sign me up. srsly.
July 18th, 2010
So Today the NY Times Travel feature was about this new kind of travel accomodations popping up throughout Europe…the “impromptu B & B”, where anyone with an apartment or spare room can turn it into an impromptu B & B for travelers and the cost is pretty much just that of an upscale hostel.
Now this idea would not go over well with my father, a retired detective. He would of course consider his daughter, as a woman, alone, staying in a strangers’ home in a foreign country just an overall bad idea…
BUT!!!! To MY mind…if said foreign country was Paris and said stranger was this 26 year old French chef named Julien pictured above then this says nothing but GOOD GOOD GOOD idea to me!
sign.me.up.
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Tags: ny times, Paris, travel
Posted in
Foreign Travel, Paris, francophile |
One Response to “sign me up. srsly.”
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July 18th, 2010 at 10:25 am
I’ve done this a couple of times with no problems in Paris and Barcelona. An architect in Paris and a Photographer in Barcelona. I ended up having the whole apartment to myself in Barcelona for since my “host” had to go out of town, and I became friends with my architect “host” in Paris. Found them on Craigslist.
The trick, like any negotiation online is to be smart and do some research and “stress tests” beforehand - much like online dating or buying a car. Do they provide you with their real name, photos and job info? (in both cases my hosts sent me links to their companies’ web sites that were legit and yes, did include the names and photos of my hosts. Are they willing to provide you the address up front or are they hesitant? Can they provide you with references from other guests? Do they give you a legit phone number? These are just a few ways to easily tell if its legit or a scammer. Another thing to do is CC a family member in an email with them explaining that you just want your people home in the states to have their contact info in case of an emergency. Anyone scamming will probably balk at this.
Do however have a Plan B in mind. If you meet them and it seems weird in any way, get the F out.