Travel the Home Exchange Way

One month ski chalet home swap in Le Sappey, France

Home swap: in a ski chalet in Le Sappey, France

It's always great to hear members' home swap experiences. Here's a recent trip report from an exchange this March between Jean's ski chalet in Le Sappey, Rhone Alps, France and Helena and Mike's lovely country cottage in Shropshire, England.

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Home swap: Shropshire, England >>> Rhone Alps, France

"We swapped homes with Jean for a whole month. She was fabulous and provided care and love for our elderly Labrador who couldn’t come with us. Her ski chalet in Le Sappey was delightful, so when it snowed for a week we loved being indoors and enjoy the cosy alpine atmosphere. Thones is a charming town and Annecy is very close by. We were spoilt for choice with great ski resorts - we chose Le Grand Bonard as it had a wealth of easy green runs. Also great to find a bridge club in La Clusac, so bridge and French language skills got done practice. Thanks Jean for a great home swap!" - Helena & Mike

 

Home swap: Rhone Alps, France >>> Shropshire, England

"My home swap in Helena's house in Oreton, Shropshire, was really relaxing. It's a charming country hideaway, where the pheasants, and even the curlews, outnumber the people. Ludlow was only 20 minutes away and is a really beautiful town; we visited several times in order to appreciate everything it has to offer, including the pubs and restaurants! Even more intriguing, is Cleobury Mortimer, with its crooked spire and unique independent shops. I miss the three beautiful cows in the next field, who always wanted to eat my left over food, and lovely old Stella, Helena's brown Labrador. Helena and Mike are kind and generous people, who made sure that I wasn't short of company during my time there."  - Jean

 

Photos of Jean's chalet in Le Sappey, France

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Photos of Helena & Mike's country cottage

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Meet the members:   View Jean's home swap offer: beautiful ski chalet in the Rhone Alps, France View Helena & Mike's home swap offer: country cottage in Shropshire, England

 

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Rather than booking a hotel or holiday rental, arrange free accommodation by arranging a holiday home exchange. Sign up to the Home Base Holidays two-week free trial.

Home Base Holidays member on Masterchef!

Paul and Judith's home in Olonzac, France and Paul appearing on Masterchef

March was an exciting month watching Home Base Holidays member, Paul, appearing as a contestant on the very popular BBC series, Masterchef. We're all so proud of him and he did incredibly well, making it all the way to the final 12 (episode 15). His French inspired food looked amazing and received excellent feedback from the Masterchef judges, John and Greg. Some of the highlights included cooking a lunch service at The Frog restaurant in London's Covent Garden and cooking for the world-renowned two Michelin Star chef, Michel Roux Jr. Way to go Paul!

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Paul and Judith relaxing at their home in Olonzac

Paul and his wife Judith are early retiree art & design lecturers and very experienced home exchangers. The couple have a beautiful French home in Olonzac, right in the middle of the wine producing area of the Minervois in Languedoc Roussillon. Their home has a lovely courtyard planted with figs, grapes, lemons, olives, bougainvillea, oleander, hibiscus and lavender, as well as herbs and tomatoes, where you can dine al fresco. You can certainly see where Paul gets many of his culinary inspirations from!   

 

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On home exchanging and sampling local produce, Judith writes: "We're SO proud of Paul! A great benefit of home exchanging is being able shop and cook locally. We have great memories of the farmer’s market in San Francisco, Piggly Wiggly in Charleston South Carolina, VONS in LA, the roadside stalls in Acapulco, fishermen’s hauls in Spain. We bought the weird and wonderful in Australia - Morton Bay Bugs and kangaroo steaks, then cooked it on a beautiful flowery patio beside our very own pool. Cooking food on a variety of interesting quirky ovens and BBQs is one of the thrills of a home swap, something that would be impossible in a hotel room." - Judith

 

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Watch Paul's Masterchef journey via the BBC iPlayer: (only available in the UK)

You can catch up with Paul's Masterchef appearances via the BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/b006t1k5/masterchef 

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Meet the members  Check out Paul and Judith's home, a lovely 120 year old town house in the friendly, bustling village of Olonzac. View Paul and Judith's home swap offer

 

Trip report: a wonderful home exchange in Windermere

A wonderful home exchange vacation in the English Lake District

We LOVE hearing about members' home swaps! This trip report was sent in by Home Base Holidays member, Trish, about her recent home swap vacation staying in Fiona & Dave's lovely Lake District home in beautiful Windermere.

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"An immaculate, warm and very convenient apartment. Fiona went out of her way to provide everything one could possibly need. It was a bonus to arrive by train and just have a short walk to Fiona's home. Very easy to get around using buses and boats. Loved the walks to Lake Windermere and Orrest Head, as well as walks further afield at Elterwater, Grasmere and Keswick. Lots of great shops, cafes and restaurants just a stone's throw away, but the apartment is quiet and tucked away. A really fabulous home swap, enhanced by several days of blue skies and snow on the mountains. Thank you very much Fiona and Dave!" - Trish (Gloucestershire, England)

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Photos of Fiona & Dave's home swap offer in Windermere

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Meet the members (Fiona & Dave in photo) View Fiona & Dave's home swap offer in Windermere View Trish's stone cottage home swap in Gloucestershire

 

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Interested in home swapping? Sign up for free!

Rather than booking a hotel or vacation rental, arrange free accommodation by arranging a vacation home exchange. Sign up to the Home Base Holidays two-week free trial.

Home swap in central London ...a wonderful vacation!

Covent Garden: Jemma's apartment was located just 5 minutes walk from the tube station

This trip was sent in by Home Base Holidays member, Joan, on her family's home swap vacation in London staying in Jemma's beautiful apartment in Covent Garden.

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"Jemma’s home is spacious, light and comfortable and suited our needs perfectly. I climbed up the stairs and opened the door to find the elegant stylish kitchen in bright sunshine - everything was immaculate and welcoming. Jemma had left a detailed welcome pack so that settling in to her home was so easy. Although Jemma's apartment was lovely, we didn’t stay in very much as there was so much in London to see and do. The apartment was amazingly situated and enabled us to walk almost everywhere; to the South Bank, the West End theatres, Leicester Square, Soho, Piccadilly Circus, the British Museum ...all within easy walking distance! When we wanted to explore further, Covent Garden tube station was literally just a 5 minutes walk away. As for places to eat, step out the front door and there were so many great places close by. It was lovely being in the middle of everything over New Year. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see the fireworks as we'd not realised that you needed tickets but no matter, we went down the road to the Strand and the atmosphere was fantastic. We saw the beautiful Christmas lights and then watched the New Years Day parade. After full days sightseeing London it was lovely to walk back to the apartment and into our comfy beds. Arranging the home swap was simple and communication with Jemma was always easy, prompt and very friendly. Any questions we had were answered quickly and efficiently. She and her family left my home very clean and tidy. It was a very successful home swap and I would certainly do it again!" - Joan

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Photos of Jemma's home swap offer in London

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Photos of Joan's home swap offer in Penzance, Cornwall

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Meet the members (Jemma and family in photo) View Jemma's home swap offer in Central London View Joan's home swap offer in Penzance, Cornwall

 

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Interested in home swapping? Sign up for free!

Rather than booking a hotel or vacation rental, arrange free accommodation by arranging a vacation home exchange. Sign up to the Home Base Holidays two-week free trial.

Tuscan paradise: a fabulous home swap vacation in Italy

Barbara & Iain visited the beautiful city of Lucca during their Tuscan swap

We love hearing about members' home exchange experiences! Here is recent feedback from members, Barbara and Iain, on their non-simultaneous home swap to Christopher and Adrian's beautiful home in Pescaglia, Tuscany, Italy.

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"We arranged a non-simultaneous home exchange with Christopher and Adrian. Arranging the swap was easy and the communication with Christopher and Adrian was always clear, very friendly and prompt. The area is fabulous! Up into the hills you can discover little villages where life goes on in an almost timeless fashion. But then just a twenty minute drive down the valley and you are in gorgeous Lucca. Also just a short easy drive away and you're in the Appenine and Apuan Alps - an ideal location for walking and exploring the coastal beaches and towns such as the beautiful renaissance towns of Prato and Pistoia. Florence is an easy day trip too! Christopher and Adrian's house, La Roccia, has a private driveway and overlooks a lovely peaceful wooded valley. There are four houses in the area, including one belonging to our hosts, who maintained a very helpful but discreet distance at all times. The other two cottages were set well apart from our home swap home. The house has several beautiful sunny terraces and a lovely sitting room and kitchen area that overlook the valley. A short walk from the home, down the hill, took us to the lovely swimming pool with recliners on the peaceful terrace. The bathrooms and kitchen were clean and attractive. There is also a huge rock in the kitchen/diner - an unusual but really interesting feature! There are lovely views from the large sitting room had elegant dining area. Christopher and Adrian were wonderful, generous, helpful hosts and left our Cotswold cottage in perfect shape after their stay." - Barbara & Iain

 

Photos of Christopher & Adrian's home in Tuscany

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Photos of Barbara & Iain's home in the Cotswolds

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Meet the members
	Barbara and Iain Barbara and Iain's exchange offer is a beautiful 180 year old stone cottage in idyllic village in the heart of the Cotswolds.  View Barbara and Iain's Cotswolds home swap offer
	Christopher and Adrian Christopher and Adrian's exchange offer, La Roccia, is a beautifully converted traditional two-storey Tuscan farmhouse. View Christopher and Adrian's Tuscan home swap offer

 

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Interested in home swapping? Sign up for free!

Rather than booking a hotel or holiday rental, arrange free accommodation by arranging a holiday home exchange. Sign up to the Home Base Holidays two-week free trial.

Happy St David's Day! Home exchanges in Wales

 

It's the 1st of March which means St David's Day is here, with daffodils beginning to bloom and celebrations taking place in honour of the Welsh patron saint. 

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Visit Wales: Offering awe-inspiring scenery, breath taking coastlines and vibrant cities, Wales really does have something for everyone. I've spent many a family holiday in Wales and it's a country that I return to time and time again. In fact, my very first home exchange holiday was in a beautifully rustic Welsh cottage!

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Holiday home swaps in Wales: If you're interested in arranging a home exchange in Wales, check out some of these tempting offers:

	Talbenny, Pembrokeshire (HE31272) This renovated barn is situated in Talbenny, just under 2 miles from Little Haven in the heart of the Pembrokeshire National Park. It offers a wonderful holiday for the wildlife enthusiast; the walker and cyclist; the surfer; sailor; as well as those just looking for a variety of beaches. View this home swap offer
	Tenby, Pembrokeshire (HE36502) Only metres from beach, this contemporary top floor apartment is located within the old medieval walled town. A former pub. Stunning town setting on a rocky crag overlooking the ocean. Sitting astride the Pembrokeshire coastal path - hundreds of miles of beautiful coastal walks. View this home swap offer
	Llanberis, Snowdonia (HE23677) Ripon House is a lovely 1830's, restored house in the centre of a small Snowdonia village. It is only 3 mins walk from the lake, close to facilities, numerous tourist attractions, and at the start of paths to Mount Snowdon. Castles, beaches & coast are 20 mins drive away. View this home swap offer
	Llanfairfechan, Conwy (HE20511) This home swap offer looks across the Irish sea towards Anglesey, Puffin Island, and the Great Orme. The views are amazing both out to sea and at the rear of the property across the Snowdonia mountain range. Dolphins/Porpoise are sometimes seen from the window! View this home swap offer
	Three Cliffs Bay, Gower Peninsula (HE35400) Rosedale is a secluded detached cottage nestled behind the dunes of Three Cliffs Bay close to the village of Parkmill. This charming cottage, built around an original 1920’s holiday chalet. The property sits on the edge of Pennard golf club. View this home swap offer

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Arrange free vacation accommodation: search home swap travel offers