Don’t sleep under a bridge unless you have to.

If you found my pro tip above useful, check out my favorite apps and websites to book accommodation while backpacking.

If you didn’t, then send me your camping gear setup.

While the links in this article are affiliate links, I use every single thing I share with you and would very, very rarely recommend something I don’t personally use. Using the links here to buy something would incur no extra cost to you while earning me a small reward. Thanks!

Couchsurfing

Couchsurfing is the best way find accommodation while backpacking.

Couchsurfing is a platform where travelers meet travelers. This is my favorite way to travel and the first app I check when I search for a place to stay.

Couchsurfing allows me to meet locals and get a priceless insight into the country’s culture – something simply impossible when staying in hotels.

My best moments are from Couchsurfing experiences. You should try it too!

Couchsurfing alternatives

Couchers.org

Couchers is non-profit and will always be. That’s the main thing you need to know about them.

Ever since Couchsurfing.com became paid, Couchers.org has been growing in popularity by the day.

It’s a great alternative and I hope it overtakes Couchsurfing as the go-to platform in the coming years.

BeWelcome.org

Everybody behind BeWelcome is a volunteer, from the developers to the translators.

The platform is entirely financed through donations and will never charge surfers anything.

As with Couchers, it’s a great platform that is all about hospitality, without the monetary drawbacks!

Booking Websites

Hostelworld

I swear by Hostelworld. It’s easy to use, has a giant collection of hostels and the rating system has never failed me. It’s very often the cheapest too! Moreover, staying in hostels is a quintessential part of backpacking.

Booking

Everybody knows Booking. There’s a reason for that – it’s simply the biggest. When it comes to aggregation websites the biggest usually means the best. Booking is the best.

Airbnb

Airbnb is never my first choice as a backpacker. Their fees are bigger, especially for short-term bookings. However, sometimes you can find deals there too. And sometimes you can have very homey experiences, like me in Mardin, Turkey.

Agoda

Agoda is a subsidiary of Booking but focused on accommodation in the Asia-Pacific region. Especially for countries like Thailand, Singapore, and Taiwan, Agoda could provide the best deals.

Oyo

Oyo is my go-to website to search for hotels in Indonesia and Malaysia. They are a chain of budget hotels in 80 countries including India, the United States, Brazil, and Japan. Their hotels are mostly standardized and usually cheaper than the alternatives.

Trip.com

I usually find a place to sleep way before having to resort to Trip.com. Regardless, it’s a handy website to know of as it operates in practically every country in the world with over 1.2 million hotels. It’s also the parent of Skyscanner, so it works well in combination with it.