Home exchanging is a great way to vacation. During a home exchange you stay in another parties home while they stay in yours. It allows you to save quite a big of money, and get an exciting new way to experience traveling. Home exchanging is not right for everyone, and works best for a flexible and adventurous traveler.
If you immediate get concerned about a stranger sleeping in your bed, sitting on your couch, and in the privacy of your home, then home exchanging might not be for you. In this case it would probably be a better fit for you to rent a traditional hotel room or timeshare for your vacation. It is good to note that by the time you do a house swap, you will already have gotten to know the other party.
An Alternative: Try Hospitality Exchanges!
If you are uncomfortable with the idea of traditional home exchanging, a Hospitality Exchange might be right for you. It is a good way to try out home exchanging while in the presence of your exchange partners. During a Hospitality Exchange, you host guests in your home, then they host you in their home. Both parties are present so it is more of a social experience. You get to know a new area, and have your own tour guides to give you advice, and allow you to get to know some of the locals.
Is Home Exchanging Right For You?
- You will be sharing your home with new acquaintances so you need to be open to having them in your personal space, however there are still many boundaries. You can put “do not use” signs on anything which concerns you, put valuables at a friends if you are worried, and exchange with experienced home swappers who have references.
- Are you somewhat flexible about dates and location? If you have a specific date you need to be at an event, getting a traditional hotel might be the best bet. However if you are a little bit flexible, home exchanging might be perfect for you.
- Do you have time to plan? Home Exchanging takes time in advance to plan, and there are a lot of details you should think about. Make sure you can dedicate the time for communicating with the other party about the details and getting to know them before committing to your exchange.
- Try it out slowly by doing a Hospitality Exchange first, or do a home exchange that is close to home as a great starting place.
Notes to Remember about House Swapping:
- Many people fall in love with home exchanges and do multiple exchanges every year! If you think it might be a good fit for you, give it a try! It may just become your favorite way to save money and travel!
-If you are concerned about security, using a Custom Home Exchange Contract helps cover all the bases of your unique exchange situation.
- Home Insurance companies actually prefer you have a home exchange than leave your home vacant because they almost never have problems with home exchanges and feel they are safer than leaving your house vacant.
Author: Sophie Tropolas www.WorldHomeExchanges.com, Images by ParisSharing
