Can you afford a long-haul vacation this year? The answer is likely yes – if you go for home swapping

Ever thought you’d like to spend a month in California or Cape Town? Well, these days particularly you’re probably going to dismiss the idea as too expensive. Then think again. If you’re living in the South of France, in any sort of accommodation from a studio to a 12-roomed villa, you are well placed to travel the world at minimum cost. The solution is home swapping. That’s to say you exchange your apartment or house with someone else in a country of your choice and you each live free in the other’s home for an agreed period.

But how to arrange this? Simple. You go through a reputable specialist agency such as HomeLink International  (www.homelink.fr) which has a branch office in Aix-en-Provence. Says an agency spokeswoman, “People living in this part of France are at a tremendous advantage. We get lots of requests for accommodation but the locals aren’t all that keen on home swapping. Expats are more open to it. Get into the system and you can go anywhere in the world.” And the snags? According to HomeLink there are very few: “People usually behave well and we get very few complaints.” The only cost is an annual subscription – now €125 – which gets you into the online catalogue and after that prospective swappers deal with each other directly, usually by e-mail.

Explains the HomeLink spokeswoman, “Obviously you need to check out certain things. Will cars be included in the deal? Will you have to care for domestic animals? What agreement is needed over utility bills? And each side should make sure the insurance position is clear. Incidentally, if you rent your home here, unlike with subletting, you don’t need your landlord’s permission for an exchange. I know the idea doesn’t appeal immediately to everybody but those who try it often get a taste for this style of holiday. We’ve got one couple who’ve been to eight countries including Bermuda, Costa Rica and Singapore.”

From Riviera Reporter Issue 131: Feb/March 2009

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