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TT

how do I convince my very suspicious husband that this is a great way to travel? I tell him that the other family will take as good care of our house as we will of theirs.
I liked homelink more than intervac, since homelink's search function lets you search without specific dates, so that you can be flexible and plan your vacation around the exchange.

Some suggestions:

- involve your other half in getting to know and assess potential exchange partners by email, letter, phone, etc., before you come to any firm decisions

- start by trying something short-term and short-distance (a long weekend somewhere not too far away)

- talk a friend or neighbour into being available as a meeter and greeter and discreet back-up checker-up?

all good ideas - thanks!

Great post.

We did 2 back to back home exchanges in Europe. One in France for 3 weeks followed by one in Portugal for another 4 weeks. The Portugal exchange wasn't planned. It came along and we jumped on it.

You really need to be open with your "specific" destination when you are doing an exchange - and sometimes it really works out for the best.

We did our exchanges through www.1sthomeexchange.com. It's a newer site but already boasts 13,000 listings in over 120 countries. And it's half the price of some of the other larger sites. It also has the largest number of listings in France (which was important for us when we were wanting to go to France).

hmm - globe traveler has three posts, all of which push the same home exchange company.

In response to Momliz comment above:

I actually mention other home exchange sites in one of my posts. Didn't think mentioning the one that worked the best for us was a problem! (That's not to say this site will work as well for others as it did for us.)

Before joining a site you should scan the listings and see if there are homes where you want to go and make sure you are comfortable with the site, especially the search capabilities. A good search may save you hours trying to identify listings of interest.

I also recommend joining several sites to increase your chances of finding a good match.

Globe Traveler, would be avail to discuss France home exchange? I was wondering if you could tell me who you ended up staying with in France, I'm lookin for a Paris exchange for my apt in the Upper West Side of NYC. Thanks, Monica ([email protected])

ttt

Globe Traveller:

Once one joins, are there more search options available?

For example, my sister lives in a large golf community in Florida. Is there a way to search for those with house in Italy or France desiring golf options?

That would depend on how each organisation has set up its website/directory.

I am topping this off because the fact that I was recently on CNN in connection with a home exchange in Australia has become a subject. This thread, which was started by me (LaurenKahn1=FauxSteMarie) is sort of the definitive home exchange thread.

I am currently finishing my first of 3 home exchanges down under. I am on the Sunshine Coast and will move into an apt in Brisbane next week. Later on I have an exchange in the Bay of the Islands area in New Zealand.

This is the first time I have done 3 home exchanges back to back. These 3 exchanges are numbers 35, 36 and 37. As soon as I get back, I will be looking for a good deal for next summer. I will consider offers anywhere.

Wishing all home exchangers nice trips wherever they exchange!

I have home exchanged many times and will be heading to Istanbul in August. I agree that Homelink and Intervac are the best services. There is a newer home exchange service homeexchange.com that has more members than either Homelink and Intervac due to the excellent PR skills of Ed Kushins--the guy who runs the site. However, he really doesn't follow up with members to give them the skills to create a successful exchange. Many of them are new to the concept, sign up and then do not answer email and/or must decide it is not for them. Despite many emails sent to homeexchange.com members I never got one offer out of the service and, therefore, discontinued my membership. I still belong to Homelink and Intervac and always get many inquiries through both sites. The Istanbul exchange is through Homelink. I did another exchange recently through Homelink in Myrtle Beach, SC, and have another scheduled in Ottawa, Ontario through Intervac.

I, too have been considering opting out of Homeexchange.com for some of the same reasons and a few of my own. It's an odd coincidence that you mention it since I had just said to my husband that I will probably not renew.

I have done two exchanges using Homeexchange, and although they've worked out okay, I find using the site incredibly not user friendly. It is very difficult to navigate. Also, as you pointed out, the contact people are not very helpful if you have questions. I do like one feature the site offers, the opportunity to post recent exchange experiences/references, however when the membership expires, I will probably not renew.

I have had good results with Intervac and Homelink, the latter being my favorite, just because the website is so easy to use.

Also, I've noted as Yentakwetch above remarked that Homeexchange does not have too many veteran home exchangers. Most of them are novices and although we are all first timers at some point, I do find that my best home exchange experiences are with experienced exchangers.

I just saw your comment annetti. I am not on here all that much due to all the backbiting. I got nothing out of homeexchange.com. Ed Kushins makes a lot of money off that site but I really wonder how many exchanges actually occur. I never even got one serious offer. I initially joined to try to go to more "oddball" destinations, but homeexchange.com's mix is no different than Intervac's and Homelink's. When I told Ed I was opting out of his site, I thought maybe he would offer me an additional year for free. He knew I had really worked the site and gotten nothing (and it can't be because people do not want my location because I live in a main US city that most people find attractive). Nada.

I am about to do a home exchange in Instanbul--which I got through Homelink. I am also working on a deal in Tasmania for 2012 (also Homelink). I just got back from Ottawa. I think that was Intervac, but I am not sure. In any event I am satisfied with those two sites, so there is no reason to pay for a 3rd.

Istabul will be home exchange #43. I've obviously been at this for years.

Hi Yentakvech. Lucky you to get an exchange in Istanbul. I have seen so few listings for Turkey over the yrs.

We did two exchanges with homeexchange - one to Portland and one to Victoria. Absolutely loved them both. My main objection to Homeexchange is to their web site. I have to struggle with it every time I write an e-mail querying someone about an exchange. I keep thinking I will drop them; I have until Dec to decide, but definitely will keep Homelink and Intervac.

BTW, I remember talking to you yrs ago about exchanging cars. You, I remember clearly were a strong advocate for car exchange, I have managed to arrange exchanges without including cars, though decidedly much more difficult. Enjoy Istanbul.

The more you ask people to do (as in pets) the fewer offers you will get.

Personally, I won't touch a long distance deal without a car exchange. I do have a car as part of the deal in Istanbul, but certainly will not use it within the city.

Asking me to care for pets or a deal without a car are deal breakers for me.

The thing about home exchange is that you do what you want. As you noted, a deal without a car exchange is much more difficult to get. The only time I don't need a car is when I drive to the exchange--as I did to Ottawa recently.

I will be staying on the Asian side of Istanbul--which means lots of time commuting in to the city center where most of the sights are. I also will be there during Ramadan--which will be another challenge.

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