I Couchsurfed and Didn't Die... It Rocked!

When I was a sophomore in college weighing my study abroad options, I attended an information session for Newcastle (which is where I ended up going). There was a panel of students who had studied there and one girl said she liked that she had the chance to travel on weekends cheaply: "Flights around Europe were super inexpensive, and I just Couchsurfed, so it was free." My mother was horrified at the thought of it.

During my year abroad, I didn't Couchsurf once. It was a mix of my own skepticism of its legitimacy and a fear of my mom finding out and disowning me (in reality, she would have probably been mad for a few minutes and then gotten over it, but my imagination made it WAY more dramatic). A group of three friends of mine, however, Couchsurfed in Amsterdam and Madrid and had a fantastic experience. My friend Amanda couldn't stop singing its praises, and she even became a host during our senior year when we were back in Baltimore. I met a few different surfers who visited and stayed in her dorm and was pleased to discover that they were all totally normal, even cool/friendly/fun!

It was around the time Amanda was hosting travelers that my mom cut out a newspaper article for me about the site – a glowing review about the writer's trip to Russia and how Couchsurfing helped her get a truly immersive, local experience. I was intrigued, but the next few trips I took were solo, and I didn't want to try it for the first time by myself. 

Amanda and I Couchsurfed over the past weekend in Montreal. She booked it since she had some reviews and my only review was from 2013... written by her. We stayed with a young couple who lived in Verdun, which was a cute, safe neighborhood a short distance outside of the city center but still easily accessed by the metro. We arrived on a Saturday morning, an hour later than expected due to GPS issues and slightly confusing Canadian street signs, and they were extremely patient and understanding of our tardiness. They showed us around their artsy apartment and immediately offered to make us lunch. We had planned to eat out, but it was the nicest, most genuine offer. We sat on the couch and talked for a bit before going to a grocery store down the street and making a refreshing summer meal of chopped salad, gazpacho, a variety of olives, bread and cheese.

We sat outside and talked for about an hour, and Amanda and I talked about our plans for the day. Our hosts (I won't mention their names in this post in case they don't want me to share any personal information) graciously offered to come with us and show us around – one even said he was going to skip work because it sounded like more fun! They took us up Mont Royal, through downtown to their favorite ice cream shop (Les Chocolat Favoris... YUM), to see Les Boules Roses on Rue St. Catherine and up through the Plateau neighborhood to get poutine at La Banquise and eat it in La Parc Fontaine. We walked a total of eight miles and were absolutely exhausted, but we had a phenomenal day and made two new friends who I genuinely hope to see again.

Couchsurfing is an online community of hosts and surfers. Hosts post their home and surfers can request to stay with them for free. It is common etiquette that in return for lodging (and often travel tips, sometimes tours and friendship), surfers buy their hosts a meal or bring a bottle of wine or some other token of appreciation. Most of the time, surfers stay on a couch (hence the name of the website), or sometimes even in a sleeping bag or with some pillows and blankets on the floor. Our hosts offered us blankets, towels and even shampoo. This is not always the case, so be sure to communicate with your host about what you will need to bring. As with any social network, exercise caution when sharing personal information and especially when agreeing to go stay in someone's home. Make sure your potential host has more than one photo, some friends and multiple positive reviews. I read every. single. review. when looking on Couchsurfing (as well as on Airbnb). When you use Couchsurfing, use common sense. If you are smart about it, you could have a safe, free place to stay and potentially make some new friends and have a place to go when you return!