. One family's special coffee or brand of cereal is their own business. Keep the shared list to basics everyone uses.
- Things you only need once a year. Gutter cleaning supplies or winterizing gear belong on a maintenance or closing checklist, not the weekly shopping.
A restocking routine that actually works
The list is only half of it. What keeps the house stocked is a simple rule everyone follows. The most reliable version has three parts.
- Use the last one, write it down. Whoever opens the last roll of paper towels or the last bag of coffee adds it to the shopping list right away – not "later", and not in the group text where it scrolls away.
- Check the list before you leave home. Then you can pick things up on the way, instead of discovering the gap on arrival.
- Do a two-minute sweep before you lock up. Open the cupboard under the sink, look at the toilet paper and the coffee, and check the propane. Add anything that's below the "keep on hand" level.
A shared list everyone can see makes this much easier. In FamilyHut, the shopping list is shared with the whole family, so whoever adds dish soap on Sunday makes it visible to the family heading up on Friday. You can also add the departure sweep to a departure checklist, so it's part of closing up rather than something people have to remember.
Who pays for the supplies?
Basic supplies are small amounts, but they add up over a season, and it often feels like the same people always buy the toilet paper. Pick one approach and stick with it:
- Whoever buys, logs it. Each purchase is recorded as a shared expense, and the families settle up a few times a year. This is the fairest if usage varies a lot.
- Take turns. Each family is responsible for restocking during their weeks. Simple, and it evens out if everyone uses the house about the same.
- A shared fund. Everyone contributes to a common pot that covers supplies. Works well if one person is happy to do the shopping.
If you already split other costs, fold supplies into the same system. Our guide to splitting vacation home costs walks through the options. FamilyHut can track shared expenses and work out the fewest payments needed to settle up, which helps if you go with the first approach.
An example
Three siblings share a cabin by a lake and take turns through the summer. They agree on a supplies list taped inside the pantry door, with the same items in their shared shopping list. The rule is simple: use the last one, add it. On a Sunday in July, the oldest brother notices the trash bags and dishwasher pods are nearly gone during his departure sweep and adds both. His sister sees them on the list on Thursday, picks them up on the drive Friday, and logs the receipt as a shared expense. Nobody had to send a message, and nobody arrived to an empty cupboard.