When I come
home from travelling I always get asked: “So where did you sleep the past 2
months abroad?”
My answers
are mostly like: “I stayed in hostels, with couchsurfing or Airbnb.“
And then
the second question is almost always: “What is that, this couchsurfing thing
and the other one with Air?”
I
understand that most people (especially family members) don’t know about these
new ways of travelling, so it’s always a bit tricky to explain to my grandmas
and uncles how this couchsurfing thing works and how I can live with it. Mostly
their reaction to the fact that I spent one month sleeping in stranger’s beds
and couches is dismay. But I am always prepared for that because none of my
relatives have ever experienced this kind of travel, so I await a couple more
minutes of explaining the benefits of these great alternatives of going around.
About Couchsurfing
As I am
more the shy person, I was pretty nervous and also a bit anxious before my
first couchsurfing experience. I was worrying about that I wouldn’t find the
place or the guy would be awful, unfriendly or rude. Unless I wrote to my first
host before staying with him, I was still suspicious, but I told myself often
enough that everything will be fine and if it wasn’t I could still go and find
a hostel.
But all
these worries were unfounded because the guy was a super nice hippie who had
prepared me some food on my arrival which I appreciated a lot because I had
been starving all day long.
He also
introduced me to his friends and flatmates and showed me around the appartment.
When I later fell on my matress in a separated room! I was so happy I had the
guts to try out this couchsurfing thing. Every beginning might be a struggle,
but it’s worth it. And once you got into it you want to do it again and again.
So far the
sunny side of couchsurfing. Of course there are some downsides and things you
have to watch before staying with someone.
But all in all
couchsurfing is not a bad thing isn’t it?
I have heard so many positive stories
by confident surfers and if you watch some unwritten rules you can’t do anything
wrong. Just have in mind that only you (and nobody else!) makes the choices for
yourself, which means if you feel uncomfortable with any situation you can
leave whenever you want or you can ask if you are unfamiliar with something -
just don’t feel like you have the duty to stay with that person, because he or
she opened his or her door for you. ALL the couchsurfers I met so far, told me
that - and it is the truth – more importantly the essence of your safely
travels! I don’t want to say that couchsurfing is absolutely safe because I
heard about travelers that haven’t always been treated well or had
complications with communicating with their hosts. There are many different examples
and if you are interested I would like to talk about that in another post
sometime soon?
About the
other one: Airbnb
Is this
cool thing for what advertises appear everywhere on web pages these days. Once
you know the sign you can recognize it everywhere.
“How does
it work?” they ask.
Well, it
just works like couchsurfing but with payment. Over the Airbnb website or App
you can type in the place where you’re going and see all the homes and rooms
listed. There are also options for filtering your results, like price maximum
or equipment.
Once you’ve
found your perfect place, you can either press the direct booking button or
contact the host with a direct message. I prefer the direct message first
because you get to know your host a bit in advance and can better discuss your
arrival time or the paying method.
It is not
complicated at all to get a room with Airbnb or a stay with a welcoming
couchsurfer due to the user friendly pages of these companies. Both offer a
webpage and the application, so you can comfortably contact your host from
wherever you are.
Whenever I
hear my family and friends saying again that sleeping at strangers' homes is
too dangerous for a girl, I tell them how great it always was and how many nice
people I got to know through this. Overall to make clear how prejudiced we all are over
people in the world. Because in fact, we are all humans with experiences to
share and gratefulness to give.
I am very grateful for all those who have
hosted me and given me a place to rest and a laughter to share. Who have shown
me their favourite places around their hometown and introduced me to their
dearest friends. I am thanking them while I want to give something back.
I want
to give back to the people this experience of hospitality and kindness. Just
this feeling when you expect nothing and get a lot in return. It’s the best!
These are
only the two options I tried while travelling. Of course there are a lot more
websites and social networks for staying with local people around the globe
like HomeStay, MyTwinPlace or HomeAway
If you know
any more of these kinds of networks, please let me know! I am wondering if you
already made some experiences with hosting or staying with others through CS or
Airbnb?
Have a Merry
Christmas :)
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