(Photo Source: http://www.katieonon.com/guide-start-wave-couchsurfing/)
1. Read about everything on the host’s profile, literally everything. By
reading what s/he writes about her/himself, you will have basic ideas what kind
of person s/he can be. And then you can primarily judge if you are going to get
along well with each other.
2. Next step is to read the references. This is VERY IMPORTANT! References
are the feedback given by the surfers who have stayed with the host. Reading them
are like doing a cross-check. You will know how honestly the host is describing
her/himself on the profile. I wouldn’t really recommend you stay with a host
who has zero or just a few references – this is way too risky! Also it is even
better if the references come from a mix of both sexes, instead of tilting to
just males or females.
3. Choosing a male or female host can be sometimes important but most
of the time it's up to yourself. After all what’s important is the
personalities but not the gender. However if you are going to some relatively
conservative countries like those Islamic countries, it's highly recommended
you stay with the same sex host, just to avoid any embarrassment.
4. Try to get in contact with your host prior your stay with her/him,
by Facebook, Whatsapp or whatever means. Have a little chat with her/him. So
that you understand the person not only from her/his CS page, which
is quite unilateral sometimes, but also through the bilateral communication
between you two. Most of the time, you will know right away if s/he is the right
person you wanna spend time with by just talking to her/him. If you find
something wrong, you still have time to change your mind.
5. Carry light. It may seem at first irrelevant but I find this quite
important when you couch-surf. As you are going to stay in a person
(stranger)’s house, it’s really not a good idea to bring all your stuff from
your home. Imagine yourself trying to dig out a t-shirt from your super-large-sized
luggage of hundreds of items in your host’s tiny little room… how stupid! The
second reason is far more important. In case you find anything wrong with the
host and you need to flee for your life. You ain’t gonna run fast with your
weighty luggage, are you? So for your life’s sake, leave your luggage at home
and go with your backpack.
6. Bear in mind that you are not going to stay in a hotel or hostel but
a person’s house! There are nice houses as well as not so nice houses. So like
a lottery – you may find the host’s house a lovely mansion. You stay in a room
on your own. Have everything you need. Or you may end up in a flat which is
very tiny, not convenient, dirty or in whatsoever shitty conditions, all
depending on your luck, who knows! The only thing is: you can never complain as
someone is doing you a favour!
Ready to be a Couchsurfer? Here you go: Couchsurfing
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