Indians log on to find homestays abroad

A chance web search transformed Santacruz resident Rushabh Sanghavi’s Europe holiday last year. The 29-year-old stumbled upon online community Airbnb.com, whose members open up their homes to travellers at reasonable rates.

A chance web search transformed Santacruz resident Rushabh Sanghavi’s Europe holiday last year. The 29-year-old stumbled upon online community Airbnb.com, whose members open up their homes to travellers at reasonable rates.

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In Paris, Sanghavi and three friends found a furnished studio apartment at half the cost of a hotel. “The host also gave us good tips on taking in the local flavour. We spent a day sipping wine by a canal — a priceless experience no tourist guide could have given us,” said Sanghavi, an e-entrepreneur.

The trio found similar accommodations in Barcelona and Amsterdam during their 25-day vacation.

Sanghavi is among a significant number of travellers using online communities to find more affordable accommodation abroad. Over the past seven months, San Francisco-based Airbnb recorded bookings for more than 29,000 nights from India, a 240% rise over 2011.

Similarly, data shared by CouchSurfing.com, an online platform that encourages free accommodation on barter, show that Indian memberships rose from 29,500 in 2010 to 62,500 till August this year.

“These are generally up-wardly mobile travellers who prefer a small local cafe over a Starbucks,” said Subhash Motwani, director of tour agency Compact Travels.