Everyone deserves to spend time relaxing once in a while and that’s why vacations should be planned so that they are as unique as the person that needs to relax. Some people need excitement to get away from their daily duties, some people need to spend their vacations quietly, maybe sleeping more than they usually do, or reconnecting with family and friends, or just a combination of sun, sea and sand.

What about you? Are you looking for an exciting vacation? Do you prefer quiet destinations to unplug from the city rush? Are you counting the days to get to the beach? What about a romantic escapade to an uncrowded small village? No matter the preference, the right place is accessible through home exchange.

Whether you are planning a family vacation, a few days by the beach, a touring time in the city, an adventurous vacation trekking, mountain biking, kayaking, etc., there is a home in HomeForHome with all you need to complete your custom made “vacation pack”. Even a romantic honeymoon trip may be waiting for you in a home exchange. What would be more romantic than having a complete house for two? No crowded hotel or resort. Just a couple, having their first morning breakfasts in the kitchen with no schedule or timetable, moonlight dinners in the terrace or garden, if you can imagine it you can have it in your swap.

Combinations are also possible. For example, you may have a romantic getaway to an important city, combining the tranquility of a residential area for your “alone” times and the proximity of downtown areas, easily accessible, with cultural attractions, nightlife and entertainment. Get ready to swap and enjoy!

Happy Valentine’s Day to all our home swappers! The most romantic day of the year is here, a time to let your loved ones know how much you care about them. Now, are you having trouble writing a card? Well, we won’t write the card for you, but to get you in a better mood we have a selection of humorous quotes about love. We chose humour because even if you don’t have a card to write, you will have some fun anyhow.

“Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That’s relativity.” — Albert Einstein

“No man is truly married until he understands every word his wife is not saying.” — Anonymous

“You can’t buy love on eBay.” — Anonymous

“Men aren’t necessities, they’re luxuries.” — Cher

“If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?” — Anonymous

“There are three kinds of men who do not understand women: Young, old, and middle-aged.” — Anonymous

“To laugh often and love much… to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to give one’s self… this is to have succeeded.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“We cannot really love anybody with whom we never laugh.” — Alice Reppler

“Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love.” — Albert Einstein

“What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork.” — Pearl Baile

“Love doesn’t make the world go round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile.” — Franklin P. Jones

We hope you enjoyed our selection, and remember if you want to find a romantic home exchange deal visit HomeForHome. Our listings include homes in the most romantic cities around the world. If you haven’t registered yet, you can do it in just a couple of minutes (registration is FREE) and you can start contacting other users right away!

By graur razvan ionut / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

For some it is the most romantic day of the year, for others not so much, but one way or the other, you are probably going to share a special moment and even exchange presents with your significant other. For the most enthusiastic ones and, why not, all those looking for a good excuse to travel we have our HomeForHome (obvious) suggestion: a getaway exchange. Many of our members could be just looking for the same deal: a weekend exchange in a romantic place for a different and unique celebration this February 14th.

HomeForHome has members all over the world, so near of far, your Valentine exchange could be around the corner. For some people, it may be too little time to plan and coordinate an exchange, and that is understandable, but for others it may be easier. For example, if you already had a successful swap in a place you just loved, contact your previous home exchange partner and check if their place will be available during the 14th. Check the forums, there are many topics asking for weekend exchanges.

With only a few weeks before Valentine’s Day you may also find good last minute deals on flights and that wouldn’t hurt the Valentine budget either. A special dinner vs a unique romantic getaway, what would you choose?

One of the most romantic and probably one of the most famous winter vacation spots among couples is the Alps in Switzerland. Although the Swiss Alps is a good place to go to all year-round, the most snow fall peaks around January and February. But what if you are planning to visit on a different time of year? Switzerland boasts fantastic sceneries and romantic places to go to which you can have the best views of all year round whether through a hike, a cross-country drive, a rail trip or a boat trip on the lakes. A relaxing spa at the middle of the Alps is a rewarding experience.

The Alps is not the only place to see when you are in Switzerland. There are many other places that you could go to, other must see places are Lucerne and nearby Saentis, Matterhorn, Jungfraujoch and Zurich. There are lots of art museums and tourist spots too. Enjoy the sights of castles, historical old towns and churches which are simply amusing. Because of Switzerland’s diverse culture, there is a lot to be discovered. Tease your taste buds with gastronomic delights from specialties of culinary regions to wine tasting, chocolate indulging down to haute cuisine.

If you are planning to make a trip for the Holidays in Switzerland, better look for a home exchange earlier on. The Holidays is a peak season for tourism in the country so prices for hotel accommodations are slightly higher than normal. Having a home exchange instead will definitely be a great idea if you want to cut back on expenses a little bit. Another good thing about home exchange is the convenience of having a place to stay ready even before you set your foot in this breath-taking country. So what’s the reason not to spend the Holidays in Switzerland?

Now that the main juice of the summer, the sweet nectar has been syruped up, it’s time to pick yourselves up, dust yourselves off, and get planning those autumn mini-breaks away!

It would be so sad to say good bye to the summer if autumn wasn’t so damn pretty! So as the more orangey sun grazes on the crunchy autumn leaves, it’s time to start thinking about where you would really enjoy spending the most romantic and aesthetically pleasing of the seasons.

Charming, elegant, full of class and culture… Where could you go? Paris, of course! Where every individual molecule hanging in the incensed air quivers with romance.

Located in the heart of the Île de France, Paris is easily accessible from the main European cities thanks to the many low cost airlines that fly there.

Moreover, as we have repeated many times now, you can save money by swapping your home with some Parisian type eager to visit the beautiful country … we have over 1500 French houses!

Paris is a city so alive and intense that not even a month would be enough to visit it all … but we will offer ten point guide:

1. LOUVRE

Located within the former French royal palace, the Louvre Museum is one of the most famous and most visited in the world. It is a thriving artistic and cultural home to some of the most precious art treasures of Paris.
Musée du Louvre 99, rue de Rivoli, 75001, www.louvre.fr

2. ORSAY MUSEUM

Situated in the romantic heart of Paris, on the Left Bank, the Musee d’Orsay has a ripe old charm because it is situated in the old Gare d’Orsay station in the Belle Epoque, which houses collections of 19th century domestic famous throughout the world. Musée d’Orsay 1, rue Bellechasse, Paris 75007

www.musee-orsay.fr

3. TOUR EIFFEL

The most famous monument in Paris was completed March 31, 1889, and is the result of the work of the engineer Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel. As the Eiffel Tower was built, the public was not particularly satisfied by the its implementation because they thought that the structure was unattractive. Today, however it is considered one of the most remarkable examples of architectural art in the world. It receives in any season a great number of tourists from all backgrounds who come to admire it - in all its majesty - or to even climb it to enjoy the spectacular city views.
Eiffel Tower, Champs de Mars, Paris 75007, www.tour-eiffel.fr

4. POMPIDOU CENTER

In one of the oldest districts of Paris, President Pompidou wanted to create a cultural center that would give space to modern and contemporary art as well as fashion, design, film and literature. This was the genesis Pompidou Center, a curious structure that occupies an area of about one hundred thousand square meters, where it remains affected by its external pipes, each in a different color. This is because each color corresponds to a different one of its functions.

Center Pompidou, Place Georges Pompidou, Rue Saint-Martin, Paris 75004, www.centrepompidou.fr

5. LATIN QUARTER

On the Left Bank of the Seine, you have the Latin Quarter, the heart of young life in Paris. It is full of shops, bookstores, film-clubs, and the most fashionable bars and restaurants amongst students are concentrated here. The name suggests a neighborhood full of Brazilian, Mexican and Columbian cafes,but this area of Paris actually takes its name from the Latin language spoken by the professors of the Sorbonne, the most prestigious universities in the world, where everyone has at least once dreamed of studying, Indeed for centuries, the life of this neighborhood revolves around its most important institution.

6. MARAIS

On the Right Bank of the Seine, north of Île Saint-Louis, one of the most visited zones, a busy area full of trendy bars and clothing shops, where different lifestyles cluster together in the streets. These are punctuated by the great aristocratic palaces of the Renaissance, from grand hotels to small and characteristic medieval alleys. Other important points of reference for visitors are the Picasso Museum and his collection of works by the Spanish master, the Museum of art and history of Judaism.

7. MONTMATRE

Situated on a hill 130 meters high, Montmartre in 1800 was the bohemian neighborhood where artists from around the world went to discuss art and politics. An irreverent district, crowded with tourists at all hours is a magical place, where Delacroix, Picasso, Modigliani, Utrillo and Van Gogh lived. But today, instead of the big names in art, there are painters and artists of all kinds of business trying to attract the attention of tourists. Then there’s Place Pigalle, a site famous throughout the world, seen and reviewed in numerous films, Moulin Rouge, known for “Dorissa Girls, girls strip and perform with ballet including the famous Cancan, is still an attraction for many tourists thanks to the increasingly rich offering of entertainment and dancing.

8. GARDENS

Besides being the city of a thousand lights, it is also a city full of green spaces, ideal for relaxing away sunny afternoons, spent for example in the most famous French garden. Known as the Garden of Luxembourg, a public park of 24 hectares, and founded in 1612 by Maria de ‘Medici, this garden is located on the border with the area of Saint Germain des Près, this is a beautiful green space full of thickets, tree-lined streets and culminates in a large panoramic terrace, with statues of French kings chosen by King Louis Philippe. Inside the garden is the Palais du Luxembourg, home to the Senate. It offers a luxurious landscape and is much loved by visitors of all ages, for a quick lunch in the open air, or for a leisurely stroll to spend happy evenings there, delighting in tennis courts and areas for children’s play. The Tuileries Gardens instead, were created in the seventeenth century at the behest of Catherine de Medici, and originally next to the gardens there was also the Tuileries Palace that were destroyed in a fire in 1871. Today the park, bordered by the Louvre to the east and west from the Place de la Concorde, is brimming with entertainment for children.

9. LA FAYETTE

With their stunning Art Nouveau cupola, Galeries Lafayette are located in the district of works on the Boulevard Haussmann, and in general form a fascinating place full deputy shopping elite.
Galerie La Fayette 40, boulevard Haussmann, Paris 75009, www.galerieslafayette.com

10. FAVELA CHIC
One of the centers of Parisian nightlife, once famous for its prison that housed political and religious prisoners, and that was destroyed during the French Revolution of 1789, today is presented instead as one of the most vibrant areas of Paris. It is often used for concerts and other events where you can admire a wide choice of bars, nightclubs and live music halls.

If you’re a city-dweller, and have been so all your life, then you may never have even seen a shooting star. Throughout centuries in songs and literature, shooting stars have been documented and romanticised.

But even if you understand the symbol well, it’s still a special moment seeing one for the first time.  Imagine taking a vacation deep in the heart of the French country-side. Rustic farm-houses, lazy vintage tractors mowing down the windy, dusty roads, a heavy, roving sun beating down. Vine-yards.

Then imagine a chalky, warm evening. Outside in the garden you can tuck in to a light dinner, with some authentic, fruity wine. Then, with the over-whelming sound of the orchestra of crickets, you can look up to the clearest sky you’ve ever seen. So deep in the French country-side, so far away from either pollution or light-pollution, the sky clear, bright and striking.

The stars seem a lot closer, and you can see so many of them shoot across the sky as they give out their final blare of brilliance to the universe. It really is like nothing else. It’s the perfect romantic evening, either spent with a partner, or simply alone enjoying the aesthetic quality of the surroundings.

Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet have done it. In the film The Holiday they are both single women desperately in need of a change in climate. To get this climate change, you simply sign up online and go and stay in someone else’s home, whilst they’re in yours.

In The Holiday, as neither Cameron nor Kate’s characters go particularly prepared, they each get to know a new charming man, fall in love with him and end their vacation with a new relationship.

Are you also single and fed up things? Maybe you feel that you need a bit of a break somewhere, because either at home or at work you feel like you’re banging your head against a brick wall. Then leave it to home exchange, and take advantage of a new environment. You can go to a new place, live like the locals, meet new interesting people, and maybe even meet a new partner! Even if it doesn’t come to love, you can definitely make some new friends

So, what do you say? Could it change your life, bring winds of change into your life, or simply help you get to know new places? Home exchange is a great way to take a cheap vacation. Give it a try.