Page 25 - ARUBA TODAY

BUSINESS Monday 4 February 2019
A25

No money to travel? Find places to stay for next to nothing

By MELISSA LAMBARENA their car, Conn says. a verification process, but
Associated Press HOUSESITTING it’s not always as robust as
Credit card rewards can be If you don’t mind pets or a a traveler might like.
your ticket — literally your few chores while you trav- Amanda Kelly, solo trav-
plane ticket — to a dream el, you can see the world eler and content creator at
destination. But even if for less. Amanda Round The Globe,
you’ve earned what you Nik and Angel Rowell, You- generally seeks female
need to get to where Tubers at Roadtrip with hosts when she couch surfs.
you’re going, the accom- Nik, have traveled to Cos- During a trip to Belgium, she
modations could be a dif- ta Rica and several U.S. says, she was deceived by
ferent story. states, among other desti- a man pretending to be a
What do you do if you nations. They frequently use female host.
don’t have enough points Trustedhousesitters.com, “After that experience, I
or miles left for lodging? which also has an app and did take a lot more precau-
You can slash those costs, charges $119 for an annual tions by checking the re-
too, if you’re willing to get In this Jan. 13, 2017, file photo, a blanket of fog covers the San membership. views a lot more,” she says.
out of your comfort zone. Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge, top left, in front of the city skyline They suggest considering Other best practices:
That might mean couch in San Francisco. the responsibilities of each - Look for hosts who have
surfing with locals, agree- Associated Press housesit beforehand and several positive references,
ing to a home exchange nel Alex Travelbum, giving The Family Voyage , uses how it might affect your photos and detailed de-
or signing up for housesit- up some freedom is worth the GuestToGuest website. stay. scriptions.
ting. Websites and apps it. He uses the app from This service charges about “If you have a weeklong - See how your host be-
can help you connect with Couchsurfing.com, which $11 a night or around $147 housesit in Hawaii that in- haves on social media.
frugal options domestical- has allowed him to sleep annually (and you’ll have cluded caring for a dog - Set up a video meet-and-
ly and abroad. You may in 15 countries for free. His to pay a damage deposit). that needed to go out in greet.
be able to stay for free, or trip to Naples, Italy, was the The host may also include the morning, afternoon - Make sure you’re on the
nearly free, if you’re flexible most memorable, he says. additional charges or re- and evening, you wouldn’t same page with house
with dates and can abide “I stayed with this woman quests. be able to go explore the rules and expectations of
by house rules. who was just the most gen- “Some hosts charge a island all day long,” Nik privacy.
COUCH SURFING erous, nice person in the cash cleaning fee,” Conn Rowell says. - Tell a family member or
This option works for solo world, and we’re still friends says. Other places, “they’ll Wherever you stay, com- friend where you’re staying.
travelers or couples looking till this day,” Salas says. just leave a list of the five municate with the host to - Have a plan B in case the
to make new friends over “She made me all of this things that they want you match your expectations accommodations aren’t a
a few nights. Since you’re authentic Italian food and to do before leaving. And to the experience. If you good fit.
staying in someone’s home, took me around town.” then some people just say, need a kitchen or Wi-Fi, If that sounds like too
you’ll likely need to “check HOME EXCHANGES ‘Leave it tidy.’” for example, ask whether much hassle — or if you’re
in and out” at reasonable This option offers more pri- You can offset the costs of you’ll have access. just not interested in a
hours and clean up after vacy since you’ll swap such services by cooking in TAKE PRECAUTIONS stranger’s couch, house or
yourself . your home temporarily with the kitchen to save money If you’re staying with strang- chores — consider ways to
For Alexander Salas, who someone else. on meals. Some homeown- ers, screen them first. Some save on more traditional
runs the YouTube chan- Melissa Conn, blogger at ers even let you borrow subscription services have accommodations.q
Honda’s profit drops on incentives, currencies, flat sales

By YURI KAGEYAMA the problem worldwide billion). That’s down 34 per-
Associated Press and hundreds have been cent from the previous fis-
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese injured. cal year.q
automaker Honda Motor Honda, which makes the
Co.’s fiscal third-quarter Accord sedan, Odyssey
profit fell 71 percent from minvan and Asimo robot,
a year earlier as growing said it is facing various class
incentives, an unfavorable action lawsuits in the U.S.
exchange rate and flat ve- related to the air bags.
hicle sales offset gains from Honda said its settlements
cost cuts, the company for April-December totaled
said. Tokyo-based Honda’s 53.8 billion yen ($493 mil-
October-December profit lion) last year, and that it
totaled 168 billion yen ($1.5 may face more such ex-
billion), down from 570.3 penses.
billion yen a year earlier. In this Jan. 11, 2016, file photo, the logo of Honda Motor Co. Honda said motorcycle
Quarterly sales were un- is seen on a showroom screen at the Japanese automaker’s sales improved in Vietnam
changed at 3.9 trillion yen headquarters in Tokyo. and it also recorded better
($36 billion). Associated Press sales in its financial services
An unfavorable exchange Quality expenses that also company said. business.
rate to Asian and other helped bring down profits In the Takata air bag re- Honda raised its profit fore-
global currencies dented for the latest quarter were calls, inflators can explode cast for the current fiscal
profitability, Honda said not directly related to the with too much force, hurl- year, which ends March 31,
Friday. Japanese exporters massive global recall of ing shrapnel into drivers by 20 billion yen ($183 mil-
like Honda are vulnerable Takata air bags that hurt and passengers. At least lion) from an earlier projec-
to such fluctuations. Honda in past years, the 23 people have died from tion, to 695 billion yen ($6.4