Ellen Carter, 26, and fiancé Connor Gill, 27, have shared how they 'cheat the hotel system' by staying in luxury homes for free, helping them travel around the world together on a budget. The couple first tried house-sitting in strangers' homes in early 2022 while they were still students and struggling to afford trips away.
They have now lived rent-free in 18 different countries, and plan to do two more before the year ends. Their first ever house sit was just ten minutes away from Ellen's mum's home near Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire. The property itself was far from ordinary, as the large Chilterns home came with woodland, a cinema, a gym and three West Highland terriers to look after.
From student budget to global travel
At the time, Connor was completing the first year of his PhD while Ellen was finishing her Master's. The experience showed them that they could limit the highest costs of travelling by swapping hotels for other people's homes. Just a few months later, in August 2022, they landed their first international pet-sit in Budapest, Hungary.
Ellen had always wanted to visit the city but assumed they could only afford a short weekend. The couple spent ten days in a gated five-bedroom home with a huge garden and private swimming pool. The city centre was only a short bus journey away, while their location also offered quiet evenings, walking routes and little light pollution.
Luxury stays and lasting connections
Best of all, the accommodation cost them nothing. “Budapest was probably the most luxurious house-sit we’ve done,” Ellen told creatorzine.com. “It had five bedrooms, a huge garden and a private swimming pool. We got really attached to the dog, Chilli, and we started getting into a rhythm of exploring somewhere new every day. It was probably the hardest one to leave.”
By cooking most of their meals at the house rather than eating out, Ellen says their entire ten-day trip – including flights and food – cost them just £200 each. Budapest remains their cheapest holiday, and the couple are also still in touch with the homeowners from both their Budapest and Gerrards Cross stays, turning what began as a money-saving arrangement into lasting connections.
Since then, Ellen and Connor have travelled to 18 countries across three continents during their six-year relationship, mixing house-sits with more unusual travel experiences. One of their other standout stays was glamping in Morocco's Agafay Desert.
“A close runner-up would be the glamping tent we stayed in in the Agafay Desert, Morocco. It was such a unique experience, with incredible stargazing and sunrises,” said Ellen.
Savings and responsibilities
Across their house-sits, the couple have clocked up more than 24 nights with no accommodation costs, including stays in Gerrards Cross, Budapest and Lymington. Ellen said the biggest advantage is the money saved, as well as being able to live more like locals. “The biggest upside is the accommodation savings and access to a kitchen where we can cook for ourselves, rather than eating out at restaurants all the time,” she said.
But the arrangement comes with responsibilities as some pets require medication, and looking after somebody else's animal means they cannot disappear for entire days or stay out until the early hours. “It can be a lot of work if the pets require medication, which can be added responsibility and stress. Another downside is not being able to leave for huge periods of time,” said Ellen. “However, this suits our lifestyle as we don’t drink or go out late very often, so this has never really bothered us.”
The pair use house-sitting platform HouseSit Match, which connects homeowners with travellers willing to care for their homes and pets in exchange for free accommodation. The couple are now living in Brazil for a year while Connor, a researcher, completes a work contract. Ellen, who previously worked as a caseworker for a Member of Parliament, has taken a career break.
They are hoping Uruguay will become country number 19 in November, followed by Chile in December, where they plan to explore Patagonia before continuing to Santiago, Peru and the Amazon rainforest.
