The Roavi Blog
Stories from people who live there.
Travel tips, city guides, and local insights from the Roavi team.
1173 articles
Become a Local Friend
How to Become a Tour Guide in Los Angeles in 2026: There Is No City or State Tour-Guide License (Unlike New York), What You Do Need (a Business Tax Registration Certificate if Self-Employed, Permits if You Drive People, the Studios' Own Training), Where the Jobs Are (Studios, Hop-On Buses, Celebrity-Home Vans, Walking Tours, Private Guiding), What Guides Earn, and Getting Paid for Your Time Without a Tour
How to become a tour guide in Los Angeles: there is no city or state tour-guide license, unlike New York. What you do need (a city Business Tax Registration Certificate if you work for yourself, separate permits if you drive passengers, the studios' own training), where the jobs are, what guides earn, and the alternative that pays for your time without a tour.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Become a Local Friend
Part-Time and Weekend Jobs in Los Angeles With No Experience in 2026: Ten That Actually Hire (Students Too), What Each Pays Over the City's $18.42 Minimum Wage, Which Need Only a Phone, an ID and Sometimes a Car, Evening and Night Shifts, and the One You Can Start This Week at Your Own Rate
Part-time and weekend jobs in Los Angeles with no experience, for students and anyone with free hours: ten that actually hire, what each pays over the city's $18.42 minimum wage, which need a car, the evening and night options, and the one you can start this week at your own rate.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Become a Local Friend
First Time in Los Angeles in 2026: What to See and What to Skip, Where to Stay (Santa Monica, Downtown, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Silver Lake), Driving Here for the First Time (or Not), a Three-Day Itinerary That Respects the Traffic, the Mistakes Everyone Makes, and the Option of a Local for an Afternoon
First time in Los Angeles: what to see and what to skip, where to stay, driving here for the first time (or not), a three-day itinerary that respects the traffic, the mistakes everyone makes, and the option of an Angeleno for an afternoon.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Become a Local Friend
How to Become a Tour Guide in NYC in 2026: the DCWP Sightseeing Guide License Step by Step (18+, Application, the 150-Question Exam and Its 97-Correct Pass Mark, $50 Exam Fee, $50 License for Two Years), Where the Jobs Are, What Guides Earn, and Getting Paid for Your Time Without a Tour
How to become a tour guide in New York City: the DCWP Sightseeing Guide license (18+, application, 150-question exam with 97 correct to pass, $50 exam fee, $50 for a two-year license expiring March 31 of even years), where the jobs are, what guides earn, and the alternative that pays for your time without a tour.
Oscar Garcia··4 min read
Become a Local Friend
NYC Tour Guide License Exam and Renewal in 2026: the Sightseeing Guide Exam (150 Questions, 97 Correct to Pass, 60 Days to Take It, $50), What to Study and Where the Practice Material Is, What Happens if You Fail Twice, Renewal Fees and the March 31 Expiry in Even Years
Everything about the NYC Sightseeing Guide exam and renewal: 150 questions, 97 correct to pass, 60 days to take it at ExamBuilder, $50, what to study and where the official reference is, what happens if you fail twice, and renewal fees and the March 31 expiry in even-numbered years.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Become a Local Friend
Part-Time and Weekend Jobs in NYC With No Experience in 2026: Ten That Actually Hire (Students Too), What Each Pays Under New York City's $17.00 Minimum Wage, Which Need Nothing but a Phone and ID, and the One You Can Start This Week at Your Own Rate
Part-time and weekend jobs in NYC with no experience, for students and anyone with a few free hours: ten that actually hire, what each pays relative to the city's minimum wage, which need only a phone and ID, and the one you can start this week at your own rate.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Become a Local Friend
Get Paid to Hang Out With People in 2026: the Real Options (Local Friend, RentAFriend, Companion Visits for Older Adults, Event and Brand Work, Language Exchange), What Each Actually Pays, the Ones That Are Not What They Say, and How to Start in Your City This Week
"Get paid to hang out with people" is a real category with a few real options: Local Friend on Roavi, RentAFriend, companion visits for older adults, event and brand work, paid language exchange. What each pays, the ones that are not what they claim, and how to start in your city.
Oscar Garcia··4 min read
Become a Local Friend
How to Make Friends in NYC in 2026: What Actually Works in Your 20s, 30s and 40s, as a Guy, Post-Grad or Just Arrived, Why the Apps Are Slow, the Rooms Where It Happens (Run Clubs, Leagues, Classes, Regular Bars), the 50-Hour Rule, and the Shortcut of Hiring a New Yorker for an Afternoon
How to make friends in NYC, honestly: why it is hard, what works in your 20s, 30s and 40s, as a guy, post-grad or just arrived (recurring rooms, run clubs, leagues, classes, becoming a regular), why the apps are slow, and the shortcut of spending an afternoon with a New Yorker who shows you where your people are.
Oscar Garcia··4 min read
Become a Local Friend
Moving to NYC Alone in 2026: the First 90 Days in Order, Finding an Apartment After the FARE Act (No More Tenant-Paid Broker Fees, the 40x Rule, Guarantors), Doing It as a Woman or in Your 20s, What It Costs to Be Lonely Here, and How to Not Stay Alone Past Month Two
Moving to NYC alone: the first 90 days in order, finding an apartment after the FARE Act (landlords now pay broker fees), the 40x rent rule and guarantors, the real advice for doing it as a woman or in your 20s, and how to make sure you are not still alone in month three.
Oscar Garcia··4 min read
Become a Local Friend
Lonely in NYC in 2026: Why the Most Crowded City in America Is the Loneliest Place to Be New, the Three Kinds of Lonely and What Helps Each, the Things That Work This Week (Not Someday), When Loneliness Needs Real Help, and the Afternoon With a New Yorker That Breaks the Pattern
"Lonely in NYC" is one of the city's most searched feelings. Why the most crowded city feels empty, the three kinds of lonely and what helps each, things that work this week rather than someday, when loneliness needs real help, and the afternoon with a New Yorker that breaks the pattern.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Become a Local Friend
Things to Do in NYC Alone in 2026: During the Day, at Night, Tonight and This Weekend, the Places Where Being Alone Is Normal, the Ones Where It Is Not, What It Costs, and the Option of Not Being Alone for an Afternoon
Things to do in NYC alone, sorted the way people search it: during the day, at night, tonight, this weekend. The places where being alone is normal here (most of them), the few where it is not, what each costs, and the option of hiring a New Yorker for an afternoon.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Become a Local Friend
How to Meet People in New York in 2026: the Places (Run Clubs, Leagues, Classes, Volunteering, Dog Runs, Stoops), the Apps and How Slow They Are, the Bars Where Talking to Strangers Is Normal, What Works for a Visitor With Three Days Versus a Newcomer With Three Months, and Hiring a New Yorker for an Afternoon
How to meet people in New York, for visitors with three days and newcomers with three months: the places (run clubs, leagues, classes, volunteering, dog runs, stoops), the apps and their real speed, the bars where talking to strangers is normal, and the option of a New Yorker by the hour.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read