Couchsurfing is definitely the best solution for backpackers to save money on lodging and food. In addition you meet people from all over the world and make a huge cultural exchange.
You don’t need to do couchsurfing always with strangers you found on the site. Sometimes people you meet on your travels offer you a place because they are already in the network, it occurred to me three times. One of them was Bernardita, whom I met in Prague, Czech Republic.
