Beat the dollar, exchange your holiday
May 3, 2008
Looking for a way to have a cheap holiday in London with the Kids, for say $75 that’s not $75 dollars per person all $75 per night, that’s $75 for a year! We did say cheap holiday, the hottest way to do this is through what they call home exchange programs or house swapping programs. This type of accommodation is great for dealing with the economic pressure being put on holiday budgets. If you want to learn more about home exchange programs and how they work grab a copy of the movie “holiday” with Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet, this movie was wrapped around a house swap arrangement.
Read the article on house exchanges written by Richard Tulloch.
Find out how easy it is to find like minded people to swap homes for your next holiday. HomeAway is the vacation rental network with over 115,000 listings or The perfect family vacation. Stay in a comfortable home, no hotel blues. Regional, International Home Swaps. 20,000+ Worldwide Listings.
A good article, but readers should be aware that the movie “The Holiday” is actually born of Hollywood and not reality. Home exchanges require a lot of diligent hard work, both as members seek out likely exchange partners and then as they hammer out all the details before coming to a final agreement that a compatible home exchange would work for them.
Having said that, home exchanging is, without a doubt, a wonderful way to travel. You not only have the opportunity to see the world and never pay a hotel or vacation rental bill again, but you also get to unpack and live in a real home with all the expected facilities at your disposal. You also get to live like a local: shop in the local stores, eat out in the restaurants recommended by your exchange partners, and often save even more money by exchanging cars as well.
I would like to invite all aspiring home exchangers to visit my blog at ExchangeHomesBlog.com. It’s constantly updated with useful information, advice, tips and member stories.
Another great source of information for all home exchangers, both new and old, is a great ebook, written by a a 25 year veteran of 40+ home exchanges. I find it to be spot on and recommend it highly. For more information, visit HomeExchangeAcademy.com
Happy home exchanging -
Anne
Great comment and remarks Anne, I guess we can’t and should not believe everything that come from the movies! Your blog is an excellent resource for anyone considering taking up the home exchange option for their next holiday. I would recommend any readers to check the blog out if you are keen on learning more.
Hi James
Congratulations – Little Nomads is an excellent source of information for families travelling with children (nice name too!)
Home exchange is a great way to save money on accommodation and is an especially good choice when travelling with young children – all the space of a real home, toys, games, books and baby equipment if you swap with a family with similar aged children, and sometimes local playmates and babysitters too. Locals are pleased to share top tips for things to do with your children that you might not otherwise hear about. Save money on at least some meals by preparing them in your fully fitted kitchen ‘at home’.
Swapping homes is also a good way to visit destinations that would otherwise seem too expensive when the value of your currency is low. I would include in this my own adopted city, London. There’s so much to do here with children, much of it free. Home Base Holidays is our London based home exchange service (we’ve been operating since 1985 and, although we have a large choice of listings all over the world, have a partciularly great selection of exchange offers in London and throughout the UK). Do visit my home exchange blog for lots more information about home swapping.
Cheers,
Lois
Thanks for the comment Lois, and the useful tips. I will take the time to come back and explore your home exchange blog. I’m sure other readers who are interested in home exchange programs, espically those travelling with kids will find it useful as well.
Best Regards
James
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