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Crashpadder Launches Photography Groups

Zoltan Arva-Toth | Websites | December 14, 2009 | 3 Comments
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Crashpadder.com is a peer-to-peer accommodation network which has recently added interest groups to the offering which enables people to meet and stay with strangers who share an interest or passion - such as photography. This means that happy snappers can meet and stay with other photography aficionados next time they’re on a trip and benefit from the personal knowledge of a local photography fan, the company says. Hosts and guests can look at one another’s profiles, check feedback from other users and send each other messages via the website ahead of making a booking in order to make sure they are both comfortable with the booking. Finally the guest pays via the website on credit or debit card which verifies their identity and home address.

Website: Crashpadder

Crashpadder Press Release

Crashpadder.com is a peer-to-peer accommodation network which enables members to stay in other people’s homes for a fair price, avoiding the cost of sterile identikit hotels and meeting like-minded people in the process.

Since crashpadder.com launched over 5,000 people have joined the site with 2,000 of these offering spare rooms in 46 countries worldwide.

Hosts and guests can look at one another’s profiles, check feedback from other users and send each other messages via the website ahead of making a booking in order to make sure they are both comfortable with the booking. Finally the guest pays via the website on credit or debit card which verifies their identity and home address.

Photographers’ Group
Crashpadder.com has recently added interest groups to the offering which enables people to meet and stay with strangers who share an interest or passion. These groups include rambling, surfing, acting & theatre and photography. This means that happy snappers can meet and stay with other photography aficionados next time they’re on a trip and benefit from the personal knowledge of a local photography fan, for example:

Where are the best landscape shots to be found?
What areas are good for shooting architecture?
Where are the best local camera shops?
Do you have a spare ISO100 BW I can have!?

How to become a host
Listing a room is easy. Just log on, upload your details, upload some images and hit submit. It only takes 5 minutes and you can be earning cash from the space in your place immediately! It’s free, there are no credit card details to submit and potential guests can see your room today. Once someone requests to stay, you’ll be sent a link to their profile and feedback from other site users before making your decision. You can reject them for any reason but, when you accept, they’ll be prompted to pay you and your contact details will be exchanged.

How to book a room
Log on to the site and register for free. Then you can search for a room which perfectly matches your requirements. Need a parking space? Is wifi a must? Simply tell our intelligent search engine what you need and you’ll be shown a list of suitable rooms. Once a host accepts your booking you’ll be asked to pay online and your contact details will be swapped. Simple.

A guide to safer Crashpadding

1) Check out your host/guest
View their Crashpadder.com profile and check their feedback rating
Check out their Facebook pages via the links on Crashpadder.com
Get in touch and ask the purpose of their trip

2) If you’re unsure, reject the booking
Make sure you’re compatible - use the site to check their interests, bedtimes and photo
Ask questions - you can communicate freely with the host before agreeing the booking
You can request more information before accepting the booking

3) Use your head
Tell a friend what you’re doing
Make sure you’re in when the guest arrives, don’t just leave a key
Frame expectations - whether you are planning to sit up with your guest or leave them to their own devices, make sure you’re upfront. Make sure you both have the same expectations.



 

Your Comments

3 Comments so far | Newest Oldest first | Post a comment

#1 Brian

Nice idea. I wonder how safe it is? Are people screened before hand?

4:51 pm - Monday, December 14, 2009

#2 Stephen

Hi Brian - I can answer that one (having founded the website!)

Guests are not screened when they join, but in order to book a room they have to make a booking request using a credit or debit card which verifies their ID and home address. The host can then log on and look at their profile, facebook page, feedback from other members etc and either accept or reject the booking for any reason.

2:59 pm - Tuesday, December 15, 2009

#3 recordable media

Thanks Zoltan,
It's a very effective way to share a flickr group with a broader audience along with showing them how easy it is to participate and get involved!

6:40 am - Wednesday, December 16, 2009

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