\HOW TO FIND CHEAP ACCOMMODATION
Accommodation is one of the biggest fixed costs travelers have and reducing that cost can lead to big savings on the road! I’m sure many backpackers would sleep in a barn if it was the cheapest accommodation they could find! Heck, I’ve slept in hammocks in national parks to save a buck!
But that’s not something you have to do.
No matter what your accommodation tastes may be, one thing everyone has in common is that no one wants to pay a fortune for it. Since you have to stay somewhere every night, reducing this expense can save you a lot of money off the total cost of your trip. Next to finding a cheap flight, finding free or inexpensive lodging will have the biggest impact on your budget.
Luckily, there are many ways to find cheap accommodation when you travel. Here are the best ways to do so:
Cheap Accommodation Tip #1: Stay in Hospitality Exchanges
One of the best ways to get free accommodation is by staying with someone who lives where you’re going. Stay with a local who will give you a free place to rest your head, local information, and someone to hang out with! This is one of my favorite ways to save money and one that nets a really awesome cultural experience too! There are a few websites that make this happen:
Couchsurfing is my favorite of them all (it’s also the biggest and has the most active community it). The goal of the site is to help travelers not only save money on accommodation but also learn about the local culture by being able to stay and interact with a local.
I use this site all the time, and I think it’s one of the greatest things to happen in travel. While I love the fact I can get out of hostels and hotels and save money, what draws me to the site over and over again is that I get to see the local side of a city. I get taken to parties, and restaurants, and sites that aren’t in any guidebook.
A lot of times, people are scared to couchsurf because they wonder if it’s safe. I was nervous about it at first, too. There you are, in a new city, with all your stuff — in a stranger’s home. What if they try to murder you in your sleep? What if they steal your stuff? However, I’ve found that people who are willing to open their homes to strangers tend to be very open-minded people, and are also usually former travelers. They know what you are going through. They want to help. Couchsurfing is aware of this and take many steps to provide security. It offers various levels of verification and allows users to rate and leave comments on people’s profiles.
When I am looking for a Couchsurfing host, I use the following criteria:
- There has to be a picture with the profile. This just shows me that it’s a real person.
- The profile has to be filled out. It shows they are interested and involved. Most people aren’t going to spend the time to fill this out if they aren’t going to be comfortable with strangers in their home. If someone hasn’t bothered to fill out the profile, they probably don’t use the site and I simply move on.
- They should have reviews. If other people have stayed with or have at least traveled with the host and had a good experience, you and your stuff will probably be fine. You might not get along with the host but at least you know they aren’t a creep. The more positive reviews, the better.
- Verification helps. Couchsurfing offers different levels of verification. People can be verified by other travelers, with a mailing address, or with a credit card. Knowing that a person has been verified reduces the likelihood that they are going to be a crazy psycho killer. However, if someone isn’t verified but has a lot of reviews, that’s O.K. with me.
No matter what, you need to use your own judgment but I haven’t heard of any really bad couchsurfing experiences, besides the host being a jerk or a little anti-social. Usually, you end up talking with hosts over e-mail to get a feel for them and what they expect. If it doesn’t seem right, don’t do it! But once you couchsurf for the first time, you see that it really isn’t that bad. If you do it frequently, you’ll end up saving hundreds upon hundreds of dollars on accommodation and making friends around the world.
For more information on how to crush it on these services, read this article. It will give you tips and tricks on how to find a host and how to stay safe!
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