Category: Home Exchanges
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Fear, Failure, and Home Exchanges
The wonderful PBS series by Ken Burns, The Rooseveldts: An Intimate History is a great history lesson, and inspirational. The lives of three Rooseveldts were chronicled: Teddy, FDR, and Eleanor. They did not live fearfully, nor did they worry about failure. In his first inaugural address (1932), Franklin D. Rooseveldt uttered the famous phrase, “The only thing…
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The Home Exchange Staycation Is Win-Win!
The recession and deflated real estate prices left many feeling the blues. Thousands of dollars of home equity vanished. For some this means the loss of hope that they can take a vacation, retire, or go on a sabbatical. It is easy to think there is no light at the end of this tunnel—and find…
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Home Exchange Minnesota
HomeExchange.com has over 65,000 home exchange opportunities worldwide. In 2014, this organization passed their major milestone of 1 million home exchanges since 1992 (which translates to 2 million home exchanges, since each home exchange involves two family swapping homes). As home exchange enthusiasts, we are very excited about these numbers. We are from Minnesota, originally.…
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Live The Dream
For many, retirement is the time to live the dream. Which dream is that? For lots of us, the dream is travel—to see the world. We ourselves are baby boomers. We are thinking a lot about retirement. Much as is the case for lots of our contemporaries, “what we want” and “what we can afford”…
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Do You Believe In Miracles?
There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is. (Albert Einstein) Travel can open our eyes to miracles, as well as the amazing world that simply “is.” Our imagination can take us to places we have never been. But, home…
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Free vs. Paid Membership
To pay or not to pay? That is the question many would-be home exchangers ask themselves. In most home exchange networks, the annual fee for listing your home is nominal–$75 to $150 (about half the cost of one night’s lodging for the typical vacation). But, there is a greater issue at stake when you pay…
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Introducing The Non-Simultaneous Home Exchange
Eight-year-old Caleb and his cousin, seven-year-old Drew, had a wonderful time during their family vacation in Larvik, Norway. Both agree that their favorite memory was playing with the children who lived next door to the home where their family did a home exchange arranged through Christian Home Exchange. These two boys from Florida did not…
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Arthur & Pauline Frommer–Trusted Travel Advisers
Arthur and Pauline Frommer know a lot about traveling. I have trusted them as a resource for my travels for more than 40 years. I continue to appreciate their wisdom and practical advice as they list the benefits of home swapping. As a young traveler to Europe in 1970, I clung to my copy of…
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Home Exchange Basics 101
What if something gets broken or soiled during the exchange? The simple rule is: replace it or have it cleaned–just as you would at your own home. If you or a member of your family is responsible for the damage, do not shirk your responsibility. If you were at home and your child broke a…