Hostels vs Couchsurfing which one actually saves you more in the long run?

I used to swear by hostels for cheap trips, but after a 10 day stretch in Barcelona where I paid $35 a night for a dorm bed, I gave Couchsurfing a shot. Found a guy with a spare room who showed me around for free, no cash exchanged. But then I had a weird experience in Milan where the host expected me to cook dinner every night, so now I'm torn between paying for privacy or dealing with random expectations. Any of you find one option beats the other hands down?

2 comments

2 Comments

johnson.lee19d ago

Honestly it's not just the money, it's the mental math of trading cash for weird social debts you never agreed to.

jamesmason19d ago

Yeah @johnson.lee nailed it. Hate that unspoken debt awkwardness.