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What is the CouchSurfing mission?
When we incorporated CouchSurfing International, Inc. as a non-profit, we filed our official mission statement as:
"CouchSurfing seeks to internationally network people and places, create educational exchanges, raise collective consciousness, spread tolerance, and facilitate cultural understanding."
As a community we strive to do our individual and collective parts to make the world a better place, and we believe that the surfing of couches is a means to accomplish this goal. CouchSurfing isn't about the furniture- it's not just about finding free accommodations around the world- it's about participating in creating a better world. We strive to make a better world by opening our homes, our hearts, and our lives. We open our minds and welcome the knowledge that cultural exchange makes available. We create deep and meaningful connections that cross oceans, continents and cultures. CouchSurfing wants to change not only the way we travel, but how we relate to the world!
Can you give me an example of how this system could be used?
Absolutely!
- You become a member of CouchSurfing.com. Create a profile and fill it out as much as possible, including photos. Be sure to link to any friends you might already have in the network.
- Consider joining some discussion groups in your areas of interests or engage in the chat. You meet some friendly people online and share in some interesting discussions.
- You decide you want to spend two weeks traveling around Europe. You get a ticket arriving in Amsterdam and departing from Florence.
- You log on to CouchSurfing.com and do a search for members within 20 km/miles of Amsterdam, Brussels, Frankfurt, Zurich and Florence- your new travel itinerary.
- You contact interesting prospects from the list and explain the sort of travel/stay you're interested in. Use the "Request to CouchSurf with..." button to include specific details.
- You get several offers for places to stay. You decide that you want to spend a few days in each city.
- You confirm with your hosts, adjust your travel plans, and excitedly fly off to Amsterdam.
- Martin picks you up at the airport and takes you back to his flat in the Rembrandtplein section of Amsterdam. The two of you walk around the neighborhood and meet some of his friends at a lively cafe for dinner. You stay up late sharing stories and getting to know each other. Martin recommends some interesting places you might like to explore around the city. When he returns from work the next evening, he takes you to his favorite pub and you tell him about your adventures. The two of you laugh and connect; you make new friends at the pub, and you're grinning the whole walk home along the canals.
- As an example of a good surfer, you do as much as you can to give back to your hosts. This includes doing simple things like, for example, washing the dishes, making dinner or helping out in some way. Maybe you have a special skill you're willing to share?
- You say good-bye and move on to Brussels, Frankfurt, and then Zurich. In each location you've met some great people and gotten to experience being a part of the culture through your connection with your host. You go places you would have never read about in a guidebook, meet interesting locals, and spend time bonding with your host. You're actually experiencing those "deep and meaningful connections" you've read about on the site, and you're making friends for life.
- You decide to stay a little longer in Florence and your host, Donia, has agreed to let you spend a week with her.
- You spend the week talking with Donia about politics, travel, art, your hometown, and a whole lot of other things. She lets you borrow her bicycle and gives you a map she's marked with some fun places to check out. On the weekend she takes you on a side trip to visit some relatives in a small Tuscan village. You learn to make awesome marinara sauce, you take a hike through picturesque rolling hills and her uncle, a craftsman, gives you a handmade leather belt. You're amazed at the time you're having! Back in Florence, Donia takes you to her favorite gelato place and you know it's the best thing you've ever tasted.
- By the time you leave on the bus for the airport, you feel that you've gotten a good feel for the local life in each of the places you've traveled. You've made many new friends and you hope Martin, Donia and others will visit you. You can't wait for your turn to show them the great things about your culture.
- When you arrive home you are so excited about CouchSurfing you go immediately to the participate tab and start helping CouchSurfing community advance the mission of the project.
Is CouchSurfing safe?
This is one of our most commonly asked questions. CouchSurfing has implemented several precautionary measures for the benefit of its surfers, hosts, and community. Every user is linked to the other users he or she knows in the system through a network of references and friend links. In addition to the solid network with friend link-strength indicators and testimonials, we have our vouching and verification systems. Some of these are new technologies invented by the CouchSurfing founders.
Not just anyone is a vouched for member. Members can only become vouched for by an already vouched for CouchSurfing.com member. Essentially, it's a trust circle.
What is the verification system? In the verification process, we check to make sure your name and address are correct and valid. Once you have completed the process, your profile identifies you as a level 3 verified member. Other people viewing your profile may feel safer about communicating with and meeting you because you are verified. Some people choose to ONLY communicate with other verified members. It's all about your own personal preferences and feeling about safety. For some people, verification may not be important. For others, it is crucial. It's up to you
All of these features help other users determine how trustworthy you are, based on the quantity and 'quality' of the people you know, and how you've participated in the system.
Please Note: You do not need to be vouched for or verified to use CouchSurfing.com. We encourage you to sign up, host, surf, & partake in our community. As time progresses, we hope that you will get more involved through becoming vouched for and/or verified and volunteering, to help strengthen the community!
In addition to the rigorous safety measures in place for hosts and surfers, we have a safety measure in place for the project. CouchSurfing is incorporated, which simply put means a body that is granted a charter recognizing it as a separate legal entity having its own rights, privileges, and liabilities distinct from those of its members. This insures the safety of our members and volunteers from lawsuits (except in cases of individual gross negligence). Non-incorporation passes liability directly to individuals. To the best of our knowledge, CouchSurfing is the only major hospitality network with this legal status.
Do I have to let everyone stay at my house?
Not at all. You can pick and choose whom you want to host. You can meet people to hang out for coffee or a drink only, or you can even make your couch completely unavailable. Offering your couch is all about increasing the number of interesting people and possibilities in your life experience. You can easily decline surfing requests; there is never any pressure to host.
Where are CouchSurfing members located? Is CS just for U.S. travel?
Our members are located all over the globe! There's some speculation out there that CouchSurfing is primarily aimed at the United States and that maybe other sites are better suited for international travel. The fact is, we have 231 unique countries represented, (Antarctica too!), and more couches in Europe than in any other area. We have ambassadors in every region, and our network of 612005 members (since January, 2004) is growing by thousands per week. You can also check out a visual representation by checking out the World Map. To learn more about who's on CS, just visit the statistics page.
Is CouchSurfing free?
Absolutely. CouchSurfing International is a non-profit organization dedicated to the global community. CouchSurfing was created specifically so that everyone can travel the world and partake in cultural exchange. Staying with your host(s) is also always free; it is contrary to the values of CouchSurfing and against our terms of use to charge someone to surf your couch. Many surfers like to bring their hosts gifts or treat them to a meal as a "Thank you," but this is not a requirement. There are infinite ways to reciprocate goodwill.
But this service is so useful! How can I contribute?
There are a couple ways you can help us out. First, if you have a skill you think could benefit this non-profit entity, we want you to get involved in the growth and development of the project (See next question). Second, a little cash never hurts. It costs a lot to maintain the site, and we're completely supported by member donations. We accept donations via credit card and European Bank Transfers.
How can I participate in the growth and development of CouchSurfing.com?
We're so glad you asked! Participation is what makes this community work. We're always looking/needing volunteers to take on specific projects. Please check out the participation section and tell us what you can do! CouchSurfing encourages members to take ownership of the site and it's development. We strive to create a climate where members' ideas are encouraged and implemented. We have an organizational structure in place that welcomes volunteers in an abundance of ways. If you'd like to help spread the mission of CouchSurfing, consider becoming an ambassador. You can learn about all the ways to get involved in the participation section.
Member involvement is a vital part of the growth and development of the project. Simply put, we couldn't do it without you! To that end we have created the CouchSurfing Collective. CouchSurfing is a democratic entity led by the core team where every member can have a say if he or she so wishes. Member involvement is open to the degree that the user wishes to participate. We have great pride the initiatives and ideas created by our members. We are always excited by what will come next.
Is CouchSurfing International a non-profit organization?
Yes! We strongly believe the mission of CouchSurfing International is best served by being a non-profit organization. Our mission is to facilitate high quality experiences for people exploring the world and giving back to humanity. Our goal is to make diverse cultures of the world more connected, making the world a smaller, more peaceful place. We network travelers and locals on every continent, creating friendships and strengthening cross-cultural understanding. The goal of CouchSurfing has never been about money. The site is free to all members and supported only with donations and verifications. We are not now, nor have we ever pursued financial gain; we only strive to make the site self-sustaining.
Why is it a ".com" instead of ".org"?
There's a common misconception that ".com" signifies only a for-profit company, but in actuality any organization can use ".com." Besides, we have .org as well. We are all about options. We want to provide as many ways to access CouchSurfing as possible. For example, CouchSurfing.com has been blocked in the U.A.E. Thanks to the .org, members there can still access CS. We're also registered as a .com for credibility; usually, a .com is recognized as the "first player" in the market, and shows up first in search engines. If we were just .org, we might be seen as a copycat. CouchSurfing.com was first to this web "space" and is therefore seen as the originator/innovator.
What about Privacy?
There are six different privacy settings. Each setting you can turn on and turn off. You can select who can see your profile, which pieces of your personal information to hide from other users, and also if other members will be able to see your online status. You can change these settings by editing your profile and going to the privacy section.
Does CouchSurfing censor the members' emails or group posts?
CouchSurfing does not now, nor has it ever censored members' email or group postings. We allow our members to write and share whatever they wish, so long as it adheres to our anti-spam guidelines and is not considered defamation. We have a policy of inclusion. In addition, we welcome and have structures in place for member feedback and critique. We are a network for and by the people, and appreciate constructive criticism as a means to growth and improvement.
How does CouchSurfing rate in terms of traffic to the site?
While CouchSurfing may not have the most member profiles of all hospitality sites, we certainly have the highest number of active members. A more accurate measurement of a site's population is its traffic. CouchSurfing has more activity on any given day than other hospitality networks. What that means is, more people are logging on, creating full profiles, participating in groups and using the system. Here are some graphs from an independent tracker, Alexa.com:
Daily page views,
Daily reach,
Daily traffic trend
How did you come up with the idea for CouchSurfing?
Well, the idea solidified when founder, Casey Fenton, got a cheap ticket to Iceland for a long weekend one April. With his ticket in hand, there was one problem: he had no place to stay and no desire to rot in a hotel all weekend and play Mr. Tourist. So, he came up with the 'brilliant' idea of spamming over 1500 Icelandic students in Reykjavik and asking them if he could crash on one of their couches. After exchanging emails with many of the students, he had several groups of friends offer to show him 'their' Reykjavik. So, after spending an amazing, crazy weekend just south of the Arctic Circle, Casey decided he would never again get trapped in a hotel and tourist marathon while traveling. From that point onward, it was all about crashing on exotic couches and cultural exchange. And, thus, the CouchSurfing Project was born.
Who runs CouchSurfing.com?
The global CouchSurfing community is what keeps CouchSurfing.com going. We are a completely member supported and driven community. Dedicated volunteers work constantly to improve the site and spread the mission. The original founder of CouchSurfing, Casey Fenton launched the site in beta on Jan 1, 2003 with the help of several other founders. In January of 2004, the site Version 1.0 was made live to the world. After a crazy crash, Version 2.0 was re-designed, re-built and re-organized through the Montreal Collective 2006 and remote CouchSurfers around the world. Version 2.0 was launched in July 2006. That is our brief version; you can read more about our exciting history here.
What about other languages?
This site is translated into several languages, and we are adding new languages all the time. If you can translate from English into a language that you are an expert at, we invite you to participate! It's a good way to get involved in the CouchSurfing.com community.
Have another quick question? Ask it! Go to the Contact Us page right now and do so.
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