Home exchange offers great opportunities, and it is quite a simple deal: you agree to exchange your home with someone and you both expect to find everything as you left it when you return. However simple, home exchange is a serious deal. You shouldn’t take it lightly. There are important things that need to be considered because it is a system based on trust and you need to know the other party on a certain level to trust them with your home (even if it is your second home). Communication and understanding are the key to succeed at swapping.

Compare the places you have stayed during your previous vacations to your own home, you’ll probably arrive at the conclusion that your home is far better equipped than any place you’ve ever stayed in during your vacations, so what would you be willing to do to get this extra comfort with no cost at all? Wouldn’t you be willing to take some time to get to know the people you’ll be sharing your house with and let them know you too?

Communicate, take time to learn about your possible swap partner’s preferences and see if they match yours. Start with the information they share in HomeForHome, but dig deeper. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and don’t be afraid to set some ground rules about things that can and can’t be done at your house during the swap. Eventually, you will find a partner that makes you feel comfortable with them staying at your home. Be patient. Until that moment comes, don’t feel pressured to agree on an exchange that doesn’t satisfy you. Chances are you will have to pass on some offers, so be polite and say no gently until you find your match.

HomeForHome has over 8000 listings worldwide (and rising!). With so many offers, we are certain your perfect home exchange is just a search away. However, how should you get started? Obviously, you shouldn’t have to look through 8000 offers (or even half so many!) to find a good prospect. To make the most of your searching time, it is better for you to decide about a few details before you get started: Have you decided to visit a particular country/area? Remember that the wider the area, there are more chances to find a good match. Are you interested in a particular date? For example, if you are attending an event, you may check the date and use it to perform your search, so you don’t have to look through offers that strictly excluded that date already. Do you have a preference about staying in a house or flat? Answers to these questions may be useful when you use our “Search” features. If you take a look at our search options, you will find several things you can specify to make the most of your search. Of course there’s no need to specify all the search options, but you may want to include all your “musts”, like Internet access or a washing machine.

There are circumstances when performing a detailed search may not be the best way to get started. For example, if you are looking for a long term exchange, there’s another option that could make it easier: search the “Community“. There you’ll find a forum for people looking for long term exchanges, were you can discuss issues about this kind of swap. You are welcome to start a discussion of your own, so other interested users can contact you. The forum is also a good choice for those who do not have a preferred destination and are really looking for interesting opportunities around the globe.

If you need to learn more about how to use any of these features, then just send your questions to help@homeforhome.com and our Support team will be glad to assist you.

The winter has brought snow all over Europe, so it is time to find you ski gear and search through HomeForHome for an exchange partner close enough to any of the great ski areas in the continent.

Since France has the second largest list of home exchange offers, we decided to present you one of its most famous ski resorts: Alpe d’Huez.

Alpe d’Huez is famous not only for its skiing slopes but also because it is the ending point of one of the hardest stages of the Tour de France. You will not only be enjoying the 123 runs, the area, including the picturesque village of Huez, has services to ensure you will not have to worry about anything else: more than 300 shops, child care services, ski schools, launderettes, banks, petrol stations, bars, bookstores and more…

We specially recommend you the Sarenne, the longest ski run with 16 Km, with the featured “Sarenne by Moonlight” and “Sarenne at Night” excursions taking you up to 3330 metres to the highest peak (Pic Blanc) for a nocturnal descend in the moonlight or with headlamps, respectively.

Alpe d’Huez is located in the region of Isère, one hour away from Grenoble and  a little over four hours away from Paris. Give it a try, search thought the 33 HomeForHome houses listed in Isère and find your match!

Home exchange is suitable and has opportunities for all: retired people, families with children, couples and, of course, single people. Whether you are a single person planning to travel alone or with a group of friends, HomeForHome has tons of offers for you to find the right place (or places) to stay during your vacations.

Being single gives you the flexibility to adjust to several different situations that would not work for families with small children, or kids that already attend school, or couples that need to arrange their weeks off work to match.

Flexibility is an advantage when it comes to find a good exchange match. Why not? Maybe you can save some money on lodging and use it to add a couple of more destinations to your trip. Usually, travelling solo is not as affordable as travelling with a companion, but home exchange may set you free from “single supplements” so enjoy!

Check out HomeForHome and find your swap!

Home exchange has many advantages over other ways of travelling. One of them is the opportunity for families with small children to stay in a child-friendly environment. A home is a much better environment for a kid than a crowded hotel or a vacation rental that only has the basic service items.

Kids have to deal with so many adjustments as they grow up that staying overnight away from home can be somehow stressful if they are still going through toilet training or starting to sleep in their own bed. Consider this issues as you plan your swap so you have enough time to prepare your child.

For toilet training it is easy, just remember to bring the potty chair and remember to be patient if there is an “accident” while your child is still adjusting to the new house.

To prepare your child to sleep in a different house, there are some fun activities you may get him involved in. If you have a young child, you may buy a travel bed and let him play in it for a few days before you travel. Most children enjoy having a portable bed, because some are tent-shaped and have enough room for them to play inside. There are several options to choose from, most of them have inflatable mattresses and are easily set up to get a comfortable bed anywhere you go.

To get started, visit HomeForHome to find exciting home exchange opportunities.

Home exchange offers you the opportunity to celebrate a holiday or a special date while you are swapping as if you were at your own home. Christmas, New Year, a birthday or an anniversary are all dates that deserve a celebration and we usually have some traditions for them we can’t do without. However, many traditions pose a minor accident hazard that we must prevent.

Our first example will be the Christmas tree. Many of us enjoy decorating the tree with our family, and after we take turns to place the ornaments, we delight ourselves by turning on its lights. Isn’t it just beautiful? But the Christmas tree may originate a fire if you don’t take some preventive measures, like ensuring it doesn’t dry out, keeping it away from heating sources like the fireplace, or making sure the lights are in good condition as well as the wiring to avoid a short circuit.

Other usual decoration elements for many celebrations are candles, and as any device that may start a fire they should be taken into account to prevent undesirable moments. Don’t leave a burning candle unattended. Keep burning candles away from curtains, table cloths, wooden furniture, or anything else that could catch on fire. Another danger is to light too many candles in a closed environment and end up with poor indoor air quality.

There are many other possibilities, so please make sure you take measures to enjoy celebrations during your swap without any mishap. Visit HomeForHome to find a location for your next celebration!

Christmas is coming. Next week, millions of people around the world will celebrate the most important day in the Christian calendar. For most people, it is a time of gatherings with family and friends, others use their holiday off work to take a short vacation and recharge batteries to start the year with renewed energies. Many of you will be traveling by car to get home or to your chosen destinations, so we want to remind you of some basic tips to help you get there safely:

- Check your car’s condition before taking a long journey. Remember to check your tyres’ pressure and also check your tyres tread depth to make sure they will keep you safe under different weather conditions.

- Don’t overload your car, there is just so much it can take before getting unstable and unsafe on the road.

- Check the weather report and make sure you have all the emergency equipment you may need. Also, if your trip is long, take enough drinking water and snacks for everyone, but especially for children.

- Check the road reports and plan your journey so you don’t stay on the road too long. If possible, avoid routes that are expected to be clogged.

- Rest before driving, and plan stops if your trip is long. A rested driver will be more alert and an alert driver is a safe driver.

- Avoid distractions while you are driving.

- Don’t drink alcohol before you take the wheel.

- Keep within the speed limits.

Many HomeforHome users will be exchanging homes during the next weeks, so please be safe if you take the road and enjoy your swap. We would love to hear about your home exchange experience when you get back.

Nothing spoils a trip like getting lost. You planned ahead, you did everything you could to cover every detail, you packed everything you could possibly need, but your 2-hour road trip becomes an exhausting 5-hour journey through unknown roads and you start your vacation with the worst mood. Even if you got a map before the trip, a wrong turn can be terribly misleading.

What can you do to prevent this? Take some time to plan the route and get to know the possible paths that take you to your destination. You may start with the map in HomeForHome and use this information to find the best route. There are several tools out there to help you get acquainted with some marks along the road, like Google maps, Bing maps or Yahoo! maps. Also, if you use GPS technology, make sure there’s good coverage of the area you are headed to.

After arranging an exchange, contact your swap partner and make sure you check the exact and complete address. Don’t forget to get directions or even for tips to get to your destination faster or more safely. While you are at this, you may ask for directions to get to those places you would like to visit during the swap, and share your own tips with the other party. Comradeship has everything to do with home exchange.

In our previous post, we addressed the fact that home exchange offers the opportunity to bring your pet along during a swap. However, travelling with animals adds a few things you need to consider to avoid unpleasant moments.

We have mentioned a few tips before, including the following items that you shouldn’t forget: a travel bed, your pet’s favorite toy, any necessary pet care accessories and a few disposable pick-up bags. Now, we share some advice that could help during the trip to your home exchange destination, especially if you decide to travel by car:

- Small animals travel more safely in a pet crate/carrier, so, take some time before the trip for your pet to get used to the crate: let him take a nap in the crate, place its favorite pillow or toy inside it, make it as comfortable as you can, and be patient, he may need some time to get acquainted to it. Take him for a short ride in the car and see how he does.

- If your pet gets car sick, consider pet sedation or a motion sickness prescription, and ALWAYS remember to seek advice from your pet’s vet before you chose the best solution.

- If you travel by car, take measures to prevent your pet from becoming too hot or receiving too much direct sunlight.

- Bring a bowl for water and another one for food, and of course bring some water and food for the trip. For cats, you may need to consider bringing the litter box as well.

- Animals that are used to cages (like birds, hamsters, etc.) may be more comfortable and safe in a smaller cage during the ride. You may get a “travel cage” in your local pet store. Also, covering the cage will make your pet less active during the trip.

- If you travel with a dog, you may want to plan a stop during the trip for him to stretch and do his “thing”.

Whatever company you bring, choose HomeForHome to plan your next vacation.

One of the reasons why people chose home exchange is the opportunity to bring their pets along. It just seems right, your most faithful companion deserves to have a vacation after a stressful year too. If your pet has to deal with you during the hard times when everything seems uphill, and puts a smile on your face when you most need it, why wouldn’t you share your vacations with them too?

HomeForHome offers you the opportunity to find an exchange partner that would accept your pet in their house. Some users that accept pets even show so in their homes’ titles, but most of them show this preference by choosing “Animals will be accepted” in the “Exchange preferences” section of their home description (the option should have a green checkmark next to it for it to show the owner’s approval). However, if there is no such indication in the home description, you may check with the owner directly using the “Contact” button.

Your buddy will be so happy to share your laid back moments! Don’t you agree?