[This post contains sponsored links. The product featured and linked in this post is provided by Home Exchange -all opinions and reviews are my own.]

I am excited to introduce y’all to a company that makes traveling, easy, safe, fun, and affordable with Home Exchange. If you decide to sign up, please add me (Shae Roberts) as your sponsor in your account-More info below, plus you get 1-2 nights FREE, by adding me as your sponsor and Use my CODE: shae-c3a81!

We began being doing home exchanges last year and it’s our family’s favorite way to travel now. It taps into the economy and offers an authentic opportunity to truly live like a local, which means, often in a home full of beautiful character and personality, like our recent trip to 30A!

It’s also our number one tip for affordable travel tip, as it offers such a unique way to stay, in beautiful homes around the world, without exchanging money with your hosts. 

What is Home Exchange?

Home Exchange is a website that helps you find and swap houses with other people. Home Exchange has over 160,000 homes in 140 countries!

How does it work?

There are two different ways to do exchanges on the site –Reciprocal and Guest Points.

If you want to join Home Exchange, sign up for an account, pay your membership and add me as your sponsor in your account (Shae Roberts) PLUS use my CODE: shae-c3a81! and you’ll get a bonus 250 guest points when you join (enough for around 1-2 nights somewhere!). Use my CODE: shae-c3a81!

You pay $175 a year to be a member, which allows you to create a profile for your home(s). This gives you access to all the other profiles and the chance to exchange with them. You can do as many exchanges as you like each year, and you can list multiple properties.

Reciprocal Exchange

A reciprocal exchange can be either simultaneous or non-simultaneous. You can also off people a spare room in your home, called a hospitality exchange.

Simultaneous Exchange

A simultaneous exchange is where you do a direct seat with another household, at the same time. For example, we can go to a home in Paris and that family can come stay in our home. We could even exchange cars!

Non-Simultaneous Exchange

A non-simultaneous exchange is where you swap directly with someone, but your trips are different travel dates. For example, we went to stay a couple’s Florida Keys home last year and a year later, that couple can decide to come stay at our home.

Guest Point Exchange

Guest points-With Home Exchange; each home on the site has a point value. For example, our house is worth 145 points per night. If someone wants to stay at our house and doesn’t want to do a reciprocal exchange, they can offer to ‘pay’ in guest points instead. We then collect 145 points per night, which we can use to ‘pay’ for other Home Exchange properties.

We’ve used the guest point system a lot. We can open our home to Home Exchangers when we go away, collect points through that. We can then turn around and use those points to stay in all sorts of places, from The Florida Keys to Destin, FL to a historical two week trip, up the East Coast! We would love try traveling internationally soon, too!

Hospitality Exchange

A hospitality exchange is where you offer a room in your house while you’re still living there. You’ll likely share the same living areas, depending on your home situation. The exchange can be reciprocal or non-reciprocal. You can specify all the details of the exchange before finalising it. For this type of exchange, you need to create an individual listing for the room in your home, that’s on offer.

Solidarity Exchange

The solidarity exchange program is if there is a natural disaster or war, you can offer your home or a room in your home, to people affected, and they don’t have to pay any guest points in return. Instead, Home Exchange will offer you some guest points for your home. To be part of this, you join the Solidarity Group.

Why do we love Home Exchange?

I love the community of sharing aspect of it. It feels good to share our home when it’s not in use. I also love experiencing other people’s homes and ways of life. It’s really an incredible experience.

Guess what?! It is an incredibly affordable way to travel! We’ve saved thousands of dollars by using the site, sometimes in a single trip. Spending 9 nights in a 2 bedroom family home in the Florida Keys would have cost us a fortune, if not for Home Exchange.

It’s also amazing for families, especially if your host has kids too. They’ll likely be set with all you need from toys to high chairs to beds! It’s one of our best tips for traveling with littles!! PS-We’ve traveled with all four of our kiddos when they were little! Core family memories!

Where have we stayed?

We’ve done 2 exchanges so far and we have a huge two week trip across the East Coast planned this fall. We will have 3 exchanges total for that trip. Here are a few of the highlights & upcoming trips

Highlights:

• • Florida Keys Home, right on the water, in the beautiful Marathon! Beautiful marine and sea life! Absolutely stunning views!!
  
• • 30A in Blue Mountain Beach, FL, in a charming farmhouse beach neighborhood! Complete with E-Bike’s!
  

Upcoming:

• • Fall Florida Keys to East Coast Trip- First stop is the Florida Keys! We are staying in the same home that we stayed in, last fall! Such a sweet family and host!! We plan to stay a week here!
  
• • Savannah, GA is our second stop! We plan to spend a weekend here, seeing historical sights.
  
• • PA is our 3rd stop! We plan to spend 4 days here, visiting everything historical!!! We head home and plan to drive straight through!!

How do you find an exchange?

The search function on Home Exchange has lots of filters that allow you to hone in on the perfect spot for your exchange. You can be specific and search for exact dates, number of people traveling with you, amenities you’re looking for and the size of the home.

Preferred Destinations 

You can save your preferred destinations in your profile-which means people can see your preferred destinations and offer their home to you. Plus, Home Exchange alerts you when things pop up!

How to confirm an exchange?

Once you’ve sent a message to a host about exchanging their home, the host will reply if it’s available and then you will iron out the details-length of stay, amount of people staying, if it’s a reciprocal or guest points, key, and cleaning arrangements. The guest points are transferred to you immediately. Then it is as easy as approving the exchange! 

How can you trust the people your home exchanging with?

Home Exchange is a community! There is a verification system-to be verified you must send Home Exchange your proof of residence, complete your profile by 100%, verify your email and phone number.

Home Exchange Guarantee

The Home Exchange team accompanies their members and protects all exchanges in case of unforeseen events.

→ Home Exchange commitments to guests : cancellation protection, compliance guarantee, damage coverage

→ Home Exchange commitments to hosts : $500 security deposit, property damage, theft protection

 

Questions about Home Exchange? 

If you have any other questions about Home Exchange, please feel free to reach out!