Has anyone heard of this? You swap houses with another family and each take a vacation at the other's place? I'd be as leery of this as the next guy, but the concept intrigues me. Does anyone know where I can get information about it?
2006-11-26 13:15:11 · 73 answers · asked by DGS 6 in Travel ➔ Travel (General) ➔ Other - Destinations
We've done this several times, and it's been very successful. The initial contact was made through a university. Write a letter to a university in the city of your choice, and ask if any profs would be interested in a swap. Some universities are on a semester system, some are on full year, but have long summer vacations, so the swap could be for anything from two or three to six months in duration. Or whatever you mutually agree.
We agreed on use of vehicles, who insured what, and what was out of bounds. Personal things were put away (it was a good excuse to go through the closets and clear stuff out. The welfare donation box was full when we finished.) In each case, we were greeted by close friends or relatives, who introduced us to the house, gave us a tour of the neighborhood, and were always available if we needed them. Some of these exchanges took place over 20 years ago, and we remain good friends with these families.
It was a wonderful experience, and gave us a much deeper insight into the country than we would have had at the usual tourist hotel or condo rental, where we would have met other tourists, and not had the experience of truly being in that country.
2006-11-29 16:04:19 · answer #1 · answered by old lady 7 · 7⤊ 1⤋
Do a Yahoo search for home exchanges. There must be forty well established sites that help facilitate such exchanges. Each operated differently. Some require that you become a member. Most permit you to visit to get a good idea of how the system works and the inventory of available homes. For those who are open and trusting, it seems like a good idea. Some people regard privacy so highly that -- for them -- it wouldn't be a great option. Some offer flat out exchanges and some sites offer "hosting arrangements" in which the host family remains on the scene. Some include cars and array of sports equipment.
You will enjoy your search no doubt.
2006-11-29 17:00:19 · answer #2 · answered by murphy 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Not to sound stalker-ish or freaky, but get to know people through buddy sites like MySpace in areas you want to travel to. Let it be known that you want ot visit certain areas and are looking for a swapping or house guest situation. While you may not end up "swapping", you could easily be a house guest if you want to travel and not pay for lodging. Be prepared to do the same for people from out of town from time to time as well. Noone can ever have too many friends in other states.
2006-11-28 08:55:25 · answer #3 · answered by onlyupfrmhere 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
There are some "home exchange" sites on the Internet. The process is pretty straightforward. You offer your home in exchange for the opportunity to sat in their home. We did this two years ago and it worked out OK.
You can't be too neurotic about your stuff because strangers will be using it. You lock up anything valuable. It also takes quite a bit of trust, but the thing is you have just as much chance to mess with their stuff so both parties have an incentive to make everything OK.
Oh, I have a friend who's been having good luck with Craig's list, but she's very trusting.
Good Luck
2006-11-26 13:49:18 · answer #4 · answered by Steve J 1 · 9⤊ 0⤋
Do a little research before you choose. My parents did this one summer with a family in the mountains near LA where my parents lived. They swapped their houses for two weeks in the summer (they used to live at the beach). I had to work that summer so I moved in with a friend during the time and would 'drop in' to the house to get some of my things from time to time. It was non-stop partying at the house the entire two weeks. Even though they locked up their valuables, my parents still swore there were things missing. It just pays to check out the people you plan to swap with...
2006-11-28 00:50:14 · answer #5 · answered by BAM55 4 · 5⤊ 1⤋
absolutely now not. you at the instantaneous are not getting the eternal position of residing contained in the country in case you purchase a house good the following. with the intention to be eligible for an enduring position of residing (aka "eco-friendly card"), you want to both have: (a million) a extra robust robust 0.5 who's US citizen or eco-friendly card holder, (2) confirm or sibling who's US citizen, (3) be sponsored with the help of a company, (4) make investments into the interior attain monetary gadget a minimum of $a million,000,000 (or $500,000 for a particular marketplace), (5) take section contained in the kind lottery. i'm one hundred% particular about my answer. research the link for extra information.
2016-11-27 00:11:15 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
when I received fishing magazines, they did fishing vacations like this. Never took one but sounded intriguing
2014-10-22 15:38:13 · answer #7 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Eener has the best asnwer. Couch surfing has been around for a while. It's the best place to go swap homes for vactions.
2006-11-30 08:00:13 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
okay depends on what, where, and when? But the best places which we have gotten great deals from are both: Cyber Rentals & Craigslist! But try cyber rentals first - you can never go wrong there! They have reviews, pics, prices, etc. Sometimes if its directly with the owner (which is most of the time) if its off season then you can totally get some great deals too! ;)
www.cyberrentals.com
www.craigslist.com
2006-11-27 17:47:03 · answer #9 · answered by CarlyElf 2 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Craigslist
2006-11-28 06:43:42 · answer #10 · answered by Barrett G 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋