Nomad Diaries #1

How the Couchsurfing App Update Fucked my Social Life

First profile photo for my Couchsurfing account in 2007

I already knew how much I rely on CS to make friends and socialise around the world but what I didn’t realise is how paralysed I’d be when I no longer had access.

Couchsurfing is a global hospitality network and app where users can connect to request free short-term homestays while travelling, organise and attend meetups and events and interact with other locals and travellers. It emphasises cultural exchange, allowing travellers to experience destinations “like a local” while hosts get to meet people from around the world.

I was introduced to the concept by my best friend (pictured above) while we were travelling in Brazil in 2007. She and I were both quite adventurous (and low budget) travellers so we decided to jump right in. We quickly found a couple of hosts in Rio. One took us to Copacabana Beach on NYE and another invited us to spend Christmas with his family in Cabo Frio, both priceless local experiences. It was clear from the start that CS could offer travellers absolutely unique opportunities that would be near impossible to find if staying in a hostel or hotel. I was sold!

Over the years, I utilised the platform all over Europe. I couchsurfed on a tiny boat off the coast of France, stayed in a huge apartment off La Ramblas in Barcelona, in the 19th Arrondissement of Paris, in the trendy Kreuzberg neighbourhood of Berlin, in rustic Sicilian villages and in hip Kadikoy in Istanbul. I could go on and on. As cool as these locations sound, the warm welcomes of my hosts were the real prize. I was taken to local bars and bistros, secret beaches, ancient ruins, and on city tours. I was served local wines and home-cooked meals. These beautiful, generous people treated me, a stranger, with the most incredible hospitality.

I went on to use CS in Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, the UK, back in Europe, all over Turkiye, and even in my home country of the USA. Truth be told, not all of my encounters were based on “surfing couches”. CS can be used for meetups and events, with the ability to check profiles and send messages before or during a trip. There’s even a “hangout” feature that was later introduced which allows users to connect with locals and other travellers in their area in real time. This feature is based on geographic proximity and offers the option to tell potential new friends what you’re in the mood to do. This could be “drink coffee or tea”, “go hiking” or other more general options such as “explore the area”.

I’ve been travelling on and off my whole adult life and since I joined in 2007, I have used CS as a resource. In the last five years, I’ve gone full nomad. No home base whatsoever, and I haven’t stayed anywhere for longer than two months. I’ve vanlifed, stayed with friends, volunteered on sailboats, done pet and housesitting, and I’ve couchsurfed. But no matter where I’ve gone or where I stayed, as an extroverted solo traveller, I’ve always used CS to connect with others. Before arriving in a new destination, I check to see who’s there, send some messages to locals and post a “public trip” for that location. The public trip includes dates and a little explanation of what the traveller is doing/looking for there. More recently, I’ve mostly stopped using CS to be hosted but I still use it for making friends wherever I go.

So you can imagine how I felt when, on one random early May day, I was out. I’d literally been using the app that morning, but suddenly, with their new update, I could no longer get access to my account. I kept hitting a paywall despite having an active subscription for the next few months. I tried to log in a million times. Other friends shared their disappointment about the changes, but they could at least sign in. At the time, I was in Antalya, Turkiye, and luckily, I had already made a couple friends before I was locked out of CS. Despite not being a big city person, I had decided on Antalya for opportunities to socialise. Big city, more people. But I quickly realised that CS had become my main source of reaching those people. What a slap in the face. I spent a ridiculous amount of time writing angry emails to CS support, begging for answers and solutions. Frustratingly, they would only respond about once a week and struggled to provide a working solution. So I didn’t have CS and I didn’t meet many new people during that time. It’s crazy to think of the experiences and connections I missed. I’ll never know.

Finally, after four weeks, and since leaving Antalya for my next destination, I decided to pay. Just for a one-month subscription via the Apple Store to see if that was the way to get back in. Sure enough, and as soon as that money was sent through, I was back. I had something like 50 messages, from local hosts in Antalya and other places, too. I had arrived in Alanya, where I’d spend the next month, and was very keen to make some connections. I spent the afternoon trying to figure out the new app and trying to locate old messages, some of them missing.

I know I’m not the only one who was affected by the update. I was reading mega threads on Reddit about all the issues people were complaining about. Sadly, a lot of old school CSers like myself have decided to leave the platform, which will obviously make the CS experience worse.

For anyone wondering if the concept is safe, the answer is no. You can check someone’s references but when you deliver yourself to someone’s private property, you can never be 100% sure. Also, many people use CS as a dating app. There has been plenty of inappropriate behaviour by both hosts and surfers. But all I can say is that in my experience (which has been extremely mixed, believe me), the good outweighs the bad. As frustrating as my month without CS was, I will continue to use the platform to find like-minded locals and travellers. And I will continue to seek the “local experience” despite the risks involved.

Here’s hoping I’m still on there when my month sub runs out. We will see.

• Update: I was kicked off the platform again once the Apple Store subscription was no longer valid. Cue weeks of more angry messages to support, who took even longer to respond. I nearly gave up hope when they finally sorted out the issue by issuing me a new subscription?! Whatever they finally did, it worked. That very night I was able to meet a Turkish girl for a walk and nice conversation by the seaside, the exact type of thing I am using CS for. As the solo extrovert I am, my cup was full. I hate having to rely on an app for anything but if I need CS to make new friends while travelling, so be it.

Various profile pics from the past years