#hellohomestay

We’re always curious to hear what our guests think of the homestay experience. In some cases, our guests are seasoned travellers and familiar with the homestay concept, but for others it is a completely new experience. Regardless of your reason for travel, we want to ensure that every guest has a happy homestay, so we look for feedback on their travel experience.

With homestays located around the world it’s incredible to hear of the variety of different experiences our guests have. From interning in San Francisco to a family holiday in the Gold Coast, our guests travel all over the world and their feedback is as much a reflection of the growth of the Homestay network as it is of their travels. Here is a selection of some of our guests’ travel experiences with Homestay.com We hope that as we continue to grow so too will the Homestay experience.

When Alicia (pictured above) from the United States went to Sicily for the first time, she wasn’t sure what to expect. Luckily her hosts Michel and Giovanna were on hand to help her feel at home. She told us about her experiences and gives a word of advice to anyone planning on booking a homestay:

“Staying with Michel and Giovanna enriched my experience exploring Palermo and helped make my visit there very memorable. Welcoming me to stay with them, they made their house feel like home. They introduced me to great spots in the city and gave me a warm and personal experience of Palermo. Their hospitality and true caring spirit left me with wonderful memories of my stay, and new friends in Sicily. I would highly recommend the homestay experience. Spend time with your hosts; take opportunities through them to get to know the community. They'll provide you a unique window into life in a new place, and a personal experience in your destination leaving you with both new memories and new friends.”

Xandré and Stefan (pictured above) from South Africa echo this advice, based on their homestay experience in Los Angeles with hosts Brandon and Elizabeth. Having dinner with their hosts and the ease with which they booked their accommodation took the stress out of such a long journey.

“Elizabeth & Brandon were great hosts! They really welcomed us into their home! They even cooked us dinner on our last night! Great people! The room and facilities was exactly as described, everything was clean and neat. The location was easy to find. This was our first time using homestay and we would recommend it to anyone and everyone!”

Our guests travel for a variety of reasons, from tourism and leisure to internships and study abroad programmes. Our guests Kim from Delaware (pictured below) travelled to Holland for the Hockey World Cup and stayed with host Anne-Lise in Rotterdam.

“Staying with Anne-Lise was above and beyond anything we could have imagined. She was so warm and inviting. We will definitely be staying with her again the next time we visit Holland. This was my first experience staying at a homestay and it was amazing!”

Some of our hosts even go on to form friendships that go beyond the homestay experience with their host, such as Mishca from the UK who stayed with Liz when she came to Dublin for a flower show. The two ended up going together and have vowed to stay friends as a result of meeting through Homestay.

Homestays are not just for individuals or couples travelling however, many of our hosts are family-friendly and are willing to accommodate children or groups of travellers. Talk to your host when you are inquiring about travelling with children, ask your host if they can accommodate or even better, look out for hosts with children of a similar age. Guest Duy Quang from Malaysia travelled with his family. He was delighted with the setup he found at host Leanne’s property in the Gold Coast, western Australia.

Left: Duy and family at their homestay on the Gold Coast; Right: Mishca and host Liz having fun in Dublin.

“The house is spacious and has a lot of things to keeps the kids occupied. The swimming pool, and trampoline was popular with our kids and there was also a skate board pad and pool table. There is a BBQ by the pool so it was very convenient.”