Imagine yourself staying for free, three nights, in a one-bedroom flat in Brugges, Belgium–fully furnished, television and DVD player, washer/dryer, flower-filled terrace. Your host is Erik, a Belgian man who owns the Lokkedize, a popular Mediterranean restaurant and jazz club next door. Before Brugges, you spent two nights in Amsterdam, hanging out at Museumnacht with Jens and Anna and their friends, museum hopping until 2am. Got a few hours of sleep at their pad in the ‘burbs then went bike riding beside canals in the morning. Or, you’re putting on a blue winter parka and taking the elevator up to the Absolute Ice Bar in London with your British friend Sally, who lives in a walk-up in CamdenTown a few blocks from the Tube.

These are just a few of my experiences as an online member of www.hospitalityclub.org, www.globalfreeloaders.com and www.couchsurfing.com. No exorbitant hotel rates to pay, no scary hostels with bunk beds and a bathroom down the hall. If you’re lucky – a tour guide to show you around the city! These three groups are free to join. There is another organization called www.servas.org which also does traveler and host exchanges, but they do require a fee of $80 to be a traveler, and a suggested donation of $45 to be a host. This group requires an application and an interview, so if you are a bit nervous about letting people you don’t know stay with you, or about staying with people you don’t know, this organization provides an additional layer of comfort.

A few years ago I was low on cash and wanted to spend New Year’s Eve in Spain. I found websites where people post profiles and say whether they are willing to host guests. (I have to confess I didn’t find a host in Madrid.) The programs work best on a reciprocity basis, when one person lives in a city the other wants to visit and there is an offer to return the favor in the near future.

To get good results, your profile should indicate which dates you are available to host, how many people you will accept as guests, how long they can stay. Add a link to your webpage, Myspace or Facebook page, and post a picture. If you are willing to meet an international visitor for drinks or dinner, mention that too. You know how cool it is to have somebody to eat with if you’ve ever traveled to a foreign country alone. E-mails asking for hospitality should tell as much about yourself as you feel comfortable sharing. Convince the person you want to “freeload” from how much fun you would be to have around.

I have hosted or been hosted by people from Brazil, France, England, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Chile, Germany and Israel. Sally was my first guest back in 2006, and I still remember the e-mail she sent introducing herself. Erik and his wife bunked on my sofabed for 2 nights during the New York City Marathon, because Travel the World I sympathized with their missive that read “Please help us! We have friends running in the Marathon and we don’t want to pay $500 a night for a hotel!”

Viviana, a student from Argentina, stayed with me for 3 nights. Using Hospitality Club, she found enough hosts to spend 7 nights in NYC for free. Considering the average hotel price in Manhattan is $350-$450 a night, well, you do the math. She lives in Tokyo now, and I have an open invitation to visit.

Do you want to travel the world on a budget? Meet locals when visiting exotic lands? Try signing up for an international hosting program. You never have to be lonely or broke in a foreign town again!

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