Anyone who’s seen The Holiday will be familiar with the concept of home swapping.
You list your house online, match with someone else who’s also listed their home for short-term let, and you go and stay at eachother’s places for a bit. Like mutually-assured Airbnb.
According to data from global home swapping platform Love Home Swap, home swapping is more popular than ever, with 45 per cent more Brits signing up to the platform in the last three months compared to 2020.
It’s easy to see why: you can save a lot of money, have a more authentic travel experience, and stay in some gorgeous properties you might never have the chance to when travelling more traditionally.
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‘Home swapping is very different from staying at a hotel or what have you, it’s more like a community of neighbours sharing what they have’
(Image: Chisara Nwabara)
North Londoner Chisara Nwabara is a regular home swapper, and has traded up her two bedroom flat in the capital for a French chateau, Peak District cottage and central Barcelona pad all in the last few months.
“I got started with it because, honestly, I just wanted a cost-effective way to travel,” the 35-year-old said.
“I’m really big on not wasting, and I think if I’m not going to be home using my space, it’d be great if someone else could use it.
“On top of that, it honestly is a really solid community: it’s very different from staying at a hotel or what have you, it’s more like a community of neighbours sharing what they have.”
Cost-effective it certainly is: Love Home Swap’s data shows that the average member saves £1,065 on a seven-night stay by choosing to home swap rather than stay in a hotel or holiday rental, meaning 36 per cent of members can afford to travel four or more times a year.
Chisara was able to swap her North London flat for a stay in a converted chateau in the south of France
(Image: Chisara Nwabara)
Chisara has travelled around the UK and Western Europe through home swapping, often taking her dog Sensi along for the trip.
Homes aren’t always a like-for-like swap: like Kate Winslet swapping her tiny Surrey cottage for Cameron Diaz’s LA mansion in The Holiday.
Chisara’s swapped her two-bedroom flat in North London for a three bedroom house with a garden steps from the beach in Cornwall, a retired bachelor’s house in the Peak District, and three weeks in the south of France in a converted chateau.
This means that she can always find a place that suits her needs, no matter what she’s travelling for (though hopefully it’s never catastrophic heartbreak like in the movie).
“Sometimes it’s that I want to visit somebody, so I’ll check to see what’s available, other times I just want to go on holiday, or I want to work remotely from someplace else because I’m tired of looking at the same things,” she said.
Authentic trips that are off the beaten tourist trap are the best thing about house swapping, Chisara says
(Image: Chisara Nwabara)
Membership options for Love Home Swap start at £8 per month billed annually, and on top of this value for money, Chisara loves that you’re “instantly connected to a local – it honestly does feel more like you’re staying at a friend’s”.
“You’re already embedded in a community,” she added.
“You stumble upon things that you wouldn’t necessarily [otherwise], because when you go to a hotel you step out and go directly to the tourist attractions.
“For instance, when I was in rural France I was able to speak with the groundskeeper about the best places to go for trails, just things that you don’t get from a concierge desk.
“There were places and things I just stumbled upon, because I didn’t have to try so hard, I could just ask the person that lives there.”
These French chateau grounds are a far cry from North London
(Image: Chisara Nwabara)
Naturally, a key part of home swapping is letting a stranger stay in your home.
With the platform that Chisara uses, sometimes this happens simultaneously while other times you might let your houses out separately and accrue points to use on a later trip.
Many might find the prospect of handing over your keys to a stranger quite nerve-wracking, but Chisara has found that there’s really nothing to worry about.
In her experience, it’s a community of friendly and respectful people that treat others’ homes as they’d like theirs to be treated.
She said she has “never had an issue where someone didn’t respect the space” and “never even interacted with someone on the site that gave me a strange vibe”.
Importantly for many young Londoners who might want to get on the home swapping bandwagon, you don’t have to be a homeowner to list your house to swap.
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It’s recommended that you discuss the prospect with your landlord for insurance purposes, but the opportunity is open to all.
Célia Pronto, Managing Director of Love Home Swap, said: “Love Home Swap allows people to explore the world through the power of sharing.
“It’s not just homes that are swapped at Love Home Swap, it’s frequently a bit of a life swap too – members may offer the use of their cars, they look after each other’s pets, and some even swap gym memberships!
“Home swapping is the most incredible and cost-effective way for people to travel, and our statistics show that there’s an increased appetite for this desirable way of exploring the world.
“We predict that it will become a more mainstream way of holidaying in the year ahead, and we’re very excited to help our members enjoy unparalleled travel opportunities.”
To find out more, visit lovehomeswap.com.
Do you have an unusual living situation or holiday experience you’d like to share? Get in touch at [email protected]
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