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If you arrive with some kind of small gift your host’s initial doubts will be eased and they’ll welcome you with open arms. Whatever you give as a guest will always be returned tenfold.

Make every effort to charm all of your host’s friends and maybe you’ll get another invitation. It’s also an excellent way to make work and romance connections.

The soul of the house is the kitchen. Head immediately for the sink and insist that you actually enjoy washing up and all will be forgiven. But make a good job of it – otherwise the fussy variety of host may wait until you go to bed before creeping back to the kitchen to wash the plates again.

If you have money to buy food then nothing is more pleasing for your friends than to come back and find the refrigerator stuffed to the hinges. And if you’ve already prepared dinner by the time they return from work then they may think of converting the loft into a spare room on a permanent basis.

However, if you are broke then the best you can do is not to make any noticeable dent on the food supplies in stock. The golden rule is to never open anything new and never to finish anything either. Imagine the feelings of your host when they return to find that you’ve guzzled all their organic Turkish Delight.

The mess that you leave behind you is the evidence that will be held against you in court. Keep your belongings in an orderly pile and never leave, say, biscuit crumbs by the side of their new Apple Mac.

If you get past the first week okay then there’s a good chance you’ll manage a month. So try to become part of the house routine and be sure to spend a good deal of your time out of doors. No one wants to see you curled up on the sofa every time they turn around. If you seem busy and active then they’ll feel better about you being around.

Tom has been traveling non-stop since the age of 18 and co-founded Road Junky in 2004. Follow him @tomglaister

He’s the author of Hand to Mouth to India, an account of hitchhiking from England to India with no money and which will soon be rereleased by Road Junky Books.

Tales of a Road Junky featuring tales of breaking people out of jail in Delhi, selling fake Rolexes in Japan and other adventures in Israel and Brazil will be out later this year.

He also writes fiction for anyone who never really grew up and his latest novel is Bozo and the Storyteller – download the audio book for free or even buy a copy…

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