Inside the couchsurfing community of Bengaluru

About 250 people from Bengaluru are active on the platform. They offer free stay, food and experiences to intrepid travellers

Painters, artists, comics, readers... Many interest groups converge in Cubbon Park on weekends. Recently, a group of couchsurfers were seen hosting a meetup.

Couchsurfing is a hospitality exchange service, popular among travellers. Locals host travellers in their homes for free, sometimes also taking care of their food and
sightseeing needs. Conceptualised in 1999, the idea is to foster a cultural and social exchange between the two parties. People can discover hosts and guests via couchsurfing.com or its app.

More than 80,000 Bengalureans are listed on the service and about 250 of them are active. Male hosts are significantly higher.

Besides offering a spare bed and a taste of local food, some Bengalureans also accompany intrepid guests in their exploration of the city. It’s also not uncommon for hosts and guests to teach each other skills they know, such as languages or financial planning.

Of all foreign tourists, people from Spain look out for couchsurfing experiences in Bengaluru the most, Rajesh Chitturi, a host, points out.

Dr Biju Prasad, a veterinarian by profession, has hosted travellers from seven countries in his Kammanahalli flat since last year. He views couchsurfing as a cultural exchange. “It gives me diverse perspectives on food, clothing, politics, climate change, travelling experiences, etc. I wish to host people from at least 50 countries in the next 10 years,” he says.

A businessman, Rajesh says he has hosted 678 people from 74 countries. While he acknowledges the security concerns around letting a stranger stay over, he has been lucky so far. “There will always be people who will use opportunities for unintended purposes such as scamming but I have only come across good people,” says the MG Road resident.

Couchsurfing likely took off in Bengaluru a little over a decade ago and it continues to thrive because of the frequent meetups the community organises in the form of treks, road trips, picnics or dinners.

Free stay is certainly a factor for people choosing couchsurfing but it isn’t just about that, many people told Metrolife. Some travellers use this platform to find local people to hang out with and not just for free shelter.

Look up couchsurfing.com for details.