Travel the Home Exchange Way blog

Home swapping: embracing the unexpected

Sandra Newnham, a long time Home Base Holidays member and very experienced home swapper, sent us in this lovely article on some of the unexpected pleasure she discovered while home swapping. 

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“A few years ago, while on holiday in Lake Garda, we spotted a sign which said, in translation "To the chapel". Now I am that annoying person who has swallowed the guide book and no such chapel was mentioned so we scrambled up a rocky path to be rewarded with a delightful and expertly painted little cavern where we sat in cool contemplation for some considerable time.

It's a great joy isn't it when something like this occurs and we've had many such instances in the eight years that we've been members of Home Base Holidays.

There was the Italian restaurant just steps away from Bea and Kas's home in the mainly German area of Switzerland. All local people and a terrace next to a playground, families eating, their children playing and wandering back to the tables to graze, and a menu in Swiss German, no English. Why should they? No tourists round here. Do you have Italian, I asked. I speak Italian. Hey! She speaks Italian. The English lady speaks Italian. Free drinks. And St Gallen Cathedral. Bea had said to go there. Said you'll love it. I still smile each time I think of it.

The singing tour bus driver in Dublin who was so good we didn't get off the bus. (Although I do still remember Jo's sister's chocolate and caramel shortbread. Divine).

The local shops in a Spanish suburb. Go here for this we were told, there for that. Amazing bread, tarts, takeaways, coffee at a fraction of the cost in the town centre.

Staying in the Jericho area of Oxford. A golden walk into town on one side and meadows on the other with a pleasant amble to the pub our house swap partner suggested.

And talking of pubs, wandering into our "local" in Dorset to be told there was a drink left for us behind the bar. If you're not a Brit that doesn't mean there's literally a drink sitting there for you but someone has left the money for you to have one.

I wonder what our next unexpected pleasure will be? In a few weeks we're off on a home swap to Devon so not long to wait until I find out.  ” - Sandra

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Sandra's home exchange offer in London: 

Ours is a well cared for home in a quiet, residential street in south west London with excellent transport links to all London's attractions. It is situated a few minutes' walk from extensive park and common land and to shops, bars and restaurants.

Read the full details of Sandra's London home swap

Five steps: prepare your home for a home swap

More and more people are discovering what a rewarding way of travelling home exchanging can be. Firstly you get to enjoy free accommodation (no more hotel costs!), but you also enjoy the space of a real home and, as you'll be swapping with real locals, you get insiders advice on what to see and do!

However, when arranging your first home exchange it can be a bit daunting knowing what will be expected of your home by your guests. 

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Five steps to prepare your space for a home exchange:

 

1. Clean and declutter

Prior to your home exchange, make sure you give your home a good clean and declutter so that your home is ready and welcoming for your guests. Clear space in your fridge and also make room in your wardrobe so that there is space for your guests to hang their clothes. It's also very important to make the beds up and leave plenty of clean towels and extra bedding. 

 

2. Leave basic provisions 

You don't have to go grocery shopping for your guests, but it's nice to have staples like tea, coffee, sugar, milk, bread, butter, cereal, toilet rolls and washing up liquid on hand to help them get settled while they figure out the lay of the land. 

 

3. Create a welcome pack

Put together a folder of useful information. This can include practical information such as how to operate the alarm, when the dustbins are emptied, etc. Leave useful telephone numbers including your mobile number, the number of a friend or neighbour, the local doctor, local taxi company, emergency plumber, etc. Leave up to date tourist leaflets, maps, guide books, take away menus and information about public transport. 

 

4. Small repairs

Your guests will be expecting a clean, tidy, but lived-in home, not a five star hotel, so don't feel that you have to completely over-haul your home to make it acceptable; but, if there's a few nagging little jobs (that door that has to be jiggled a certain way to close it, the dripping tap - you know, the small niggles that most of us can live with), the run-up to a home exchange might provide the perfect incentive to fix them.  

 

5. Leave a gift for your guests

Start the swap on a great note by going that extra mile to welcome your guests with a kind, unexpected gesture. How about some fresh flowers with a welcome card, a nice bottle of wine or maybe a nice locally produced treat?

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Interested in home exchanging? Join Home Base Holidays and start contacting members in over 90 countries. 

Our wonderful home swap holiday in Tuscany

This lovely trip report was sent to us by Marguerite, a long time member and experienced home exchanger. Marguerite describes her excellent home swap in Tuscany with Home Base Holidays members, Shirley and John. 

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Home swap in the hilltop village of Cardoso

“I would like to write of my, and my travel companions, Caroline and Helen's recent home exchange to Cardoso in Tuscany. This was arranged with the owners, Shirley and John. Their beautiful Italian home is, in fact, their holiday home. Believe me, it is one of the most comfortable and tastefully furnished homes I have ever stayed in. The garden, and the views from it are magnificent, and, if you climb the steps in the village immediately behind the house, you will find yourself at the little village bar, where the same view is available, with a glass of Aperol or Campari/prosseco to hand. The advantages of a friendly, (even the elderly lady bar owner spoke a little English...) mountain village? You are never overcharged for anything!

Visiting Lucca and surrounding cities is simple, trains from the nearby small town run frequently, and driving is very easy, we visited a couple of local beauty spots, and were even privy to a wedding in Castelnuova!

There was so much to see around, but quitting the house, with it's wonderfully cool bedrooms and rooms, even during a hot June was not always easy... it took hunger to drive us from the terrace to the local well stocked supermarket.

Shirley and John were very helpful, everything was very clear regarding the house and directions etc. so much so, that we had no questions... we simply relaxed and had a lovely stay.

Many thanks to Home Base Holidays and Guardian Home Exchange, without them, where would we be? Well, probably not enjoying a beautiful home in Tuscany!! ” - Marguerite

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Interested in home swapping? Check out...

Marguerite's charming cottage in Harrogate, Yorkshire

Shirley & John's beautiful hilltop Tuscany home swap

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Arrange free accommodation: search home swaps 

Home swap travel tips competition winners

We are delighted to announce the winners in the Packing for a Home Swap: Best Tips Competition, with prizes kindly provided by  Travel Toiletries 2 Go.

First prize of a Handbag and Travel Treats Gift Set (in photo) goes to student, Chrissie Sultan, from London:

‘I am a student so don’t have a home to swap but my family did do exchanges when I was a teenager. My tip is based on one particular exchange when we swapped with a family in Italy who had kids of the same age as my brother and I.

Tip: If you let your older kids (well daughters anyway) get involved in the arrangements for your home swap they may, as we did, find good ways to cut down on packing. Their daughter Maria and I found that we were almost the same size, shared pictures of various outfits and then agreed to swap clothes and make-up. All I packed were basics like underwear. I had fun dressing in Maria’s clothes and trying out new make-up. Our parents may have thought this was gross but they didn’t complain about our small suitcases!’

The runner-up and winner of a Mini Toiletries Essentials Set for Women is Valeri Walsh:

‘I'm sure most home swappers will know the tips on packing well - roll individual items to prevent creasing, pack shoes with socks or other small items and fill every corner of the suitcase - but I have found a necessity to pack other items to ensure my home swap goes well.  Have others found a lack of space in the kitchen for food?  Yes, every home owner is thoughtful enough to provide space in the fridge but this is only suitable for fresh fruit and veg.  What does one do with the dry ingredients after opening packets, most of which have to be left on the worktop as the food cupboards are full?  I have found the answer is to pack self-seal freezer bags. These will keep fresh the cereal, rice, tea bags etc. that you don't know how to keep usable for the length of your holiday.  I also pack rubber gloves and a nailbrush as it is amazing how often these are not to hand.’

Valeri's home is a 800 year old property in the stunning Medieval village of Ceriana, Italy

View Valeri's home swap offer in Italy, part of an 800 year old property within the Medieval village of Ceriana (see image above).

And finally, Lorraine Hegyi wins a year's membership to Home Base Holidays for her reminder of one of the best ever travel tips:

'This isn't original, I read it many years ago, but it is still the best advice I ever heard - plan what you think you need, then take half the clothes, and twice the money!'

Lorraine's home is in Tweed Heads, Australia and has extensive ocean views

View Lorraine's new home swap offer in New South Wales, Australia, a modern home with extensive ocean views in Tweed Heads (see photo above).

Exploring Beachy Head and Seven Sisters

"During a recent home swap holiday in Brighton we had the opportunity to visit two spots that are well known to any Anglophile – Beachy Head of WW2 fame, and the white cliffs known as the Seven Sisters. We started in Eastbourne, which impressed us as a beautifully cared for seaside town. The buildings and streets between the station and the seafront are clean and neat, with attractive gardens and shady trees. We were there in perfect weather, so the shade was appreciated. The seafront has beautiful flower beds, benches, clean public facilities and a delightful bandstand with proper seating where concerts are held. Definitely a place for a holiday in my view!

From Eastbourne it’s about an hour’s walk to Beachy Head, some of it fairly steep uphill but well worth it. The views back towards Eastbourne and across the headlands are wonderful. There’s a Visitor Centre at Beachy Head with a very interesting exhibition about the settlements in the area that go right back to very early times. Also a big pub with plenty of seating and some nice big windows, above which they have kindly written what it is that you can see through that window. Lovely idea!

We visited the memorial to the airmen who flew across Beachy Head, for many their last sight ever of home. Poignant thought. Then on towards Belle Tout Lighthouse with the glistening calm ocean on one side and the green stretches of the Downs on the other. What a spectacular cliff walk this is! We continued all the way to Birling Gap, where we climbed down the tower of steps to the beach to cool our feet and to inspect the chalk cliffs close up. The white chalk is the skeletal remains of billions of minute plankton creatures, and the black bits of flint were originally – amazingly – once sponges. Now I know why flint has that glassy look to it – it’s composed of silica. I was thrilled to actually touch these iconic white cliffs, they really have a special aura about them.

After Birling Gap we continued on to Cuckhaven, where we followed the river inland to get the bus home. The broad walking area on these grassy clifftops ensures that even a lot of people don’t make for a crowded place – there’s room for all and the peace and tranquility is wonderful. If you get a lovely sunny day do remember to protect yourself from the sun. There are no trees along the route and the brush is only high enough to shelter the many rabbits. A camera is obviously a must. We had to stop ourselves from taking photos every few minutes or we would never have got home before dark!

Walking along the tops of these cliffs is a very special experience that I would love to do again someday in the other direction, ending in Eastbourne. Maybe another home swap?" - Bea

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This excellent trip report was sent in by long time Home Base Holidays member, Bea Fitze. Check out Bea's wonderful home swap offer in St. Gallen, Switzerland.