closetasfan

long time ago I was travelling by myself in europe. was in San Sebastian and was going to Paris. I was looking around a train station in San Sebastian when a Japanese lady approached me and asked me if I had lost anything. We struck a conversation and figured out that we were both going to Paris, but on different trains. I got on the train I was originally planning, but saw her. She decided to catch my train. We didn't sit together (I had a europass for 1st class, she didn't) but met up in Paris as she spoke French and i didn't she helped me find a hotel. It turned out there was only one room, so we shared it, two nights. We hung out together in Paris too. I think I got her email address but never contacted her afterwards.

Yaatri

We shared an apartment in Budapest with two young Polish ladies in 2000. We didn't like the hostel we had booked (we had a family room with ensuite bathroom), so when we were approached by a a Hungarian middle aged lady that she had an apartment to rent we decided to look into it. At least until 2002 or so, it was quite common for apartment owners to hang around train stations peddling their apartments. We took a look at the apartment and found it to be quite nice. She wanted $60 for the whole apartment (two bedrooms, one large, and one small) and $40 for the large bedroom with huge (king size bed and a folding bed). Since there was no other other occupant, we decided to go for the big room thinking that we had the whole apartment to ourselves as long as the owner did not find another renter.
For the first three days, we, my my two boys (3 and 7) and I were the only occupants. The kitchen was fully equipped, but we used it sparingly to make tea/coffee, toast or an omelet for the kids and to reheat food stuff. We woke up the first morning to a smell of bakery. There was a morning market just across the street from the apartment building where you could buy all sorts of breads, pastries and other goodies, including local delicacies.
On the 4th day, we returned to the apartment after dinner and saw the light shinning through the crack between the door and the floor and female voices. Two polish girls had taken the other room. Their English was not good, but we didn't feel any bad vibes nor did they. They also had a cell phone that worked, while we didn't which came handy when we all wanted to go to a performance, and needed information regarding the show timings or tickets, or even train travel. This was our third trip to Budapest, so they would ask us bout places we had been and plan their visit. Sometimes we would run into them at museum, a restaurant or even on the street. It's a nice feeling to run into someone you know a little in a another country. That and self catering made us feel like we lived there.
We corresponded with them for a few years and then lost touch. We also corresponded with some other friends from Slovakia, Romania, whom we met on our trips to Hungary, Slovakia and Czech Republic.
It really is nice to travel.

ON the other hand, I did not have very good experience with an FTer, who wanted to travel with me, because it was my third trip and his first. He bailed out as he was next in line for a bump that I couldn't take as I had checked a carry on size bag. I was to arrive at night just before midnight and he was re-booked to arrive in the morning. We had not booked a room yet, but I did book a car as we had planned to drive to an area about 6hours drive from the airport. He asked me to pick him up at the airport in the morning after he arrived. I asked him if he was sure that he still wanted to travel with me, if not, I would pick up the car and drive on. I spent the night at the airport in a restaurant, as his flight arrived at 6:00 a.m. I met him at 6:00 a.m. but guess what! He decided he was going to stick with his friend, who was coming from London, coincidentally, by the same flight. He also wanted me and his friend to their hotel. Needless to say I was pi$$ed.
I waited up all night for the guy just because he had told me the plan was still on, even thought I had offered him chance to get out. Now I was tired and about 7 hours behind and this guy wanted to get a free ride to their hotel.
I told him I was sorry, I couldn't do that. It was a left hand drive country and I had never driven a car on the left, let alone a stick shift, I could not risk driving the wrong kind of manual car in a city as my first attempt.
I picked up the car and drove off. Driving on the left side, sitting in a car with everything, except clutch, brake and gas pedal, a mirror image of what I was used to was scary at first. BY the time I got on the freeway, I felt better.
Never heard from him again. I am glad that I did not share a room or anything else with him.

FlyingJoy

I recently travelled by overnight train from eastern Germany to Budapest (11 hours), and if you're a solo traveller booking a double berth, you're allocated to a compartment with a stranger of the same gender. I didn't want a triple (or more) berth, but I felt that a single berth wasn't worth its price, and there were no premium rooms on this older Czech train, so I compromised. Luckily my roommate was harmless and we cooperated well - so important when you're sharing a tight space like that. It's not dissimilar to a cupboard for humans, with the addition of a washbasin and a small closet! But the bed was clean and as comfortable as could be expected, so I got a great night's sleep, and my roommate wasn't a snorer either. You never know who or what you could get though, so I definitely wouldn't room with a total stranger by pure choice.

Bwillis

After spending 4 years in the Military sleeping with " strangers " It wouldn't bother me depending on who the strangers were.
If they were around my age and " decent " I think I would go for it.

I am older now and no longer consider Hostels as I don't think I would fit in.

BW

skylady

No to the H, no!

Yaatri

When travelling from Bucharest to Chisanau, I was in a similar circumstances. The choice was ,4 or 6 people in a bay, vs First Class- two people in a lockable bay/cabin. I opted for First Class. The other person in my cabin had ignored me earlier when I had tried to start a conversation with him before boarding began. Of course neither of us knew we would end up in the same cabin.

He was very helpful once we got on board. He spoke no English, and I, no Romanian or Russian, which he spoke. A group of Young Moldovan men and women were curious about me. One of them gave me his mobile number asking me to contact him once I settled down.
When I called him from my apartment, it turned out his was across the street of mine. He showed me around town and had dinner together. When I left, he gave me a bottle of Moldovan champagne. WE still correspond a few times a year.

There are obvious dangers of sharing a room or a cabin. MIne have worked out well so far.

53flyer

Four pages in and I can't believe nobody has referred to the classic sharing with a stranger story....Plane, Trains, and Automobiles.

GRALISTAIR

In desperate situation like the OP - yes.
When I was younger, hell yes and did so.
Now, no chance.

MVF Trekker

Do one-night stands count?

Christopher

They've been discussed a bit above. I guess they're not what the OP was thinking about, but they are relevant in terms of security - although we tend not to think of that so much at the time...

nordictat2

My thoughts exactly! Maybe when I was younger I might have but now? No.
Especially after seeing that movie Hostel lol. No way hehe.

MVF Trekker

I was only joking. Seriously, sharing a room with a stranger may not be the ideal situation but it's no biggie. If you've stayed at a hostel before, you can deal with it.

MIT_SBM

Darn, you beat me to it. I slept for years with strangers when I was in the Navy. I was on submarines too, so very close quarters. No problem with sleeping in the same room as a stranger, as long as I vet them first.

nkedel

Too freshman dorm, for me. Granted, my assigned roommates didn't stay strangers, and we were stuck together for a longer period of time than a hotel would have involved which probably forced a greater level of good behavior... but still, never again. I like my private space too much; I'd rather have a tiny closet to myself than a shared larger room.

I never did the one-night-stand thing when single, and am no longer eligible for it, so I don't know how that would do for me.

lost_perspicacity