Travel the Home Exchange Way blog

Home swap holiday in Sri Lanka for daughter's wedding

Sally & Jerry's wonderful colonial style bungalow in Kandy, Sri Lanka

Kandy, Sri Lanka: home swap holiday & magical wedding day! "After spending her early years in Sri Lanka, our daughter wanted to have her wedding day on this most beautiful of islands. It was a big ask, can we arrange a home swap staying in Sally and Jerry's amazing home in Kandy, Sri Lanka ...oh, and can we have a wedding there too? Our home swap hosts, Sally and Jerry, were just so fantastic and helped us have the most magical day. Their home is stunning; it's set in the middle of a tea estate with spectacular views, a large garden with swimming pool, stream, lawns and fruit trees - it was the most perfect wedding venue. Jerry advised us on the process and organised the registrar and witnesses. Their home is staffed by a lovely couple, Martin and Rani. Rani and her team created a fabulous Sri Lankan banquet. Sally did the wedding cake and Tim and Luna, two work away volunteers, were trumps at decorating and helping prep for the big day. Oh, and in addition to the beautiful wedding, we all had such a wonderful holiday on what we think is the most magical of islands on this planet. We are really looking forward to hosting Sally, Jerry and their family here in our cottage in Shropshire. I can't thank them enough for their generosity and everything they did to help fulfill our daughter's wedding wish." - Helena & Mike (Shropshire, England)

Highlights from the swap: Sally and Jerry's warmth kindness and generosity Rani's wonderful cooking and Martin's helpfulness The magical location in Kandy, Sri Lanka

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Wedding home swap in Kandy, Sri Lanka

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View their home swap offers on Home Base Holidays:

Shropshire, England (HE34705) We're a semi retired couple and have been exchanging since 2013 and have had some amazing swaps, we think this works really well. We enjoy outdoors, music, good food and conversation. We love to travel and are keen to see what we can of our planet. View Helena & Mike's home swap offer	Kandy, Sri Lanka (HE27559) We're an English couple but Sally was brought up in Sri Lanka in a tea planting family. We brought up a large family and now have several grandchildren - we love kids. We moved from the UK to live at Jungle Tide in 2015. Jungle Tide is especially good for families and for older adventurers. View Sally & Jerry's home swap offer

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Home Base Holidays: sign up and start planning your home swap holidays Sign up to Home Base Holidays two-week free trial or select a full membership (starting at just £29). Search home exchange holiday offers

Pet friendly breaks? Arrange a home exchange holiday

Home swapping can be an ideal holiday option for pet owners

To many pet owners the thought of leaving their dog or cat in a kennel or cattery while they go on holiday is enough to make them give up the idea of going away! So, rather than leaving your pet behind, why not arrange a home swap and take your pets on holiday with you? Home swapping can be an excellent option for pet owners, but make sure to plan well in advance before setting off with your beloved pet.

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Find pet friendly accommodation

You'll be pleased to hear that there are plenty of pet-friendly home swap holiday offers. Many home owners have pets themselves and will be very happy for you to bring your own pet during the exchange. Home Base Holidays, a home swap club based in the UK, has search options so that you can easily find pet-friendly home swap holiday offers. 

 

However, when planning your holiday, it’s very important to make sure to discuss all details with your home swap hosts and get their full approval for your pet to stay in their home.

Pet allergies? Even if you are not taking your pet with you, make sure to inform any prospective home swap guests if you have pets – your pet's fur might be a big no no for anyone with allergies.

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Be prepared for the journey

If you are crossing borders, then make sure to do research to find out what paperwork and certificates are required for your pet. Often this can include: a health & rabies certificate, vaccination history and sometimes; proof of ownership. You will also need an airline-approved pet carrier if you need to catch a flight to your destination.

 

• Check out the UK Government's guidelines on taking your pet overseas

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Damage prevention

If you do plan on taking your pet with you on a home swap holiday, never forget that you are staying in someone’s home and so make sure that you leave the home in as good a condition (or even better!) than when you arrived. Make sure that your pet is well behaved before choosing to swap homes. However, if your pet does have an accident, make clean it up right away and, if needed, pay for professional cleaning / cover any damages.

 

Tip: Remember to take your poop scoop with you – you don’t want you and your pooch getting a bad name in the neighbourhood!

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Will people look after my pet during a home swap?

Many home swappers are more than happy to look after each other's pets during their stay. This can be such a welcome benefit of home swapping as your pets can happily stay in their own home rather than having the stress and expense of taking them to stay in a kennel or cattery. Pet care during a home swap usually means caring for pets such as cats, dogs, fish or other small animals ...but we've even seen people looking after alpacas during a home swap holiday! It's also not uncommon to see home swappers looking after their host's chickens during their stay ...freshly laid eggs for breakfast sounds like a nice added bonus.

House plants & gardens: It's not just pets! It's always sad to come home from a holiday to find your house-plants or garden flowers have perished; however, many home exchangers will be more than happy to give your plants some water while you're away.

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A few pet-friendly home swap holiday offers:

Andalucia, Spain	Insch, Scotland	Lake District, England	Provence, France

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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 home swap membership (6-month membership is just £29 and 1-year at £49). Home swap guarantee: second year free if you do not arrange a swap during your membership.

Exchanging keys before a home swap holiday

Planning your first home swap holiday? One question many first time home swappers ask is how best to exchange keys with their home swap guests. Many people simply choose to send their keys by mail. If you do choose to mail your keys, make sure to allow plenty of time and use a trackable signed delivery / courier service where you receive a notification that the keys have been successfully delivered. Shown below are a few options for swapping keys with your guests.

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1. Send your keys by mail / courier service

If you do choose to mail your keys, allow plenty of time and use a trackable signed delivery or courier service where you receive a notification that the keys have been delivered.

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2. Neighbours, family and friends

It’s always recommended to leave one or two local numbers that your home swap guests can call if they have any questions – this might be the number of a family member, a friend or a trusted neighbour. Some members also arrange to pick up the house keys on arrival from an agreed contact. This can work very well but if you choose this option make sure that your family, friend or neighbour understands the importance of being there for your guests' arrival and is also contactable by phone.

When the home exchange is non-simultaneous, involves a second home, or if there are a few days cross over between the exchanges, many members prefer to deliver the keys in person. If this includes you, make sure that you know exactly when your exchange guests will be arriving and allow in your schedule some flexi-time in case your guests are delayed.

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3. Outdoor code lock box

If you plan on taking part in regular home swaps it can be worth installing a lockbox and then provide the code to your home swap guests so that they can access the key on arrival. This is a very good option for people listing second homes / holiday homes.

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4. Secret hiding spot

This is not a method we'd recommend. However, some home swappers simply agree a secret hiding spot to stash their key. If you do choose this option, make sure the hiding spot is very well hidden (but not so hidden that your guests can’t find the keys!).

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5. Key exchange service

With the increase in home sharing/rentals, there has also been a rise in third party services, including key exchange services. These vary from courier services that drop off the keys on arrival to services where you can choose a collection destination near your exchange property. One example of a key exchange service is Keycafe

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Home Base Holidays: join for free and plan your home swap holidays Search home exchange holiday offers in over 90 countries through Home Base Holidays. Sign up to Home Base Holidays two-week free trial or select a full membership (6-month membership is just £29 and 1-year at £49).