House Swap holidays are perfect for family travel and can be quite reasonable. They do take a lot of preparation and trust but by all accounts they are well worth it!
The swap system is very simple. You sign up with an agency and you get access to all their members and their members get access to you. Here you promote your house and you can view the houses on offer to you. You have to be aware that a house swap is based on mutual trust.
It costs around £100 to have your home listed with photos, for this it is shown on the swap website. The website has the advantage in being updated frequently which can make it very addictive research!
You need to decide what you want, when you might go, how many bedrooms it needs to have, location - city or country and begin your search. Once you find your ideal home you strike up communication with the owner of the house you are interested in and off you go.
A good point to note when searching, you should probably exchange with a family with children of a similar age to your own – your children will have a whole new set of toys, books and videos; extra perks include local babysitters and playmates for your children.
Most websites list thousands of properties in many countries, so the options are endless, however it is time consuming.
Costs:
Your flights and spending money
Top 10 destinations *
Italy
Spain
Australia
France
England
The United States
Canada
Switzerland
The Netherlands
New Zealand
*Stats quoted on homeexhange.com
Tips to consider:
- Make sure both sides know what the swap consists of. Be honest in describing your home. Include a auctioneer type description about rooms, garden and neighbourhood type, as well as how far it is to town or attractions such as a beach, river, amusement park, museums, etc.
- Be flexible in working out a schedule.
- Clean your home thoroughly before leaving home; clean the swap-home thoroughly, before leaving it.
- Lock away valuables.
- Post a list of emergency numbers (Fire, police, ambulance, neighbour, friend, relative and let those people know they're on the list).
- Post a list of maintenance issues: (bin collection day, plant watering schedule, how to run the washer/dryer/dish washer etc.)
- Put your post on hold for you at the post office.
- Leave a nice "welcome" supply of basics in the kitchen.
- If you're doing a car swap, clean it inside and out, leave a full tank of petrol and leave the swap car the same way.
Website recommendations:
.
