Jul 15, 2008
Hospitality clubs continue to expand in size and importance. Ever heard of Guestroom Network?
With gas prices going through the roof, it behooves us all to consider reducing the cost of our lodgings when we travel. A great many avid travelers find that membership in a "hospitality club", enjoying the spare room or cot that members offer to one another, is not simply a means for saving money but actually enhances the trip by introducing you to local residents. And no such organization -- until now -- has been more successful in offering free hospitality throughout the U.S. than the Evergreen Club. It attributes much of its success to its policy of not offering completely free hospitality, but charging a nominal fee of $15 a night for the use of a member's spare room or cot. This, apparently, makes members more serious about honoring reservations (and also serving a tasty breakfast to their guests).
I said that Evergreen has been successful "until now." Recently, it has been reported to me that Evergreen's organizers include on their application form a place where prospective members can opt out of hosting someone because they are gay. I find that disturbing. If you don't want to meet someone based on their totally private sexual preference, what are you doing in the Evergreen Club to begin with? Evergreen, after all, is about meeting people.
So some Americans will begin looking for an alternative to Evergreen, and they may find it in Guestroom Network (www.guestroomnetwork.com). It works in the traditional manner of hospitality organizations, except that its fee for an overnight stay is only $4.
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I said that Evergreen has been successful "until now." Recently, it has been reported to me that Evergreen's organizers include on their application form a place where prospective members can opt out of hosting someone because they are gay. I find that disturbing. If you don't want to meet someone based on their totally private sexual preference, what are you doing in the Evergreen Club to begin with? Evergreen, after all, is about meeting people.
So some Americans will begin looking for an alternative to Evergreen, and they may find it in Guestroom Network (www.guestroomnetwork.com). It works in the traditional manner of hospitality organizations, except that its fee for an overnight stay is only $4.
Write and read comments about this post.
Labels: accommodations, websites
Fifty years ago, 
Arthur Frommer is generally acknowledged to be the nation's foremost travel authority. He is the founder of the
