Travel the Home Exchange Way

Bill Bryson Quote Could Aptly Describe the Home Exchange Travel Experience

‘I thought this little quote by Bill Bryson (the famous travel writer) was very apt for home exchangers:

"To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted".

I will hopefully be able to re-join Home Base Holidays within 6 months as my eldest will finally move out and the home exchange idea will finally be able to come to fruition for us. Regards, Julie’

 

Good quote, Julie! You have also described a situation that can make it difficult to exchange homes, i.e. when grown-up ‘boomerang’ kids are living at home and won’t be going on holiday with you. We look forward to welcoming you back soon.

 

‘The Holiday’ – Bad for the Home Exchange Community?

The film, ‘The Holiday’ a fun, light weight comedy is over three years old now and so generally vanished into the mists of obscurity. As the plot was loosely based around a home swap, occasionally it still crops up in comments, such as  in one by Salli on a recent post (Reasons to Plan a Home Exchange Well in Advance):  

‘We think the film 'The Holiday' has not been good for the home exchange community and that a lot of newer exchangers just see it as a cheap means of travel.’

 Salli, after having several very successful home swaps, had been disappointed by two recent exchange experiences and so it’s understandable that  she may feel the quality of exchangers has deteriorated. If Salli has arranged exchanges through a long established, paid membership home exchange service, it’s likely that she has just been very unfortunate in her choice of recent exchange partners or perhaps, as sometimes happens after a number of very positive experiences, had become a little less careful before agreeing to go ahead with recent exchanges. Most people who might see home exchange as merely a cheap way of travelling will also avoid paying even a modest membership fee to gain access to members genuinely committed to arranging exchanges. Another good reason to treat ‘free’ listings sites with caution and a degree of scepticism whatever the claims of member numbers?

 

Although the film, ‘The Holiday’, is an unrealistic portrayal of how exchanges are arranged (no sane person would instantly agree to an exchange, then hop on a plane across the Atlantic the very next day with no clear idea about the home or area they were going to!), it probably did introduce more people to the home swapping concept (a good thing) but I doubt it was influential enough to have changed the make-up of the genuine home exchange community. What certainly has happened in the last few months as a result of the global economic downturn has undoubtedly made more people look at ways to cut costs on holidays and travel. Home exchange fits into this very well (no accommodation costs – a big saving) but, only a minority would consider swapping homes for cost saving reasons alone.

 

What do you think? Are you an experienced home exchanger? If so, have you noticed any changes in the attitudes of fellow exchangers to reasons for swapping homes over the last few months?

Reasons to Plan a Home Exchange Well in Advance

'home exchangers are a fraternity which involves trust'

Cathy, very experienced home exchanger from Auckland (and also the Home Base Holidays representative in New Zealand), offers sound advice:

 

“We have been getting offers of exchange only a couple of months out from the planned exchange.  I penned the following in response to the latest one which is only one month out i.e. I received it on the weekend and they already have their flights etc and want to exchange in December…

 

"Thank you for your contact regarding exchange in December.  Unfortunately the timing does not suit us. 

 

For your information we, along with most exchangers (particularly for long haul exchanges), arrange an exchange 6 – 12 months in advance, in fact we have had a couple where we have confirmed 18 months in advance.  The reason behind this is;

 

· For long haul travel it gives us time to book flights well in advance to get the best price

· gives us time to get to know the people we are exchanging with via email

· we never book our flights until we have a confirmed exchange

· takes away the urgency of finding an exchange in a short period of time and/or you are wanting to exchange in 2 or 3 towns/countries

 

We are experienced exchangers having exchanged all over the world and they have been marvelous experiences and also we have made lifelong friends with our exchangers.  As one of our exchangers succinctly puts it – ‘home exchangers are a fraternity which involves trust…’

 

This trust needs time to develop - when one is having strangers come and live in one’s home, with everything that goes to make a home, whilst one is not there you are placing a lot of faith and trust in those people.  It is quite different from a holiday home/apartment when they don’t normally have the treasures that go to make a home.”

 

See Cathy’s full home exchange offer in Mission Bay, Auckland, HE12437. Note: Cathy’s home will be available during, and conveniently located for, the Rugby World Cup in 2011. Don’t leave it too long to contact her with your exchange offer if you want to exchange homes at this time!

 

 

Home Exchange During Major Sporting Events Worldwide

Technology has made business global and sports are no different. Major sporting events like the FIFA World Cup, Summer Olympics, Winter Olympics, and Rugby World Cup, four of the 100 Sporting Events You Must See Live, attract fans in attendance from all over the world. Everyone wants to see their country contend for an international title and also see the best athletes in the world compete.

 

Some locals, however, are not thrilled with the global exposure of their cities and towns when hosting an international sports event. Instead of renting their homes, local residents now consider home exchanges. In 2010, the Canadian city of Vancouver and other areas in British Columbia will be overtaken by avid Winter Olympic fans. Accommodations will be hard to come by. A home exchange is the perfect way to get right into the snow sports action without inflated hotel and apartment rental costs.

 

With the 2010 FIFA World Cup being held in South Africa and the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, fans have the chance to not only attend an international sports match, but also get to the chance to visit and explore a new, beautiful country. Just imagine the remarkable experience a die-hard rugby fan from the U.S. would have taking part in a home exchange in New Zealand or a British soccer fan enjoying World Cup soccer and the South African coast. A home exchange is a great way to get to any of the 100 Sporting Events You Must See Live.

 

Guest Post by Robert Tuchman, author of The 100 Sporting Events You Must See Live. Robert  writes the series “The Show Must Go On” for ESPN.com, a monthly column for Entrepreneur.com called “Young, Fearless, and Fed Up as well as a column called “On-Site” for Incentive Magazine.

 

Sample Home Exchange Offers Near Sporting Events:

 

Canada – Winter Olympics 2010

White Rock/Surrey, British Columbia, Canada - Bright modern 1100sf.condo, 2nd floor. 40 minutes from many 2010 Winter Olympics venues. Excellent public transit.

 

 

 

South Africa – 2010 Fifa World Cup

Franschoek, Western Cape, South Africa - Beautiful 4-bedroom house on the exclusive Pearl Valley Golf Estate. The estate has all the amenities of a world class golf estate (club house, restaurant, pool, spa and an equestrian centre. Situated in the heart of the wine growing region yet a mere 40 minutes drive (50km) from the centre of Cape Town. Excellent accommodation for 2010 Fifa World Cup.

 

 

New Zealand – 2011 Rugby World Cup

Auckland Mission Bay, Auckland, New Zealand - "Mission Bay: Auckland's best urban beach" (Pacific Wave Magazine). Mission Bay is a 10 minute scenic drive along the waterfront from centre of Auckland City of Sails.This two bedroom home will be available during the Rugby World Cup and convenient (close to Eden Park where the final will be played as well as close to Auckland inner city).

  

 

 

 

England – 2012 Olympics

London, England - Four double-bed, 3 bath Victorian terrace in West Hampstead, a busy, friendly neighbourhood close to town but only one mile from Hampstead Heath, the largest and highest open space in London. We are interested in swapping for the whole of the London Olympics in 2012!

  

 

 

 

Blog Action Day 09 Climate Change: What Can a Home Exchanger Do?

This is the third year we have participated in Blog Action Day and this year’s cause, climate change, is such an urgent issue that no one or any government in the world can afford to ignore it one day longer. Climate change affects us all but the world’s poorest and most vulnerable are already suffering most.

 

This home exchange blog is all about travel and, in the light of the effects on climate from air travel in particular, it seems very wrong to encourage further travel. However, to be realistic, people who can afford to will continue to travel and it seems far better to promote a responsible attitude than to discourage travel altogether. After all, travel does have many benefits and, when undertaken sensitively (swapping to homes that would otherwise be empty rather than contributing to the destruction of natural resources to build more hotels in tourist ghettos) increases tolerance and understanding of other cultures.

 

It may be more a direct result of the downturn in the economy worldwide for many rather than a conscious decision to cut down on air travel (although I do believe home exchangers are particularly responsible people), but there has been a definite trend for more Home Base Holidays members to seek home swaps closer to home this year. Long haul destinations may not be quite so much in demand as a few years ago but many home exchangers do still want to travel to far off countries (some to visit family), only now more are planning longer exchanges rather than zipping halfway across the world for a week at a time several times a year. Not everyone can take the time off of course but, for retired members and the many now who can  combine work with a holiday wherever there is an Internet connection, this is a practical and sensible choice. With no accommodation costs (and often no car hire or pet care expenses), making the most of a lengthy exchange holiday makes sense both financially and for the environment.

 

In the run-up to an exchange, think of any improvements you can make to your home to cut down on energy use and general wastage. Do drafty windows or inadequate insulation make you crank up the heat in winter? If you are exchanging with someone from a warmer climate who may feel the cold more than you do, this is a particularly good time to do those jobs to make your home cosier without the need for the central heating to be up high.

 

When compiling an information folder for your exchange guests, include details of anything that will both keep your bills down and save energy and thus be climate friendly; a few examples:

• how to set the heating to come on for short periods twice a day when they plan to be out all day
• encourage the use of public transport whenever possible even if you agree to swap cars
• leave instructions on how to recycle as much as possible
• give details of markets that sell locally produced food
• offer to lend heavy outdoor clothing and boots to save your guests buying and bringing items they won’t otherwise need

This is a ‘starter’ list. Do you have suggestions for more ways home exchangers can still enjoy travel while minimising damage to our fragile climate? Do leave a comment below.

 

When last checked, 6000+ bloggers had signed up to Blog Action Day. All will be writing on climate change today, from many different perspectives. See ideas for taking action on climate change issues beyond  Blog Action Day.

Home Swappers: the Home Exchange Newsletter, Oct/Nov09

The new issue of Home Swappers Newsletter is now available. Topics:

• Regular home swaps (and the dogs come too)
• Watch a BBC1 film of a summer home exchange
• Home exchange partners are guests!
• Home swaps during holidays and special events
• Competition winner - three homes in unusual buildings

Read articles in this issue in full and previous issues of Home Swappers Newsletter, in the Newsletter Archive. Subscribe to receive the newsletter as published.

 

Update: Watch the film of a US-UK Home Exchange on BBC TV

The summer home swap between Home Base Holidays member, Susan (and a friend) from Ocean Pines, Maryland with the Lillywhites who live in a typical Edwardian house in West London, was shown on The One Show last Friday. Now you can watch it here.

Watch a Recording of a US-UK Home Exchange on BBC TV

The film of a summer home swap between Home Base Holidays member, Susan and her friend from Ocean Pines, Maryland, and the Lillywhite family, Guardian home exchange members from London, aired last night on The One Show. This was very positive and a great introduction to swapping homes on prime time TV - despite Ricky Gervais' comments! Watch the film and studio discussion (it’s at the beginning of the programme) any time during the next six days.

Thanks again to our enthusiastic first time home exchangers for taking part.

Oops - just realised you won't be able to view the recording on iPlayer if you are outside the UK, which is a shame.

'Slow Down London': Take Time to Smell the Roses

The following article is by guest author, Pauline Kenny:

The first "Slow Down London" festival runs from April 24 to May 4. "Slow Down London" is a new project to inspire Londoners to improve their lives by "slowing down to do things well, rather than as fast as possible."

We would like to inspire you to improve your travel life by slowing down. Don’t hop on a plane, check into a hotel, grab your guidebook and dash out to see the highlights. Instead pick one destination that you want to know better, find a home exchange or a vacation rental in the area, and settle in. Go to your favorite local café or tea room. Get groceries and supplies at the local shops. Talk to your neighbors, the people who live there. Read the local newspaper. Travel well, rather than as fast as possible.

Americans use the term "vacation" instead of "holiday". For us a vacation is the chance to "vacate" our regular life. It doesn’t mean that we are unhappy with our daily life, but a change can be as good as a rest, so we leave our regular life behind and try on a different lifestyle. Maybe we go to a beach and become a beach-bum. Or maybe we head to Europe and live like a European for a few weeks.

With a home exchange or a vacation rental you get to live in a neighborhood, not in a tourist zone. Your local shops and restaurants cater to locals, not to tourists looking for something fast and inexpensive. You don’t spend two nights trying to see everything; you spend a week or two. In my travel experience, the best way to really see a place is to stay for awhile. Slow it down so you have the time to find the roses, talk to the gardener who grows them and then smell the roses.

Pauline Kenny runs two travel websites: Slow Europe, a guide to vacation rentals in Europe, and Cotswolder, a travel guide for the Cotswolds in England. She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico with her husband Steve Cohen and cat Buddy. Pauline and Steve travel to Europe as often as they can and are currently obsessed with traveling in England. They have never done a home exchange because their lives are too disorganized, but they always stay in vacation rentals.

Google Street View - a Useful Tool for Home Exchangers

Last week several large cities in the UK joined those in a number of other countries that can be viewed, street by street, on Google Street View. Although this raises some privacy issues, it is also a really useful tool for anyone planning a home exchange to one of the cities covered.

If you live in a city covered by Google Street View, once you get to the stage of sharing contact details with home exchange partners, being able to view your street and area in such detail will enable them to become familiar with your local neighbourhood and also view it within the context of the whole city. Most home exchangers leave their guests detailed information (and you'll still want to do this) but now you can actually direct them to your favourite restaurant, the best shop for fruit and veg, the closest bus stop and your local train station. And, of course, if your home exchange destination is covered by Street View, you should have a great preview of the location before you even leave home!