I love to travel in luxury for as many months each year as I fancy. I do this on a staycation budget. How? You may ask. Well, I am lucky enough to have found a way and am living proof that it works. I have discovered the world of home exchange, and I have never looked back.
I travel the world and stay in rooms larger than the biggest suites in the most lavish of hotels. I drink sumptuous local wines and sample temptingly delicious local food. I chat with locals and discover the hidden secrets of foreign shores typically available only to locals.
As a semi-retired baby boomer I want to travel, travel, travel in style. I can afford the luxury of taking as much time as I like to relax, never wearing myself out trying to cram as much into a few weeks as possible so that none of my vacation time is “wasted”.
My home is in Queensland, Australia and now I spend a considerable amount of my time in other people’s houses all over the world. Sometimes I only have short breaks within Australia, and other times I will take much longer breaks, up to six months where I will travel across continents. I can hardly believe it, but people are keen to swap my simple little beach house for their incredible homes.
For example, last year my trip began in Turkey, staying in houses in Izmir and Bodrum, each with large private swimming pools overlooking the Aegean and the Mediterranean Seas; then I moved to the Greek Island of Syros where I stayed in a quaint white house with blue trimmed windows on the edge of a hill overlooking the ocean (it was straight out of Mamma Mia!); then to Italy where I lived in a tiny mountain village within an easy drive to Rome and to the Adriatic, then to Nice in the south of France where I drove daily to spots such as Monte Carlo and Cannes; then I had a romantic champagne dinner on Bastille Day in Paris on the Champs Elysees before flying back to Australia.
All of my accommodations were free of charge as I stayed in home exchange houses which belonged to other people. I also had their vehicles to drive free of charge. My partner and I stayed between two and four weeks in each of the houses and became very comfortable, buying local food and wine and visiting the local sights, many of which we had been unaware of until we stayed in those houses.
I highly recommend this travel lifestyle. In previous years, I have home exchanged my way through Eastern Europe and the UK as well as Australia and many states in USA and Canada. I love this way of travel and have stayed in some beautiful and palatial homes.
Luxury Globetrotting on a Staycation Budget: An Insider’s Guide to the Home Exchange Experience
An insider’s guide to the home exchange experience where home swappers skip hotel bills and enjoy the comforts of living like a local. Full of very practical tips.
Home Exchange Community: MyPlaceForYours.com – A place for home exchanges to connect with others for advice
Website/blog: www.myplaceforyours.com / Growing Bolder
Facebook: Travel Writer Ainslie Waldron
Sounds like a book I could learn a lot from about budget traveling. My family and I travel a lot so this would be so helpful!
Our family travels a lot. I need to pick up this book- it sounds like something we can try! Travel can get so expensive these days, especially international travel, so thanks for sharing this!
This is a very interesting concept! I wonder if there are people willing to swap houses with me and my husband. It’s a nice way to save money on accommodations too.
I have never tried exchanging houses before. It’s exciting to say the least. I think it’s a lovely way to travel and enjoy the place as a local. I like the idea of being able to get around without hassle as well.
I have heard of this before, but have never personally known anyone that actually did it. It is an interesting concept and I can see where it might save money.
I really wish this is something I could pull off. We are so close to being able to!
She sure does have the dream life doesn’t she? Wow, what an inspiration!
Travel is my second name! I’ve done extensive travel over the world, but one can’t ever stop learning new things. Definitely reading this book!
What a neat way to be able to travel without going broke. I loved reading about how you travel and are able to share homes to get free room and board. Such a great way to travel in style!
I have not heard of this Home Exchange thing but I guess it will be a great way to cut down on travel expenses. I’m going to check this out. We may have an upcoming trip abroad and this would really come in handy.
What a great idea. I’m not sure anyone would want to trade their home for our a home in our area, but I’d love to try this.
This sounds great. I would love to travel but the budget often says no.
This is such a great way to make travel a possibility. I have not travelled in years as saving up takes so long.
I have to pick up this book I love to travel heading to Switzerland next week. Australia is definitely on my list so cool that you’re from there! I have many places I want to go but I don’t want to break the bank – thanks for sharing this.
This is a book that’s definitely made for my family. We love to travel. We do not, however, love to spend a ton of money. Maybe this will help us keep our costs down on our next trip.
Home exchange sounds like an incredible way to experience travel from a local’s point of view. As soon as I send the kids off to college, this is exactly how I want to travel the world!
I HAVE to give this a read! I love to travel, but I also love to save money while I do it. Thanks for the heads up on this!