My name's Sarah, I'm 37, and I live in Sheffield in the north of England.

For the past 10+ years I've been busy working across different youth work and creative sector roles. My last job was working alongside children and young people aged 0-to-25 (and lots of different organisations and funders) to create a big, year-long cultural festival. This was an amazing and fulfilling experience - but also very full-on, and I'm ready for a rest!

So from May to September 2026 I'm going to be travelling around Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Fiji!

I love making new friends, trying new experiences, and anything creative. I also drink a lot of tea and coffee.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Back in 2015, I spent three months travelling around the USA and Canada. I visited the places I'd spent years seeing in my favourite films and reading about in my favourite novels, meeting lots of amazing people, and getting to find out about different art and creativity-related places (like print studios, zine fairs, and community libraries) to inspire my own work I was doing back in the UK

Visiting places through Couchsurfing was incredible: I met so many lovely people, and experienced new places in a deeper and richer way than I ever did staying in hostels or hotels. It was such a privilege to be welcomed into people's homes, and I loved being able to reciprocate a little bit by cooking my hosts meals (I love to cook!). Couchsufing around North America was a life-changing experience, which made me excited to meet and learn from more people from other countries and cultures!

After 11 years of working hard in youth work and culture sector roles, I'm taking another three months off to go traveling again: this time, around Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. I'd love to experience these new places through Couchsurfing: getting to connect with my hosts and their wider communities, and to share a bit of their lives for a short time!

As I travel around, I'd like to get to know the places I'm staying in better through CS, and to share my hosts' passion for where they live! I'm very happy doing my own thing, or spending time with hosts (I love cooking and am always keen to cook meals for the folks I'm staying with, if you're up for that!). Whatever is best for you. I like to be helpful, and if I can do odd jobs around the house or garden (I'm a dab hand with a drill) then let me know!

Because am now 37 and was used to Couchsurfing once being 100% free (heady days!), I am afraid I can't quite bring myself to pay £60 to get verified. However, hopefully from my references you can see I am a real person and a thoughtful, responsible guest! Just message me if you have any questions, though.

Interests

I've worked in lots of different creative roles (from popping popcorn in an independent cinema, to co-running a community print studio, to DJing a monthly music night, to overseeing a big, year-long youth-led cultural festival!), and am interested in all kinds of art forms - especially writing/reading, movies, and music.

I love the outdoors, especially hiking and running (veeery slowly). I enjoy having a go at most sports, even if I'm not very good at them! My favourites are climbing (indoors), squash, and football. I'll also watch most sports (athletics and women's football are me #1 and #2 loves).

DIY culture and DIY spaces. *Actual* DIY (I love doing odd jobs / using a power tool!). Youth work and education. Cooking and baking (I'm vegan, but flex to vegetarian/pescatarian when travelling). Listening to podcasts (mainly movie ones, with a bit of books and history thrown in). Most importantly, hanging with pals, both new and old!

• culture
• writing
• singing
• diy
• education
• cooking
• coffee
• baking
• vegetarian
• vegan
• running
• movies
• reading
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• hiking
• teaching
• visual arts
• creative writing
• zines
• youth work

Music, Movies, and Books

I know everyone says, 'I like all kinds of music'... but I really do like all kinds of music! From industrial drone to pop princesses to lo-fi outsider weirdness, it's all good. A few of my favourites: Sufjan Stevens, Abba, Prince, Blondie, and Haim. I love live music, and a handful of my Best Gigs Ever (TM) are: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Chappell Roan, Pixies, David Byrne, and Los Campesinos! (who I've seen a slightly ridiculous number of times).

I'm a HUGE movie fan, and used to work in an independent cinema. My Letterboxd top four? The Wicker Man, Donnie Darko, The Silence of the Lambs, and Show Me Love (also known by it's swearier original title, which I won't include here...)

Books: The Secret History, Cassandra At The Wedding, Conversations With Friends (I feel like the tide has turned on Sally Rooney a bit - but I'm sorry, I loved it), Franny & Zooey, The Great Gatsby, The Things They Carried, Ghost World, The Virgin Suicides', and anything written by Kurt Vonnegut.

Teach, Learn, Share

I think just talking with new people from different places is always a positive experience that you learn something from! But it'd would also be brilliant to learn from locals about the place where they live - great spots to eat and drink, cool things to do, issues that affect you. And if you're involved in anything creative, or social / community focused, then I'd love to share that with you too. My background is in youth work, arts and culture, and social change, and it's something I'm really passionate about.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I love cooking, and am always keen to cook my hosts a meal, if they fancy it.

I also love doing DIY. Shelf to put up? Shower to reseal? Light fitting to replace? I'm your woman! I love it so much I'm considering retraining as a handywoman when I return to the UK. So, any chance to help out with DIY, or to learn a new practical/manual skill, let me know! I'm also very happy pottering round a garden: digging out new beds, weeding, cutting back hedges... Anything outdoorsy and plant-related!

I'm always up for going to gigs or watching a movie.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United Kingdom