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In the past, if you traveled to a new city or country and you don’t know anyone in that environment, the only way you could accommodate yourself is by staying in a hotel, motel, or guest house. Even though these places’ prices differ, they are mostly charged per day, and you would have to pay as you stay. If you have important business in that area and you want to wait for an extended period (60 days and above), you have to foot a large bill to accommodate yourself comfortably. Another scenario is when you are on a long vacation with your family. Housing your spouse and children will require a lot of funding, which can reduce your budget in other expenditure areas. However, thanks to technology, this problem is fast becoming a thing of the past. If you are traveling somewhere for the first time and you want extended accommodation, you can quickly check a house swap website and see which houses are free in that area. You can temporarily rent a home at an affordable price and live comfortably for the period of that arrangement. This arrangement is usually a temporary one, and you can enjoy all the facilities of a hotel without the exuberant cost. This means that your family can enjoy the new country in a comfortable home while you save more money for family bonding activities. In this article, we will show the best house swap websites available. Enjoy!
9 Best House Swap Websites
Here are some of the best house swap websites available.
- Home Exchange
Home Exchange is a home swap service that started in the early ’90s (at the start of the internet boom). Since then, Home Exchange has grown to become a worldwide organization with over four hundred thousand houses listed in more than 180 countries. Home Exchange is trusted by thousands of clients worldwide, and they have helped to facilitate over one million home swaps. The vast number of houses makes them one of the most cost-efficient accommodation hubs in the world. This website offers you houses, condos, cabins, beach houses, service apartments, and so on. Some of their top locations include London, Paris, Barcelona, and other major cities.
- Green Theme International
Green Theme International was created in the late 1980s and has grown to become a popular home exchange platform. As the name suggests, this home exchange platform is designed to prioritize homes that live in an eco-friendly environment. It comes with a low registration fee, so the members can easily find a vacation home all through the year.
- Love Home Swap
Love Home Swap is another popular website that travelers and vacationers use when they travel. This website allows you to swap your house with thousands of beautiful places. Globally, Love Home Swap showcases Eighty Thousand properties in over 170 countries. This website service is top-rated in the United States, and Americans traveling abroad have found affordable homes via this platform. One fantastic feature of this website is that it allows you to swap your house directly with another community member. If you live in London and your contact lives in America, your travel dates may coincide, and you can comfortably swap houses. When you do this, you earn extra points, and you can use them for other transactions.
- HomeLink
HomeLinkis an old organization established in 1953. This home exchange platform allows you to swap your house with contact directly. One area where this website stands out is inclusion. HomeLink has 27 multi-lingual representatives worldwide, and they help you swap your house in your native language. They are located in Europe, Australia, the USA, South Africa, and Canada.
- International Vacation Home Exchange
International Vacation Home Exchange (IVHE) is a home swap platform based in London. This platform mostly caters to families vacationing abroad, and they place a priority on houses fitted for children. IVHE allows you to swap your house directly, and it also allows you to earn credit points when you allow members of the community to use your house.
- Switchome
All websites and home exchange platforms change a token (or more) for you to enjoy their services. However, Switchome is the only platform that allows you to use its services for free of charge. It guarantees a lifetime registration, and its primary purpose is to connect people.
- Airbnb
Airbnb is an American home exchange platform based in San Francisco, California. Airbnb is short for Air, breakfast, and beds. This company was founded in 2008, and since then, the home exchange platform has grown quite popular. Airbnb doesn’t have any properties of its own, but it has housed over 60 million people since it was first launched is currently worth billions of dollars.
- Intervac
Intervac is one of the oldest (If not the oldest) home swap exchange functions. The company started in 1953, and it now enables home swap for over 30,000 families, and its agents are in about 45 countries. This platform also offers bed, breakfast, and rental options. Intervac is popular in Europe, and it boasts of listings in France, Sweden, Germany, United Kingdom, and Italy.
- Knok
Knok is a home exchange platform with a particular focus on family-friendly apartments. The apartments listed on this platform are children adaptable, and the website also offers a family-travel guide. On this platform, you will find thousands of families that you can talk to directly. Overall, Knok has about 120,000 apartments listed. Some popular destinations include New York, London, Barcelona, Rome, San Fransisco.
Conclusion
House swapping is not a new concept. However, like everything else, the concept has been accelerated with the advent of the internet and technology. Nowadays, you can easily log on to your computer and find a place to stay in a new country. Even if you have never been there before, you can pay a reduced cost for your accommodation and sleep comfortably when you travel. This article has shown you some of the best house swap websites available. Any of these websites will serve you well regardless of whether you plan to take a house or put yours up for rent. Cheers!
