I’m all for trying something new and it’s a bonus when its budget friendly, so when my roommate suggested we try couchsurfing for our visit to Stockholm, I enthusiastically agreed. CouchSurfing is a social networking site where people can seek or provide free accommodation for travellers. Now, I’ve always strongly believed and abided by Stranger Danger, but for some (unfounded) reason, I decided that couch surfing in Europe must be safer than anywhere else!! The roomie already had a CouchSurfing profile set up, so we got to work and started messaging our potential hosts.

How it works:
1. Create profile
2. Send messages and duration of stay to open hosts in chosen city
3. Wait for responses

We lucked out and ended up being accepted by a super friendly person who was a great host (and also CouchSurfer Verified, motheeerrrr!) It was so much fun having a local take us around, give us tips on getting around the city, places to visit, etc. I’m really happy I tried out couchsurfing, not for the free accommodation, but for the unique experience accompanied by a new friend. And also because we would have otherwise never found our way to IKEA.