Travel Tip 144

How to Choose a Homestay

I love homestays but there are a lot of things you need to ask before you reserve a room in somebody’s house.

Homestays are one of my favorite parts of travel.

I’ve now stayed in homes in France, the Netherlands, England, Morocco, Malaysia, Nepal, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and several towns around Peru. I was usually a paying guest, through a few times I was invited to stay with a friend or friends of friends or even strangers and not asked to pay for anything. Whether money changes hands or not, these were all fascinating and enriching experiences that taught me way more about local culture than I could have learned any other way.

How is a homestay different from a bed & breakfast?

A bed & breakfast is usually just that.

You’ll have a bedroom and either an ensuite bathroom or a shared bathroom down the hall. Breakfast might be served family style, and you’ll eat whatever they have, or they’ll let you order something like a hotel. Sometimes you’ll feel like you’re in somebody’s house and sometimes it will seem more like an old-fashioned country inn. The host might be available for questions but they might not be around to talk with you. There’s usually a very clear boundary of where guests can be and where the host lives.

Anselma wanted to dress me up for her birthday and I couldn’t say no to her.

Homestays usually offer more than a B&B.

With a homestay, you can expect to be treated more like family than like a customer.

When I stayed with Anselma Calsin Mamani’s family on Amantaní Island, her son Abel told me that the people who stay with them don’t feel like clients but more like distant cousins. My third visit to their home coincided with Anselma’s birthday and I was definitely treated like a cousin and pulled right into the middle of the birthday party.

Homestays are like peeking behind the curtain.

The host usually shows you their home, perhaps minus their own bedroom, giving you more of an inside look than the typical B&B. When they say “make yourself at home,” they mean it.

In Cuyo Chico, in the Sacred Valley, Renato showed me how to harvest quinoa and corn.

Homestays often include activities.

Many homestays invite guests to take part in daily life beyond cooking and eating together.

In Peru’s Sacred Valley, most families still have small subsistence farms and ask guests to join them planting or harvesting, depending on the season. Some homestay hosts show guests other aspects of their work, like making art or other things that they sell. My most recent homestay was with a family who makes ceramics and I got to see how they make dishes and clay beads.

Homestays are as varied as the cities and villages you find them in.

Here’s what to consider when picking a homestay.

In Borneo, I didn’t share a language with my hosts and was initially worried about what we were going to do when they handed me a machete. I was relieved to see my host show me how to choose the right ferns for dinner and cut them with the machete.

1. Do the hosts speak your language?

Most of my homestays have been with people who share a language with me, which I appreciate because I love to talk with my hosts. However, I’ve also had homestays where we could only communicate with smiles and rudimentary sign language. I still had a richer experience than staying in a hotel, but not everybody is comfortable with this. Before you even start looking at kinds of homestay options, first decide how important language is for you.

In Chilean Tierra del Fuego, the only option for breakfast was bread and it was some of the best bread I’ve ever had.

2. Will you eat all your meals with the host and is there choice in what you eat?

People who host tourists in their homes don’t usually run their kitchen like a restaurant. They may ask if you are vegetarian but less common dietary restrictions are likely to be difficult. Celiacs and people with severe food allergies may be better off in hotels with professional kitchens that know how to avoid cross-contamination. Consider how flexible you can be with what you eat because the more dietary restrictions you have, the less likely you are to find a homestay that will work for you.

My room in Cuyo Chico had only a bed and a towel, but it was comfortable enough for one night.

3. What is the bedroom like, and do you have your own bathroom?

There is a lot more variety in the size and amenities in homestay bedrooms than hotels or even B&Bs. If you have any specific needs, be sure to ask before you book.

4. Are activities included beyond meals?

If you love learning new recipes or visiting markets when you travel, be sure to ask if you can participate in cooking and shopping. The activities offered vary widely, depending on the country and even time of year. A homestay in the Sacred Valley in September may include planting corn or potatoes, while the same homestay in March will probably include harvesting corn and potatoes.

I was surprised by how aggressive this ram was but after he was brought into the house and introduced to me he stopped trying to knock me down every time I went outside.

5. Are there animals in the house?

Depending on where you’re going, you might need to ask about more than cats and dogs. My most recent homestay had two affectionate cats and would not have worked for anybody allergic to cats. I’ve also had homestays where chickens or even sheep wander freely in and out of the house, and homestays with loud pet parrots. It’s always better to skip the house with dogs than to risk offending the host by asking they never let their dog be in the same room as you.

The bottom line: ask questions.

Wherever you find the homestay listed, it’s essential to make contact with the hosts and ask any questions before you reserve your stay. If the host can’t answer your questions or if the language barrier is just too great to effectively communicate with them, either look for a different homestay or check for B&B and hotel options.

On Amantaní I got to help harvest, wash and cook potatoes with Anselma’s children.

Article: Homestays on Amantaní Island

This was one of my first published articles when I started out as a travel writer and I still stand by everything I wrote. Amantaní is one of those places where homestays are the only option, and your experience will be so much richer for it.