Home Exchange for Vacations Who participates? Businessmen, teachers, pensioners, medical doctors, lawyers, government employees, administrators.... home exchange attracts people from many professions and ages around the world Most of our Homelink members are experienced travelers that understand well the advantages of our vacation formula. One that combines the comfort, privacy and economy of a home, with the pleasure of a vacation in the company of family and friends Home or Apartment? Each year our members enjoy their vacations in ways others can only dream of making some day. With no expenses in hotels or restaurants to worry about, there is more money for what is really important. An evening out in the theater, a special tour by the sea or city, visits to the museums, shopping, and more As mutual guests our members also get to experience much more closely the traditions and customs of the country they are visiting. They get to meet their partners friends and relatives. The kids discover new ways of having fun. In London, Paris, New York, or in some remote island of the Balears, the Caribbean or Hawaii, details as these create a new and exciting dimension to their vacation experience And how does it work? HomeLink International publishes two catalogs every year which are delivered in January and May. Each catalog includes detailed information of the exchange offers of our participating members, such as their contact details, their destinations and dates of interest, and more. Most of their listings include a color photo of their homes. Once subscription payment is received, the new member's listing is immediately published in our Homelink International database system which is viewed by over 90% of our participants around the world. The listing is also printed in the next Homelink catalog to be published (see Fees for publication dates). Once the listing is published, interested members will contact the new member by email, phone or postal mail for more information. And likewise, the new member gets a password to the database to contact other members as well. HomeLink offers a guide that explains how to carry out these contacts with other members, and how to plan and arrange an exchange. And from here on, it is simply a matter of getting in toutch with other membes, and agreeing on an exchange. That simple There are various ways of doing an exchange. Most members usually arrange a simultaneous exchange, which is the more traditional arrangement (you and your family stay in their home while they stay in yours). But if both families have a second home, a simultaneous exchange is not necessary. In this case, there is more flexibility with dates Another scheme is exchanges during the weekends or during short holidays. These are more frequent between members who live relatively close geographically, but between sea towns and big cities, or the mountains. Or for participants that wish to try this vacation formula for the first time The Homelink catalogs are published in English and all the abbreviations and codes are standard for all countries And... will my home be safe? Before agreeing to an exchange, members communicate extensively amongst themselves. They talk about the facilities available at their home, sites of interest in the area, the number of people that will be traveling by both parties, relatives and/or friends that may help if needed. Some are happy to offer references from previous exchanges (if they are experienced exchangers). So, by the time the two parties reach an exchange agreement, both will have a good deal of information from each other, the communication between them will probably be quite friendly, and both will feel quite comfortable with the arrangement. In Homelink, many long time friendships have begun precisely this way. All new participants receive a Homelink Guide that explains how to carry out an exchange. The guide is based on the recommendations of many exchangers in Homelink, over a period of more than 30 years Great
Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Canada, USA, Australia... With over 11.000 families participating in home exchanges in over 50 countries in the world, exploring some new ambitious places to visit can be tempting indeed How about a month in Hawaii, Australia or the West coast of the US?
There is no limit to the number of exchanges you can arrange during the year. And with so many possibilities... why wait?
How about joining with us... today! In the "visitors" link of our Data Base you can take a look at the listings of our participants at this time (although contact information is not available in this section) |
What about a
few days at the "October fest" in Germany, or the Tulipan festival in
Holland?