Couchsurfing, The Easy Way To Travel Around The World

Nia S. Amira
[email protected]

Last 12th June, 2016 was the 17th Anniversary of Couch­surfing International and was celebrated around the world. Couchsurfing or CS was also celebrated in Jakarta, Depok and Bogor with huge of happiness.

CS Bogor was established in 2010 by four moderators namely Moulya Muhammad, Hani Hamid, Yudha Nugraha, and Thesa Siswan­to. Yudha had requested to the HQ of Couchsurfing to have their per­mission to make CS Bogor Website in orde to facilitate the access for traveling, sharing cost, sharing bud­get amongst the CS members both local and foreign country. In fact, CS Bogor was part of CS Jakarta ( Jabo­detabek).

In 2013, Zahakir Haris joined CS Bogor and soon after he joined, he met some active members and held some meet up or gathering and constantly invites the first modera­tors to join the program and sharing about couchsurfing bogor. Under good monitoring from some active members, other members show their enthusiasm. Further, CS Bogor actively holds some good programs and made a logo as well as CS Bogor T-Shirt you can see from the 17th CS International celebration.

The Couchsurfing project was conceived by Casey Fenton in 1999, according to Fenton’s account. The idea arose after finding an inexpen­sive flight from Boston to Iceland. Fenton randomly e-mailed 1,500 students from the University of Ice­land asking if he could stay. He ulti­mately received more than 50 offers of accommodation. On the return flight to Boston, he began to develop the ideas that would underpin the Couchsurfing project. He registered couchsurfing.com at the same year.

Initial growth of the site was slow. By the end of 2004 the site had just over 6,000 members. In 2005, growth accelerated and by the end of the year, membership stood at just under 45,000. As of October 2011, shortly following its privatiza­tion, Couchsurfing had over 3 mil­lion active and inactive members (Fenton stated the number of active members was approximately one million) and was the most popular free accommodation site.

There is no more pricey acco­modation once you decided to trav­el around the world with CS friend. With your limited budget, you can still make the trip around the world , just like you stay some nights at your best friend’s home and feel like at home, this is also the best way to know other culture from the genu­ine source, your host. Your host, mostly in Europe will frankly say to you of which things they can pro­vide during your stay in their place. If you are lucky, you can have very good couch like staying in a nice room and more, your host will take you around the city and treat you lunch or dinner. But if not, then just consider yourself as an exchange student with some limitations. Just make your traveling like an easy one and enjoy yourself as much as you can. And if you have certain bud­get for sight seeing, then take your host along and treat them lunch or dinner, this will give you point plus for the next recommendation. In fact, you are on holiday, so be wise, friendly and helpful in such ways.

The only thing you must do is to register to become a member. After you are registered as member by having a recommendation from your CS friend, then everything can be controlled by clicking the buttom. The website will provide a platform for members to “surf” on couches by staying as a guest at a host’s home, host travelers, or join an event once you need to go to oth­er city or country.

Let’s join Couchsurfing Inter­national Inc. As this is the best way to have hospitality in other country you would like to go with free acco­modation. More…let’s make friend with everyone around the globe and it is FREE.