As I have been warmly received by many Couchsurfers in many countries during my past overland trip from Asia to Europe, I decided to re-list myself as “maybe available” on the website. I do not want to start arguing how the site has turned corporate and blah blah blah – and how its alternative, BeWelcome,...

A couple weeks ago, giant hospitality sharing website Couchsurfing has launched his new Android application you can download for free here . I must admit, it was about time. Travelling a lot and being an active Couchsurfer, I was really stoked at the user unfriendliness of the famous website over a small smartphone screen. I...

When you think of places you've visited, do you remember the sights--or the people? In this article, it was the latter that made the lasting impression: I couch-surfed across America . The vivid and quirky cast of Couchsurfing hosts the writer encounters provide enough fodder for its own TV sitcom. An excerpt: Bill, our host...

Fleur Britten's "On The Couch" is the first travel memoir about couchsurfing I've seen; this doesn't mean there aren't any others, naturally, but it does mean that I picked it off the library shelf with a surge of excitement. "Ooh!" I thought to myself. "This is gonna be good!" I was, unfortunately, wrong. Couchsurfing is...

Most travelers are familiar with Couchsurfing at this point. That great nonprofit initiative that connects travelers from all over the globe, providing them with a couch to crash on, some great company and events around the city, or simply a local’s advice. As someone with a decent number of couchsurfing experiences under her belt, I...

It's not like anyone who's on a long-term or RTW trip has to have a travel blog - after all, plenty of people blazed the vagabond trail long before computers were even a thing. But these days it's hard to find a RTW traveler who doesn't have some method set up for keeping track of...

If you're a fan of alternative hostel sources, you might already be familiar with Couchsurfing , the wonderful website where I've found both one of my best friends and a place to live here in Perth. But if you're a touring cyclist, and you're looking for a place to lay your wheels while you're biking...

Okay. So I know I go on and on about the power of social networking sites to connect travelers from around the world. What can I say? I really see them as a game-changer. This week, there's more anecdotal evidence to support my case. First up: An interesting post over at the great quit-your-job-and-travel-the-world blog,...

Several months back I wrote a post about my love for travel networking sites like Couchsurfing or Matador Travel ; today, I'd like to take a moment to re-affirm that love. Sure, networking sites are great for sharing travel tips and practical information, reading about other people's travel exploits, and fueling daydreams about your own....