A Scottish couple have saved an estimated £70,000 over 19 years by swapping their home for holidays abroad. Ewan and Laura Hastings, from Roslin in Midlothian, have enjoyed 59 trips using home-swapping websites, including a recent stay in California and a forthcoming visit to Berlin.
Ewan, a charity fundraiser, and Laura, a nurse, live in an ordinary three-bedroom detached house. They began swapping in 2003 when their children were young. “I can say, categorically, we would never have gone on so many holidays if we had not been doing that,” Ewan said. The couple use websites HomeLink and Home Base Holidays, often swapping cars as well by adding each other to insurance policies.
As the cost of living crisis deepens, home swapping offers a way to stay for free. The Guardian tested three sites to arrange a swap from Cambridge to Devon during October half-term. HomeLink costs £115 a year (or £83.33 for three years) with a 30-day free trial. However, four requests went unanswered after a week.
Love Home Swap costs at least £96 a year, with a points system and service fees starting at £49 per booking. The Guardian’s requests for direct reciprocal swaps were declined. Guardian Home Exchange, run by Home Base Holidays, costs £35 for six months or £59 a year, with a free two-week trial. Within hours of sending requests, the owner of a converted chapel in north Devon agreed to a swap.
Home swappers report significant savings and the chance to “live like a local”. Potential pitfalls include unresponsive members and complex points systems, but direct swaps can be arranged quickly and cheaply.
