BRUSSELS — Dating today is tough, especially when you’ve got guys looking to only score free accommodations.
Anthony Botta, a 25-year-old man from Brussels, has found fame on social media for coining the term ‘Tindersurfing’, a means of travel that uses the popular dating app for the sole purpose of staying in local homes for free.
Whether you call it forward thinking or downright sleazy, you can’t argue the fact that it works. By ‘swiping right’ on the app and connecting with local beauties, Botta was able to spend two months travelling in Europe without paying a dime for accommodations. In fact, he was able to find a host in every city he travelled to except for Vienna, at which point he simply changed his travel plans to go to Bratislava instead, which is located only an hour away.
For those looking to follow his lead, all you have to do is download the app and set your desired location prior to arrival to allow for swiping in your next destination. And then it’s just a matter of swiping right (which means ‘yes’) or left (meaning, “Thanks, but no thanks”) on local profiles until you find a ‘match’, which to Botta means someone who’s preferably attractive with room in their bed or (if there’s no chemistry) on their couch.
Not surprisingly, reactions to his travelling methods garnered mixed reviews, with many women responding with negative comments and insults. He said the most common reply from women was that the idea was really “cool but it just wasn’t for them”, while others said they were unable to host him as they lived with their parents. Some, he admitted, thought Tindersurfing was “gross” and called him an a**hole, but he maintains that “it’s a great way of travelling.”
While many women kindly told him to buzz off, there were also others who jumped at the chance to host him, including one he hit it off with and ended up staying with for five days, and another in Munich who invited him to stay at his mansion, complete with a swimming pool, sauna and Jacuzzi.
But he also found a few doozies with accommodations that were less than ideal. He told The Independent that he stayed in a “disgusting” apartment in Poland that was so small his host had to resort to doing dishes in the shower.
Botta, who documented his travels on YouTube and Instagram, is now working in Brussels but continues to Tindersurf when he can, recently spending a weekend in the Netherlands. Next on his agenda? America or New Zealand.
Women, brace yourselves.
