Photo by Suse  Nottrott

CouchSurfing parents raise global citizens

by Marcelle Santos

When the economy took a dive in 2008, Lainie Liberti decided to close up shop, get rid of everything she owned, and explore Central America with her 10-year-son, Miro. Since then, they've been to 9 countries, met hundreds of interesting people, and experienced incredible adventures -- all of which are documented in their addictive podcast, "Raising Miro."

A traveling family, Lainie and Miro represent a growing trend in the CS community. While many of the first CS members may have been the typical backpackers – in their twenties, traveling solo – today CouchSurfing is becoming, more and more, a family activity.

Underestimated exchange

“When I found this site, I thought that I could finally give my sons what they need to become real world citizens,” wrote Freyer Boeckx in a recent post on the Family Welcome Group.

A single dad, Freyer was having a hard time creating the type of social environment he wanted for his kids. With CouchSurfing, he now gets to connect with other parents and find out about local family-oriented events.

Winfried Deijamann, who helped organize Budapest's First Family Friendly Meeting, appreciates the fact that CouchSurfing makes it possible for kids from different countries to play together.

"Society in general underestimates the impact on children of exchanges like we have in CS." says this Family Ambassador. He gets his grandkids involved whenever he has guests, especially if they're a family.

"Children don't need verbal language to communicate. Playing together is their means of communication.”

Families host singles (and vice-versa)

If you're a parent, staying with a family who also has kids can also make your traveling experience a lot more convenient. As experienced CouchSurfing mom Susanna Linder points out, this type of couch is already "child-proof," and, even better, holds the promise of “instant friends and toys."

It's not uncommon, however, that single people or a couple with no kids host entire families, and vice-versa. For those who have been on the road for a while, surfing a family couch may mean the first sit-down dinner in months -- a way to kill the homesickness blues. Travelers in need of some peace may choose the atmosphere of a family home over the more hectic vibe of a college student’s shared loft.

In a trip recently taken through France, Katja Heußel, her husband and two kids surfed with people who were neither parents nor belonged to the age group that they're usually in touch with. Getting out of their comfort zone gave them the opportunity to try new things -- including CouchSurfing in a castle.

“We were open-minded all the way and didn't want to miss out on anything. We had a fantastic time!” says Katja.

This positive experience taught them that traveling with the kids need neither be stressful, nor involve arduous planning. "Children don’t need to stay anywhere 'special'. Sea, stones, rain, sunshine, sand, grass, they love everything if they can behave more free than they're allowed to at home."

Parenting advice on CS

Things get a little trickier when traveling turns into a way of life. Issues surrounding schooling and
raising bilingual kids are bound to have parents scratching their heads. To discuss these and other relevant topics on the parenting agenda, CouchSurfers can turn to family-oriented CS groups -- the all-embracing Family Welcome Group being the first logical stop.

J. Journey, who’s preparing to move to France with her 12-year old son, has been using CS family groups to exchange tips and ideas with other single parents, as well as to connect her son with kids his age who live in other countries. The idea is to encourage him to be “more adventurous, and open to a wide range of possibilities and choices.”

Like her, over 4,000 other parents are connected worldwide for mutual help with anything from advice on dealing with teenagers to gathering postcards from around the world for their precocious collectors.


Planning on CouchSurfing with the family? Check out these tips.