Do you remember the movie The Holiday? It's a great concept...two woman, one in LA and one in England, both unlucky in love and in need of a vacation, agree to swap homes for their holiday vacation. And as the plot thickens, both women end up finding love on their house exchange...while also staying free of charge in one another's beautiful homes! Now as seamless as the house exchange process seems in this movie, who hasn't watched this film and thought...well this is a great idea, but how does a home exchange actually work in real life?! Could it really be that easy to travel around the world virtually free of charge? I must admit that I was skeptical when I first heard of the "home exchange" concept...
But recently I had an interesting conversation with one of my friends, LH, who has enjoyed great success using the house exchange program HomeLink. In fact my friend was so positive about her experience with HomeLink, that I felt compelled to share her amazing story of traveling around the world with you today! Here are a few of the highlights from our conversation...
LL4L: When did you first join HomeLink, and what was your first experience with the program?
LH: We joined HomeLink in 1999 and made our first exchange that year to Ireland. It was absolutely a dream trip - we made lifelong friends with our exchange partners and spent 3 weeks in a beautiful country with our daughter, who was a toddler at the time. It was so great to stay in a home (with a crib, changing table, toys, VCR), go out to museums, parks, etc. during the day and then come home to make dinner and set our 18 month old up with toys and a Tellytubby video while we drank wine in the garden and planned the next day's adventures! Once or twice the grandmother of the family who we swapped homes with even babysat our daughter so we could go out to dinner in Dublin. It really was terrific in every way and launched us as passionate home exchangers.
LH: We joined HomeLink in 1999 and made our first exchange that year to Ireland. It was absolutely a dream trip - we made lifelong friends with our exchange partners and spent 3 weeks in a beautiful country with our daughter, who was a toddler at the time. It was so great to stay in a home (with a crib, changing table, toys, VCR), go out to museums, parks, etc. during the day and then come home to make dinner and set our 18 month old up with toys and a Tellytubby video while we drank wine in the garden and planned the next day's adventures! Once or twice the grandmother of the family who we swapped homes with even babysat our daughter so we could go out to dinner in Dublin. It really was terrific in every way and launched us as passionate home exchangers.
Dublin, Ireland
LL4L: Wow it sounds like you had an amazing first trip with HomeLink. What are the benefits to exchanging homes through a company, and how does HomeLink assist you with the process?
LH: HomeLink is an organization which provides guidance and a website and a format to post a listing. They also offer advice and contract forms but they do not screen candidates, arrange exchanges, or police the participants. That said, they claim that problems are extremely rare and judging from our 6 exchanges we endorse that claim. Membership costs about $125 a year and allows complete access to the listings.
LH: HomeLink is an organization which provides guidance and a website and a format to post a listing. They also offer advice and contract forms but they do not screen candidates, arrange exchanges, or police the participants. That said, they claim that problems are extremely rare and judging from our 6 exchanges we endorse that claim. Membership costs about $125 a year and allows complete access to the listings.
LL4L: This sounds so easy! But how do you and your house exchange partner get in touch with one another?
LH: Here's how it works...you can browse listings (let's say you want to go to Ft. Lauderdale in March - you can search for those listings specifically) or you can wait to receive offers. Living in New York City, we get offers all the time. In the past week we've had people from Australia, Venice, and Florence approach us for an exchange. If you find a listing you like, you can click "Contact Member" and make your request. No emails are revealed; the request goes through the website. There are also shortcut responses like, "Send a no thank you message," that you can just click if the offer isn't for you.
LH: Here's how it works...you can browse listings (let's say you want to go to Ft. Lauderdale in March - you can search for those listings specifically) or you can wait to receive offers. Living in New York City, we get offers all the time. In the past week we've had people from Australia, Venice, and Florence approach us for an exchange. If you find a listing you like, you can click "Contact Member" and make your request. No emails are revealed; the request goes through the website. There are also shortcut responses like, "Send a no thank you message," that you can just click if the offer isn't for you.
Venice, Italy
LL4L: I would love to travel somewhere new and exotic, while also staying in the comfort of a home instead of a hotel, but I am nervous about someone else staying in my home without me there! How do you feel about this?
LH: I feel fine! After all, I'm in their home at the same time. For each exchange I have felt like friends with the exchange partner by the time the swap happens. Imagine that you are inviting a friend to come stay in your home while you are away. You would probably feel proud and excited and eager to show your friend a good time - that's how we always feel. I usually start working on a swap about 4-6 months in advance so that's a lot of time to email and get to know each other.
LH: I feel fine! After all, I'm in their home at the same time. For each exchange I have felt like friends with the exchange partner by the time the swap happens. Imagine that you are inviting a friend to come stay in your home while you are away. You would probably feel proud and excited and eager to show your friend a good time - that's how we always feel. I usually start working on a swap about 4-6 months in advance so that's a lot of time to email and get to know each other.
LL4L: Wow, it sounds like you usually become friends with your house exchange partners, do you ever meet one another during the process?
LH: Many times we do. Perhaps they'll arrive the same afternoon we leave, especially if we are going to Europe. Or we'll meet up at another time. A year after our Amsterdam exchange our partners were in NY and we met for dinner at the Mermaid Inn. We almost always meet relatives or close friends of the exchange partners. We've been picked up at the airport and taken out to dinner and given free babysitting more times than we can count! And people always leave food or wine, usually local specialties.
LH: Many times we do. Perhaps they'll arrive the same afternoon we leave, especially if we are going to Europe. Or we'll meet up at another time. A year after our Amsterdam exchange our partners were in NY and we met for dinner at the Mermaid Inn. We almost always meet relatives or close friends of the exchange partners. We've been picked up at the airport and taken out to dinner and given free babysitting more times than we can count! And people always leave food or wine, usually local specialties.
LL4L: Well it sounds like you feel at home in your new destination right away! How do you prepare your home for your guests?
LH: I put away things that might get broken or misplaced. I also lock our file cabinet with all our documents, etc. I also put together a binder with instructions for the appliances, neighbors and friends to contact, local sights, take out menus, useful numbers. It takes a bit of work to put this all together the first time but then it is very easy to maintain and update.
LL4L: And do you worry about anything happening to your things while you are gone?
LH:No! What are they going to do...fly 3000 miles to steal my TV? If you have really expensive jewelry or other valuable that makes you nervous to leave out, store it with a friend. We've never had a problem. It's typical that a glass may get broken or something is put away in the wrong place and I can't find it for a few days, but that's it.
LH: I put away things that might get broken or misplaced. I also lock our file cabinet with all our documents, etc. I also put together a binder with instructions for the appliances, neighbors and friends to contact, local sights, take out menus, useful numbers. It takes a bit of work to put this all together the first time but then it is very easy to maintain and update.
LL4L: And do you worry about anything happening to your things while you are gone?
LH:No! What are they going to do...fly 3000 miles to steal my TV? If you have really expensive jewelry or other valuable that makes you nervous to leave out, store it with a friend. We've never had a problem. It's typical that a glass may get broken or something is put away in the wrong place and I can't find it for a few days, but that's it.
A Photo from LH's Trip to Hawaii this Summer
LL4L: Well it sounds like there are many perks to this program, but what is your absolute favorite part of traveling this way?
LH: Basically I'm just a huge fan of traveling this way because it eliminates hotel costs (so we can go somewhere for a longer time) and really encourages us to be travelers rather than tourists. There is something about living in a home that makes me feel like I am getting an authentic and meaningful experience of another place. Don't get me wrong - I love a 5 star hotel and will never turn down a long weekend at the Four Seasons Miami. But long term stays at the Ritz are not in the cards for us and we have found this to be such a fun and adventurous alternative.
Thank you LH for taking the time to share your home exchange experience with Living Luxe for Less! It not only is a great way to see the world for less, but it sounds like there are many other perks to this form of travel. You truly have opened my eyes to a whole new way of seeing the world, and traveling luxe for less!
What is next on your must see list? Now that you now about HomeLink, would you consider doing a home exchange to make your next dream vacation a reality?
LH: Basically I'm just a huge fan of traveling this way because it eliminates hotel costs (so we can go somewhere for a longer time) and really encourages us to be travelers rather than tourists. There is something about living in a home that makes me feel like I am getting an authentic and meaningful experience of another place. Don't get me wrong - I love a 5 star hotel and will never turn down a long weekend at the Four Seasons Miami. But long term stays at the Ritz are not in the cards for us and we have found this to be such a fun and adventurous alternative.
Thank you LH for taking the time to share your home exchange experience with Living Luxe for Less! It not only is a great way to see the world for less, but it sounds like there are many other perks to this form of travel. You truly have opened my eyes to a whole new way of seeing the world, and traveling luxe for less!
What is next on your must see list? Now that you now about HomeLink, would you consider doing a home exchange to make your next dream vacation a reality?
