Are you wondering how to meet new people and make friends during your Au Pair stay? Check out our list with useful tips on how to make new friends abroad:
Being an Au Pair is a great opportunity to get to know people from all over the world. It is nice to have someone to discover the area you live in and relax with a friend in your free time, but where to make friends? We compiled the best ideas on how to meet new people:
Attending a language course is a great opportunity to improve your skills and also to encounter interesting people from all over the world, who might also be Au Pairs.
Learning foreign languages
In many host countries the Au Pair has to enroll in a foreign language course. Even if it is not a requirement, it's still a good idea! Read more
A lot of them might also be new to the country and would like to make friends too. Go out for a coffee or for dinner with your classmates and start building new friendships.
There are many locals willing to practice a new language and a great way to do it is with a Tandem partner. This language exchange allows two people to talk to each other in the language they are learning. This way both of you can improve your language skills. Finding a Tandem Partner is easy through different social media websites or our brand new tool. You can find other Au Pairs and language enthusiasts on our platform! Just specify your own native language and which language you want to learn and we will provide you with a full list of matching tandem partners from our database. Find more information here.
Social media makes it possible for you to make friends online through different pages and groups. There are many different Au Pair groups for each country (or even cities), where you can find people going through the same experience and willing to make friends. We also recommend looking for groups of people who share your interests and live in your area.
If you have a hobby or practice sports, you can join a club to meet people. You will also meet many locals who can help you discover your new home in a different way. You can normally find clubs at the local university, in a college, cultural institute or ask your host parents for advice.
Discovering new cities and towns is also a great way to get in touch with new people. A lot of Au Pairs meet friends in hostels or in the organized trips with a travel agency. You can either search for a local agency or look for student travels in social media.
You might also meet new people through your Host Family's acquaintances. Sometimes Au Pair families have friends who also have an Au Pair or they might know someone your age. You can ask your host parents directly and start making friends!
Many agencies organize meet-ups on a regular basis. That allows Au Pairs to get to know each other and share their experience. You can find more about the meetings by subscribing to the agencies’ newsletter and checking their social media groups. Sometimes you will need to pay a small fee but usually it’s worth it.
We know it might not be so easy to approach someone in the street and start chatting with them but this is actually a great way to meet people. You will be astonished at how friendly people can be if you just talk to them. Great places to put this into practice are the gym, a café or the playground where you frequently go with the children.
AuPair.com is an online matching agency, therefore this question is beyond our scope of responsibility. But we will do our best to help you nonetheless! Usually the best source of information is the embassy of the host country placed in the Au Pair’s homeland. Requirements vary depending on both the Au Pair’s nationality and the host country, but usually a letter of invitation from the Host Family and a signed contract are needed to start the visa application. Other documents may be different depending on each individual case, and in case of the US, assistance of a local full-service Au Pair agency is also necessary.
How long does it take to find a Host Family?
It depends on several factors. Create your profile and make it attractive for other users. Check that you meet the Au Pair requirements set by the Au Pair program. Be active and contact 20-30 Host Families per day. While contacting the Host Families, make also sure that you fulfil the family’s expectations. Be active, open minded and try to convince families that the time spent with you will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for their kids! Generally speaking, it takes from one week up to a few months to find a Host Family.