Couchsurfing: Staying with Strangers Before Airbnb
Long before the days of Airbnb, there was a little site called Couchsurfing. It sounds like what it is: you stay at someone’s home and sleep on their couch. It’s a good way to meet new people and save a buck or two, as Couchsurfing is free.
The cost of lodging is typically the most expensive part of any vacation. If you’re on a strict you can always opt for a hostel, but for those of you who are on a really tight budget, $10 per day can add up. A solution? Crash on someone’s couch and repay them in kindness, cleanliness, or maybe even a home-cooked meal.
There are 15 million travelers and around 400,000 “hosts” (those willing to share their homes) on the site in 190+ countries around the world. If you’re traveling on a budget, want to meet new friends, and possibly forge lifelong connections, you may consider it for your next vacation.
A little bit of history
In 1999, Casey Fenton was looking for cheap accommodations in Iceland. He managed to score an inexpensive flight from Boston, but he didn’t have anywhere to stay. An avid traveler and a hacker to boot, Felton hacked into the University of Iceland database and emailed 1,500 students to ask for a place to crash. His unorthodox move got him about 100 responses and he was able to find a couch to sleep on.
On the flight back home, Fenton came up with the idea for Couchsurfing.com. Fast-forward to 2004 and the site officially launched. Then, in 2006, so many people were using the website that it crashed, and most if not all of its database and member information was lost.
Thanks to a team of volunteers and several donations, the site relaunched a year later. Since then, the site has gone from non-profit to for-profit due to a need for more financial resources and competition from Airbnb. Now, Couchsurfing even has an application for smartphones which enables neighboring users to chat and meet up with each other.
While the mission of free lodging remains, as of March 2020 users are required to pay $2 per month or $15 per year to use the site. If you want to get verified, which adds another layer of security for other users, you can pay $60.
How does Couchsurfing work?
It’s the same exact concept as calling up a friend and asking to crash on their couch. Except, you’ve likely never met this person. And, although there’s no Couchsurfing without a “couch,” you may also have the chance to stay in a guestroom, or if you’re really lucky, a guest house.
Most Couchsurfers are travelers themselves or perhaps expats who are passionate about sharing their new home. You could also stumble across someone who wants to learn your language and simply practice with a native speaker.
In order to get started, you’ll need to make a profile. If you want to be taken seriously, as a traveler or as a host, it’s essential that you put in as many details as you can. You should also include some photos.
The Couchsurfing website suggests that once you’ve signed up to get in touch with other Couchsurfers in your area so that you can pick their brain and find out what it’s like to be on the site, host other travelers, and to be a traveler yourself. You should also consider attending an official Couchsurfing event, which according to their site, occurs weekly.
When you’re ready to go on a trip yourself, you simply search the city where you’re headed, the dates, and how many travelers you’ll be. You can also use filters to search for verified profiles, people who share interests with you, and even specific genders. This can be especially reassuring for women traveling alone.
Is Couchsurfing safe?
The short answer is, yes. A simple Google search reveals that a lot of other people are wondering the same thing, and most websites say that yes, Couchsurfing is safe.
Whether you’re a host or a traveler, try to opt for profiles that are verified, have a lot of information and photos, and several positive reviews. If the profile looks sparse and there aren’t many, if any, reviews, you may want to move onto the next.
You should also beware of users that use Couchsurfing as some sort of dating site. There are apps for that, and Couchsurfing isn’t one of them. You can usually tell when a user wants to meet people just for the sake of dating or hooking up by their profile. If their profile picture is of them shirtless (I wish I was kidding), you probably want to stay away.
Our verdict
While I have never personally used Couchsurfing, I would definitely consider it if I was doing some solo traveling. One of our team members here at Expeeriences has used Couchsurfing several times and he swears by it. He’s been able to meet new people and he was even able to find someone to apartment-sit his home when he was out of town last summer.
As a gesture of appreciation for a place to stay, you should always try to bring a little gift for your host. A nice touch would be a traditional food or drink from your hometown or home country. And, you’ll want to be as open as possible as most users on Couchsurfing use the site to meet new people and learn about new cultures. In other words, leave your shyness at the door and get ready to chat and connect.
Originally published at https://expeeriences.com on August 5, 2020.
