Brilliant home swap overlooking Swanage Bay "We had such a brilliant holiday swapping to Sebastian's lovely flat on the seafront overlooking Swanage Bay. Prior to the home swap, we had a Zoom meeting with Sebastian and Karen - this was really good and gave us a good idea about what we both liked. We loved the aesthetic of the flat and the stunning sea views from the bay window. Even though the weather was not consistently good, we managed lots of amazing walks on lovely quiet beaches - we even had several beaches totally to ourselves. We got in some great outdoor swimming - on one swim we were joined by seals! It's not an area we knew but we are completely hooked and there's so much to do there we will have to plan a return visit. We enjoyed fish from the local fish shop, steak from the local deli and managed to get in a couple of performances at the Mowlem, about 2 mins' walk from the flat. Also loved Durlston Country Park which was ideal for a lunchtime dog walk. The scenery is stunning, and after spending the days exploring and with the sounds of the sea - we slept so well. We couldn't have had a better home swap. Thank you so much Sebastian & Karen!" - Sian & Mark |
Highlights of the home swap:
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View the home swappers' holiday offers:
Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, UK (HE40858) Sian & Mark's colourful and cosy Victorian terrace house located just a short walk into Leamington Spa. |
Swanage, Dorset, UK (HE18816) Sebastian & Karen's holiday flat just meters from the beach with stunning views over Swanage Bay and the Isle of Wight. |
Home Base Holidays: join for free and start home swapping Sign up to Home Base Holidays two-week free trial or select a full membership. Home swap guarantee: second year free if you do not arrange a swap during your membership. |
More and more people are discovering the benefits of home swapping. The majority of home swaps are arranged simply to enjoy fabulous free holiday accommodation.
However, many Home Base Holidays members are now using home swapping for more than just holidays. Here are 10 good reasons to swap homes ...other than just for a fabulous free holiday!
1: Work from anywhere in the world
If you work independently, you don’t have to give up the travel you love. Digital nomads, freelance workers, and people running online businesses have the freedom to work almost anywhere they have an internet connection. Many such location-independent workers are using home swapping to arrange work/travel swaps worldwide, often arranging longer term (3+ month) exchanges. Search home swap offers
2: Swap city life for country living (or vice versa)
If you’re considering swapping the city for a life in the country or moving from the country to the city, but are not sure the move would be right for you – try first arranging a home swap! What better way to try out an area than by staying in a real home (you may want to arrange a swap during the worse time of year weather-wise so that you get a real taste of what a permanent move would be like). Search home swap offers
3: Stay in a real home when traveling for a special occasion
People use home swapping to attend special occasions such as weddings, anniversaries or special birthday celebrations. Swapping homes is a great alternative to a hotel room or staying with relatives. Search home swap offers
4: Have your own space when visiting friends and family
If you’re visiting friends or family, arranging a home exchange close to where they live can be an ideal option; you get the chance to spend time together but also have your own space. Search home swap offers
5: Save money when making family visits to your “home” country
Many families are separated from loved ones by thousands of miles. As well as wanting children to know their relatives abroad, it’s natural to hope that they’ll feel a connection to your country of origin. Arranging home swaps “back home” can enable lengthy stays at very little cost. Search home swap offers
6: Take sabbaticals or work on overseas projects
If work commitments or research mean you need to stay in a destination for a period of time, from several weeks up to a year (or more), arranging a home swap not only gives you a home to stay in, it’s also a major money-saver. Search home swap offers
7: Comfortable, inexpensive place to stay when attending sporting or cultural events
We’ve had members arranging home swaps to visit major sporting events such as the Olympics, Wimbledon, The Rugby World Cup, the Superbowl, and more. Members also do home swaps to attend concerts, music and theatre festivals, and other cultural events. Just remember to arrange your home swap well ahead of time! Search home swap offers
If you’re thinking about moving to another country, why not arrange a home exchange before taking the plunge? By staying in a real home, you will get a much better feel for what life would be like if you did decide to move permanently. Without having to worry about hotel costs, you could swap for an extended period of time and explore property options if you do decide to immigrate. Search home swap offers
Many of our members seek to immerse themselves in another country so that they (and their kids) can learn or improve language skills. What better way to grasp a language than using it every day? Search home swap offers
10: Enjoy free holiday accommodation!
No matter what your reason for traveling, the bottom line is that home swapping gives you a free place to stay. What could be better than that? Find your home swap accommodation
Join Home Base Holidays: start home swapping Enjoy free holiday accommodation by arranging a home swap. Sign up to Home Base Holidays Start swapping: browse home swap holiday offers |
Thinking about home swapping? When planning your first home exchange holiday, it can feel a little daunting knowing what your guests will expect. Check out our preparing for a home exchange holiday blog post for travel tips on how to prepare your home for your guests. In addition to getting your home ready for your guests, it's also knowing what is expected at the end of the swap. We've put together a short checklist with our top 10 tips on what to do at the end of your swap.
Top 10: things to do at the end of a home swap holiday
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Home Base Holidays: join for free and start home swapping Sign up to Home Base Holidays two-week free trial or select a full membership. |
Home Base Holidays members' offers:
Harrogate, Yorkshire, UK (HE42341) Anna and Adrian's gorgeous 4-bedroom house in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. |
Rivendell, Northumbria, UK (HE42587) Jim and Susan's idyllic 2-bedroom barn conversion in Rivendell, Northumbria. |
Home Base Holidays: join for free and start home swapping Sign up to Home Base Holidays two-week free trial or select a full membership. Home swap guarantee: second year free if you do not arrange a swap during your membership. |
Home swapping is such a fantastic and budget friendly way to travel. However, when planning a home swap holiday, it’s important to take your time to discuss all details to avoid any potential issues later on. Shown below are five tips on how to prevent a mismatched home swap.
Tip 1: Decide what’s important to you
Experienced home exchangers know that flexibility is key. You’re staying in a real lived in home and most homes / locations have quirks. So don’t go into a swap looking for everything to be perfect or like a show home.
Still, you’ll be more successful if you are clear about your must-haves. For many, one of the key requirements is the location and obviously that the home is big enough for their family. You might be looking to enjoy city life where you’re within walking distance of cafes, restaurants, museums, shops, open markets, and more. Alternatively, when visiting a city, you may prefer to stay in a quieter neighbourhood in the suburbs but with good public transport into the centre.
You might need high speed internet and if so, make sure to check this is available before agreeing a swap.
As mentioned, when home swapping, you’re staying in a real home, not a show home. So don’t worry if your home is not super luxurious – most home swappers homes are just nice normal lived-in homes. If it’s very important to you to stay in a super stylish home, make sure to carefully check the photos and description of the property before agreeing to a swap.
There’s one more thing, and it’s non-negotiable – all home swappers much make sure that their home is CLEAN and welcoming!
Tip 2: Learn as much as you can about the exchange home
To avoid a mismatch, study the photos and the home description. Examine the map to make sure the home is where you want to be. If you have any questions don’t be afraid to ask; your home swap partner should be happy to fill in the missing details.
For example, many older buildings in European cities do not have lifts. Therefore, if you have any mobility issues or simply do not fancy walking up several flights of stairs – double check with your home swap partner about access to their apartment.
Tip 3: Make sure your exchange partners knows what to expect in your home
While surprises are part of every home exchange - sometimes the best part - no one wants to find that their temporary home is not at all what they expected. Try to find out what’s important to your home exchange partners. Address important questions they might not think to ask. For example, if they’re coming to attend an event, alert them to traffic patterns or roadworks that might create delays.
Mention relevant facts about your home and furnishings, as well as the type of neighbourhood you’re in, even if those details are in your listing.
Be sure to tell your exchange partners about anything in the listing, such as a community pool, that won’t be available while they’re staying in your home. Always alert them if a pet has lived in the home recently because many people are allergic to animals.
It’s always a good idea to create a welcome pack for your guests with information about your home (e.g. how to turn off/on the alarm, the knack of turning on the niggly cooker hob, etc) as well as tips and recommendations about your local area (e.g. public transport, recommended cafes / restaurants, etc). It’s also helpful to include your “house rules,” such as keeping noise down after ten at night or not parking in neighbours’ spaces, and a description of anything you’d like your partner to do, such as take in the mail, water the plants, etc.
Tip 4: Have direct conversations with your home swap partners
As well as using the home swap website's messaging or emails, it’s always good to schedule in a phone or even video call when discussing a possible swap.
Think of conversations as part of the screening process. Talking directly helps you and your partner build the trust and confidence that are key to home exchanging. You can learn more about what your exchange partner expects in your home, find out whether the exchange home meets your must-have criteria, clarify details and clear up any misunderstandings. A direct person-to-person connection also makes it much easier to resolve any problems that might come up during the exchange.
Tip 5: Confirm details of the swap in writing
There’s one last step for preventing a mismatched home swap: put the details into a written agreement to be signed by both partners. The agreement should summarise the key points you’ve discussed and give you and your swap partner a chance to spot possible issues.
How you write the agreement is up to you. But to be useful, it should include at least…
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Join Home Base Holidays: start home swapping Enjoy free holiday accommodation by arranging a home swap. Sign up to Home Base Holidays Start swapping: browse home swap holiday offers |
Our one week home exchange holiday in London "We thoroughly enjoyed our one week holiday swapping to Andrew and Linda's beautiful home in Twickenham, London. It was a lovely clean and comfortable home to return to after a long day’s sightseeing. We stayed in the winter and so could only imagine how nice it would be to open the patio doors and enjoy the garden in summer. An immaculate well stocked kitchen that we didn’t do justice too as surprisingly we found it not too expensive to eat out in central London pubs where we had some really decent meals. Transport into central London was easy and in conjunction with our bus passes quite affordable. Although their home is ideally situated to visit Hampton Court Palace, Kew Gardens and other parks, we only managed one lovely walk along the river Thames into Richmond as the main objective of our visit was to visit London’s many free museums and take in as many sights as possible. Highlights: The Science Museum, Victoria & Albert Museum and the British Museum. If you enjoy looking at the fabulous marvels and wonders of the ancient and modern World – you’ll love this! Tip: book in advance online to avoid the queues, especially during school holidays. A walk along the South Embankment was a treat as it has changed so much since we last saw it. Excellent place to photo London’s iconic skyline. Shop, cafes, Shakespeare’s The Globe theatre and street entertainers kept us amused all afternoon and we finished up at The Anchor Bankside. A welcoming pub rebuilt in 1676 after the great fire of London, offering a good value for money pub meal. Then an evening stroll along the embankment to see London lit at night. Great photo opportunity! You can’t visit London without a trip to Covent Garden and the theatre. A fabulous production by the Aldwych Theatre of ‘Tina Turner – the Musical’ finished off a great week for us. Must mention – The Bloomsbury pub just a 10 minutes walk from Andrew and Linda's home. A great meal and very friendly staff. Another surprise was how friendly and chatty people are now on the tubes and buses! Thank you Linda and family for your excellent communication before our trip and for making us feel so welcome." - Jenny and Colin (Somerset, England) |
Our London home swap highlights:
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View the members' home swap offers:
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Burnham on Sea, Somerset, England (HE40436) Lovely peaceful two bedroom house close to Europe's 2nd longest sandy beach. |
Twickenham, London, England (HE27943) Four bedroom home in fantastic location, just a mile or so from leafy Richmond Upon Thames. |
Home Base Holidays: join for free and start home swapping Sign up to Home Base Holidays two-week free trial or select a full membership. Home swap guarantee: second year free if you do not arrange a swap during your membership. |