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https://www.warmshowers.org/ (clicking may cause disappointment)
We have our first visitor tonight, Andreas from Germany, who's on a two month cycle tour of the U.K.
We're all a little bit excited. Great way to gain insight into other countries / culture from your own home.
Done it once. Nice american lass who was on a europe tour. Others who have asked have been at really inconvenient times
Same. Did it once.
Nice guy arrived with beers ebded up cycling with him from glasgow to stirling on my fixie skidder in the pissing rain.
Was fun but as above the few requests just didnt work
had a couple of visitors so far (last summer), another may be arriving this week, another one or two near misses that didn't fit our schedule. Not used it as a cyclist yet...
We've had a few. I only open up availability at times when I can do it for work sensitivity reasons. It's been fun. Met some interesting people. Cooked for them and had a meal and a few beers together but they camped in the garden.
We have had a couple of no shows which if you have bothered going shopping and making sure you are in a position to offer a bit of hospitality is a bit annoying. Looking at their review history afterwards it was clear one of them set up multiple hosts for every night and took the one he got nearest to when he was done cycling for the day. I missed a lovely mountain bike ride on dusty trails to be in for someone who had no intention of pitching up.
Not used it myself as a tourer yet.
We got into it when we had an Austalian couple who were setting a Ebike world record stay with us; we then signed up late 2015 and we have had quite a few in 2016, a new Zealand couple straight off the plane, they came back on their way back - it was great fun listening to where they had been and their adventures. We have also had 2 cousins who were holidaying on the cheap and had been down to France for the cost of a ferry and 1 hotel night and finally a french couple who were on their way back to France to surprise their family for Christmas.
We have not yet tried it as cyclists yet but hopefully will attempt it on our next tour!
I like the entertaining side of it as I usually offer to cook dinner - it is always a bit bizarre letting them cook in your kitchen. We usually receive chocolates and beers as thank you's but it is nice to trade stories and discover different cultures.
Had about a dozen or more folk stay with me over the past few years, where i am in Galloway there is not much choice of hosts so it's either me or a mate a few miles away who has an organic farm/commune type thing so if i can't host then i bung folk his way and vice-versa.
Met some really cool and interesting folk and it never fails to amaze me with regard to their cycle set-up, met everything from proper thorn rolloff equipped female tourer towing a large golden retriever in a trailer (charity ride round the British coastline) but as she had previously singlehandedly sailed round the world a ride round britain towing a 35kg dog was a piece of piss.
Had a swedish guy who had set off on a round the world tour on a £200 bike and using thick plastic bags bungied to a rack to hold his stuff and a genuine tesco shopping basket tied to his front handlebars - (needless to say i fixed a few things on his bike for him- my mechanical OCD took over) - last i heard from him was he managed to cycle through russia and was about to enter china.
Also had a very cool young couple from china touring europe on bromptons, i had to rebuild a rear wheel (new rim) for her as it had split due to brake wear and they watched with utter amazement as i stripped it down and rebuilt it in front of them. Some folk have stayed for more than one night as i've provided them with routes to show off the best of galloway so they've headed of to explore before moving on.
Never regretted having anyone stay in the slightest and it's all good when you get to feed and provide shelter for complete strangers.