Home stay in a nutshell can be described as a stay alternative that promises a window to the destination country/state, its culture, the people and the social settings thus enabling an educational voyage to the place of the stay. Most of the times, home stay is planned out for international students or business executives. A home stay offers you an opportunity to settle down in a new place before dealing with other challenges that could lie ahead.
The facilities provided at home stays are like a blessing for students seeking admission in foreign universities and college programs. The place is new to them; the education programs are already quite tough to give any time to understand the social settings and consequently plan the way ahead. A typical home stay would alternatively provide for the basic requirements and act as guide to the rules of living in the foreign land.
The occupants are supposed to pay a fee in return for their stay at designated homes. The fee is quite economical if compared with the available accommodation options and usually provides for two meals in a day and other basic facilities such as washing and cleaning, etc.
A Worthwhile Learning Experience
As mentioned, home stays are an economical stay option but more than that, they are an introduction to a different culture and the style of living. The hosts are friendly and are willing to share their lifestyle with the occupants. A regular interaction with different people not only enables better living conditions but also immensely helps in undertaking the business in the new country or successfully completing an education program. The biggest barrier i.e. the cultural change is effectively overcome by picking up home stay as an accommodation alternative in a new land.
Another highlighted benefit of home stays is the sharpening of language skills. To be established in a foreign city with a different tongue implies a good working knowledge of the local language. Apart from vocabulary that can be worked upon, accent plays a fundamental role in making your dreams come true and this is where a home stay with the natives in a foreign land can be of immense help. Home stays offer a privacy that allows complete solace for mind unbeaten by any other benefit of an alternate accommodation.
As for the hosts too, in addition to the monetary benefit, home stays are a way to explore various cultures and parts of the world. Without traveling all across, you can experience the diversity that different regions across the globe have to present. Different guests are like different books to the hosts that have interesting chapters to study from.
More than every thing else, home stays provide a personal touch to the whole process. They are a home away from home and help maintaining the similar affection.
Length Of The Home Stay
The duration of home stay typically varies from region to region and university to university. Few education institutes offer programs that facilitate a home stay for about a month or two and thereafter the students are expected to look for their personal accommodations. The idea is to let them settle in the new surroundings, get a feel of how things work there and then shift over to the other available options, while new students can occupy the homes offered for home stays.
In other cases or business arrangements, for instance a conference program, the duration typically varies with program duration and the contract between the arranging committee and home stay options that are available.
Home stays are also available on individual basis wherein the duration of stay is decided upon in mutual agreement between the hosts and the occupant. In this specific context, you can use the portals and websites offering such listings. These online listings not only act as a bridge between the seekers and providers but also help settle on common grounds.
The Requirements for a Home Stay
This aspect usually varies with state’s laws and procedures yet the typical list includes the following:
Proof of local or provincial registration as a tourism facility.
Public liability insurance – stipulate amount
Information regarding reservation, cancellation and refund policies
Within easy or reasonable access to public transport
Access to emergency telephone numbers
Demarcation of the smoking and non-smoking facilities
The home must be equipped with requisite facilities
Bedrooms and bathrooms must be adequately furnished and cleaning facilities to be taken care of
Parking area must be demarcated
In addition, few occupants might seek other specifics that can be catered to as per requirements.
The Process
A typical home stay begins by matching your requirements with the availability of stay options. The host’s details are presented for the prospective occupant’s inspection. The data usually incorporates the type and size of unit, price, location, local public transportation, duration of stay etc. When choosing to share a home, additional information will be provided to assure a mutually enjoyable stay. There are various listings and portals that enable a direct interaction among the concerned parties. A rapport between the two is established and a clear understanding on all aspects before going ahead with the stay is suggested. A two-way communication is enabled and promoted by the home stay listings. These listings further supervise the communication (to the extent desired by concerned parties) and work towards eliminating tiffs, if any. While making your choices, the location, etc. can be specified. The hosts seek two photographs and few identity proofs, to cover their risk, before accommodating and rightly so.
Home stays are easy accommodation options that are designed to suit your requirements. Such an interaction with a country’s culture and systems cannot be imparted by even the best formal education as rendered by the informal education system of a home stay. Home stays are an opportunity for both the guest and the host to understand two different roots and interact to foster a unique channel across borders. In addition to the explicit economic benefits to both the parties involved, home stay have their implied advantages that cannot be replicated by an alternate system of living.
Home Stays – Beyond the Monetary Equation