Travel the Home Exchange Way blog

Home Exchange (and Funny Search Phrases)

This is a self indulgent post - nothing about home exchange but rather a list of some phrases visitors to this blog have used recently (and I thought it was pretty focussed on home exchange!):

• any sheep renting in wirral for one week
• distance of fairy from yarmouth ns to maine
• 2007 e-mail contact teeth rich good care owners home in usa
• Yorkie +hostage +california
• 2004-2007 email contact of norway men pensioners
• how far do cats travel from home generally
• animated clothes dryer
• all villages flop in florida
• JOANNE'S LOVELY LEG SHOW
• forrest gump suitcase limoges box
• overseas workers who checked my ticket, poured my drink, blackheath

cat flap burglary insurance

animated hens

what not to do with a toaster

And, finally, not a funny phrase at all but a very interesting question that I'm sure home exchangers will answer with a resounding 'yes':

do you think travelling is the best way of improving your knowledge of people and of the world we live in?

Especially for Cathy in New Zealand - a Home Exchange Enthusiast

Regular Home Swappers subscribers will remember reading contributions in past issues from Cathy, the Home Base Holidays representative in New Zealand, and the blog that she kept to record her long-term exchange in England last year (see Parallel Diaries of a Home Swap: Two Home Exchange Blogs). I had the pleasure of spending some time with Cathy in London (that's us at Somerset House, Cathy on the right).

I was pleased to hear from Cathy recently and to catch up on her news. She and husband, Laurie, will be off on an exchange to Canada in January and are looking ahead to planning another swap next year back to the UK, possibly Scotland this time. Check out their attractive exchange offer in Mission Bay, Auckland, HE12437.

Like many readers, Cathy receives an update by email from FeedBlitz when a new post is published on Travel the Home Exchange Way. Cathy said:

'Lois, just to let you know that I read your FeedBlitz all the time and look forward to it as a personal letter!!!'

That's great as that is my aim in publishing the blog, to feel that I am able to reach those interested in home exchange on a more personal level. I am much more comfortable dealing with companies where I feel there are 'real people' available to answer any questions and I hope the blog helps provide this reassurance for Home Base Holidays members and visitors too.

To subscribe, enter your email address in the box (left, above) and click 'Get email updates'. Don't worry - your inbox won't be bombarded. You will rarely receive more than three messages a week.

Home Exchange to be Near Family over Christmas? Get a Move On!

As arranging a home exchange to a particular area during a particular period restricts the number of exchange possibilities, it is always a good idea to start planning for such exchanges well in advance of the dates wanted. The following are a couple of examples of the many home exchangers who like to arrange home swaps over the Christmas holiday to be near, but independent from, families:

Plymouth, Devon, England

'We are particularly interested in exchanging with properties in Kent at Christmas, school and bank holidays because that's where our relatives live and we're fed up with sleeping on the floor when we visit! We also love the bright lights of London and we are open to offers internationally. Because my husband is a teacher, we are tied to school holidays and weekends for trips.'

And their exchange offer in Plymouth:

An ideal base to explore the West country, ours is a characterful, terraced Victorian house in a quiet cul-de-sac 2 miles from the city centre. The house is newly renovated with cosy Aga, views and a sun-trap garden. See the full offer and photos, HE20183

Rougnac, Poitou-Charentes, France:

'Teresa is a retired secretary and works part time as a masseuse. Ian is a retired Headteacher. We have 4 Adult children who live in the UK and 2 grandsons. We have lived in France for 2 years and absolutely love it. We enjoy gardening, swimming in our pool and walking our 2 dogs through the forest where our hamlet is situated. We are hoping to exchange to either Surrey, Berkshire or West London so we can visit our family for Xmas 2007/8.'

Their exchange offer in Rougnac:

200 year old farmhouse renovated to modern standards but keeping French character with 2 acre garden including pool and 1 acre forest. 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms in house. Self contained Gite with one bedroom and 1 bathroom, living room/kitchen. Set in quiet hamlet, ideal for bird watchers, cyclists, walkers. Winter snow possibility. 2.5kms to village with excellent rustic French restaurant. 10 minute drive to town with all amenities. See the full offer and more photos, HE20149

Home Exchange Arranged in Europe? Test Your Geography Knowledge Before You Go

Do you know your Web Whereabouts?

Web Whereabouts is actually a very neat and educational geography game provided by Translation Service. Basically, you are given randomly selected outlines of one European country at a time that you have to place in it's correct position (with only the country code as a clue) on a blank map of the continent. However well travelled you are, placing some countries is definitely a challenge!

So, do you know your ‘.be’ from your ‘.bg’? Play the Web Whereabouts game (there are points to be had and helpful hints if you get a bit stuck). Practice, and by the time you come to Europe on your home swap, you should know exactly where you are heading!

Home Exchange Guests: Restricting Internet Access if Necessary

A few weeks ago I published a post based on a question from a member, Allowing Use of a Computer/Internet Access by Home Exchange Partners: Any Potential Problems? Ian, who posed the original question, was mainly concerned with the legal position should a member of the exchange party have downloaded illegal material onto a computer. Although we still haven't come to a definitive answer on that particular question, there has been useful feedback from other members, one response published in the last issue of Home Swappers newsletter. Following from this, Maureen, an experienced exchanger from Australia, shared her own experiences, which any home exchanger with a monthly Internet tariff fixed by the number of hours of usage should take note of:

'I noticed the item on computer access on home exchanges so thought I'd add my tuppence worth ...

We were caught quite badly when we did a swap with some folk from France. Our programme for the Internet is capped at 400 gs which is normally quite sufficient. We didn't even consider mentioning this to our swappers so sure were we that it would be sufficient for their use.

However, they brought another couple with them (with our consent) and they discovered that they could read a French daily newspaper over the Internet. All four of them read it every day! So our usage skyrocketed to 2500 gs and we received a bill for $400 extra over our plan.

We of course picked up this cost and put it down to experience as we had not put any restrictions on our swappers for the use of the Internet. They also downloaded software that we were unable to remove on our return.

While we were at their home, unfortunately there was a wild storm and lightening hit the house and knocked out the Internet. With the language problem we were unable to get it fixed so were unable to use it whilst we were there. We found an Internet cafe and used this.

However, this experience did not bode well for our next swappers as we agreed not to use each others' Internet service and, instead, both used Internet Cafes!

So I guess this is a word of warning to clarify what is available and what parameters you expect to be honoured. Regards, Maureen'

Maureen's attractive home exchange offer on Australia's Gold Coast:

'Our house is situated on Queensland's Gold Coast, magnificant beaches & tourist attractions. Excellent golf courses & the sun shines all the time - warm weather guaranteed any time of year. Our house is two story, has 4 bedrooms, three of which have en suite bathrooms and the fourth has a bathroom downstairs nearby. We have a swimming pool with spa and the rear balcony overlooks a lake so the views are spectacular.' See the full exchange offer and more photos, HE14532

Can a Home Exchange be Good for the Environment?

I have touched on the potentially greener apects of swapping homes as a way of travel before but today's post is especially for Blog Action Day, when thousands of bloggers will be publishing posts on the crucial topic of protecting our environment.

Of course, if you fly thousands of miles for a short home swap, your flight will cause much more damage to the environment than if you had stayed at home. However, if, like many home exchangers, you have made a conscious decision to fly less, choosing destinations closer to home for at least some of your holidays, preferably places you can get to by train or, if your exchange does involve a long haul flight, you make the most of your time away by having an extended holiday, then you are, as a home exchanger, a greener traveller.

The over development of many popular tourist areas with more and more hotel complexes that blight the very environment that visitors come to enjoy is one good reason to consider alternative types of accommodation. Home exchange, in contrast to hotels, makes use of buildings already available that would otherwise be empty while the owners are away. Using homes for accommodation is preferable to contributing to building more hotels, with their almost inherent waste of valuable resources such as water and electricity.