Europe String

Alternate Accommodations

by Jacy Meyer on September 7th, 2008

We’ve talked a lot about how to sleep cheap, as hotel accommodations can quickly eat up your travel budget. But if you are an adventurous sort, there are multitudes of other ways you can catch your forty winks without losing sleep over the price.

CouchSurfing is the social networker’s way to find a free bed. Basically, you sign up on the site, offer your spare room, couch or other sleeping implement to a traveler passing through your town, and when you go a’ visiting, you can crash at someone’s pad as well. Another similar option is a home exchange. At these sites, you most likely will pay a fee for access to the company’s database of subscribers. You find a place you’d like to go and contact the owner directly to perform a home switch. You’ll go to their house and they’ll come to yours at the same time. One company is HomeExchange.

If the idea of staying in someone’s home appeals to you, and you don’t mind watering their plants, you can sign up to be a house sitter. You’ll have to pay a small fee to be registered as a sitter, but then you may receive offers from around the world to take care of someone’s house while they are away. Pets are sometimes included, and you may have to pay your own utility bills, but it may be a good option for someone who can be away from home for perhaps extended periods of time. House Sit World is one company.

Pop in tomorrow for more ideas on how to get free or really cheap accommodation in exchange for a little work on your part.

Photo Credit: Dave Austria@Flickr

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