The Ultimate Guide to Home Swapping

Season 6 is now out and available summing up all our experience gathered over the years.
Where this blog ends, my new eBook starts giving your the real countdown for a successful home exchange:

Available for only $0.99 on Amazon. Treat yourself to an exciting trip to Europe from your armchair and pick up all the tips you need for a successful home swap. Happy travels!

Home, Sweet Home!

After almost three months we were ready to go home. Too much of a good thing...or so as the old saying goes. The trip back from Luxembourg  was pretty uneventful, only extremely tiring; but you Atlantic hoppers know that. One experience, however, was new to me and that was being able to use the internet while in the air and post on Facebook. The pics were too good to go unposted.
Clouds are just clouds, but impressive every time to see them from above.

This is Cape Cod hubby suggested.
We had good seats in Delta's new comfort area. Since hubby retired, business class is out of reach.so instead of the famous Fillet Mignon Delta usually offers up front, we had this. Edibly. I thought food in Delta's cabin class was improving. With my own monitor I was able to watch three films in a row that interested me. Between those and Facebooking, nine hours weren't too bad.

I will continue you to post a little about our remaining adventures in Luxembourg from home. As usual, towards the end there will be some tips for successful home-swapping.

Our 2nd home swap near Baden-Baden

Yes, traveling is exhausting. Driving from one place to the next on German motorways is the easy part. Dropping off the rental car the day after your arrival when you still have to unpack is part of the joy. If you don't drop off at the same location, it becomes much more expensive. Especially if you take the car to a different country, like when we move from Germany to a houses in France. A lot of these places -if not at an airport or train station in a city center- are car dealers, like our Hertz dealer near Baden-Baden, in the middle of nowhere or some convoluted industrial center. God forbid, you return the car without gas...then you have to do the search for a gas station which is never close by - or bite the bullet and pay their inflated price. How did we ever manage all that without a navi-system? How did I ever find my way from Ireland on my own to the little Nierstein/Rhine from where I collected my wines for my wine import in Dublin amost 2,000 km each way: with the help of maps and then later, with print-outs of what Mappi or Google maps suggested.

Now that we had unloaded and unpacked our four heavy suitcases (over 50 pounds a piece) plus hubby's computer bag and several hand luggage items, we were ready to explore our new abode, a 5 bedroom family home with a wonderful garden in a little town of 6,000 people, Ottersweier.

A town where everybody knows each other and seems to recognize that we are in so-and-so's house, greeting or waving at us. Our exchange partners have done many swaps before, so people are used to seeing strangers around. (They also had ca. 120 refugees put up here, strangely enough I only saw five of them during our stay.)

The town is based a mere 15 km from the world famous spa of Baden-Baden. I used to laugh at older folks who liked to vacation there and take the waters or visit thermal baths. Now we are enjoying the beautiful countryside, the peace and quiet and proximity of many interesting archaeological sites, Roman ruins and castles, ruined or of stately splendor.In fact, within a radius of less than an hour's drive along scenic, windy country roads - not motorways- we discovered several true gems which I'm going to report about later. 

In German we differentiate between castle ruins or fortifications still intact which are called "Burg" and resplendent castles of kings often appointed with so much glamour that leaves you in awe about how the selected few lived in those days. Jut think of Sanssoucis in Potsdam, an example of a little Schloss, I introduced here before. Here is one of our latest finds, Burg Windeck.

Many of these added restaurants and hotels to cater to all the visitors. Burg Windeck has been mentioned in the Guide Michelin and is fighting for its first * (star) in this prestigious French restaurant and hotel guide.

You can drive up to most of theseenchanting places, definitely when they have a restaurant.

SEASON 6 IS UPON US!

No, it's not Paris this year.

Believe me, it's definitely not Paris although it bears some resemblance, doesn't it?

A street scene, full of cafes and little boutiques in the fashionable quarter of  Kreuzberg .

You're excused to think so, but it is not the Seine. It's the Spree with a view of the famous Island of Museums (Museumsinsel). It houses the Pergamon Museum with the famous statue of Nefertiti, strangely called Nofretete in German.

If you haven't been to Berlin, you're in for a treat and surprise. Berlin is the hottest - and I mean- trendiest capital in Europe with the most visitors in the last 2 years. It will be the start to this years's home swapping adventure starting in early June, earlier than we ever did before. This couple approached us and we couldn't think of one single reason why not leave for our annual trip to Europe earlier than normally. 

We have two more exchanges lined up after Berlin, a little village near Baden-Baden near the black Forest and border to France. I hear you say that we were there before. In fact, it's our favorite area in Germany and we keep returning to it almost every year.

After that, we'll be heading to Luxembourg. This exchange came about quite unexpectedly after a long wait when we thought we couldn't find another swap. More about all destinations as we go along. 

Season 4: a Great Success

All good things must come to an end. We had 8 home swaps all together now.
I'm going to miss a lot of good stuff about my home country like bread, ice cream in Italian Gelaterias, beer gardens. Certain dishes even tasted nice out of season - prepared by my aunt for me knowing I would love the white asparagus, which is not available after 21 June. She also had a winter specialty, kale, prepared and frozen for me in a manner only available in the north of Germany.

Like every year I'd like to conclude this season with some general tips for home swapping:
Sign up with a reputable agency which has numerous members in as many countries as possible. There is also an agency for seniors only. This means you're dealing with couples, not families with children. Maybe that will take your angst away about the safety of your home. By the same token they are likely to have smaller homes. Many have downsized. If you fall into that category, that company is ideal for you. I found out that many of them are looking for long-term stays as they have no job obligations and time constraints anymore.

Start to make contact early with prospective exchange partners, especially when you want to go to Europe. Many know a year in advance when their vacation will be and will plan ahead accordingly. Also, many people will look for flights early in the hope of getting cheaper flights.
On the other hand, invitations make come in at the last minute also as happened this year with our Dutch partners. Don't hesitate to be proactive. Contact exchanges that you wold fancy instead of waiting around. Allow me to compare it again to dating on line. You're not committed until you have a contract with them.
Set up an owner's closet, even a separate room with a lock to safeguard your valuables or personal belongings; just for your own peace of mind in case you still have reservations. An umbrella insurance is also a good idea to cover yourself against possible liabilities.
If you have the time, line up two or even more swaps. Once you're overseas, it's easy to move around in Europe with all these cheap air carriers or by train. A flight from London, Dublin or Paris to Berlin for example will only set you back by about $100.

You save a lot of money by home swapping. Especially the costs of rental cars overseas are higher than in the US and can burn a hole in your pockets. Not so if you get an exchange partner who is willing to swap cars with you.
Once you've tried home swapping, you'll want to repeat this great experience. We can't wait to start the selection process for next year. While waiting for our connection flight in Atlanta, a very tempting offer came in from Sweden. With home swapping the world is your oyster! Good luck and happy travels!

Back to the Homeland of my fav Chocs!

During the lull of the last three weeks we moved on south to the outskirts of Stuttgart. The region is called Swabenia or Schwaben. A tiny town in the middle of nowhere really, but we couldn’t resist the house that invited us to an exchange on this website. Bright, spacious, modern and very-well maintained this house. No fleas here and super tidy in contrast to what we found in Amsterdam. They even left room for our stuff in closets and fridge.

It has three floors with stunning views plus a handy basement. This involves a lot of stair climbing. Good for the old thighs, I know, but lazy monkey that I am, I started to be grateful for my own house all on but one floor. Not to have to climb several stairs down and up again to do the wash or just to get ice cubes for your drink! 

Back to the land of Rumkugeln (see chocolate pic below !!!!) and white asparagus, however!

The local delicacy is called Maultasche, a giant ravioli ofetn swimming in a clear broth. This is defintely the only soup I was ver served with a knfe and fork! History tells us they were invented to avoid the ban on meat during lent and on Fridays. The meat is hidden in a huge ravioli...and then the clergy didn't see it...Right

I couldn’t post because I was out of circulation for about two weeks, surgery and all. Hope you haven’t forgotten my site nor lost interest in our home swapping story.

News on the flea front: The Dutch houseboat owners replied to our complaint. It’s official now.

I didn’t find their response satisfactory claiming ignorance about the situation. People as a rule don’t have three different flea sprays in the house unless they have had a flea problem before. Allegedly, they had several sleepless nights over this matter. They should have tried ours…or swapped with us!

The fumigation company claimed there was a big flea outbreak in Amsterdam due to the heat wave.  Right- our research showed that leas live and feed on dogs and cats.

However, as my really tolerant hubby said this is a long time ago now and forgotten. Off to better pastures! The Dutch removed their so-called pet-free status and are on a one strike and you’re out notice. We got 2 years free membership out of it. That’s the value of $250! Plus the money refunded for the various flea sprays we bought.

Across the Border: Strasbourg

... Except there is no real border anymore when you cross over from Germany into France, only a sign saying: “ You now entered France!"  and that the speed limit is 120 km/h on motorways and 90 km/h on national roads. Strasbourg is merely 50 minutes away from where we were staying in Baden- Baden and well worth a visit. In fact, Alsace is one of my favorite destinations for quick day visits. The best time to avoid huge crowds that are almost always present, is when summer school holidays are over in September. Truth be told that the month of October is indeed the best for gourmet travelers because the first fresh wines are available, all types of venison and mushrooms.

The whole region is well renowned and loved for its quaint, picturesque and medieval towns, dotted with timber framed houses which all seem to have an abundance of window boxes with flowers spilling out. Whether you drive to Riquewihr, Kaysersberg (birthplace of Albert Schweitzer), Obernai or Colmar ─ you are always in for a treat. The year before, our choice was Colmar, my all-time favorite, smaller than Strasbourg but with equally big crowds of tourists vying for sightseeing spots and restaurant tables.

Since my hubby had not seen the capital of the Alsace region and the seat of the European Parliament as well as the European Court of Human Rights. The city’s population has almost doubled in the last decade, with the greater urban area now comprising just under 1 million inhabitants.

The adjacent area to the northwest covers the magnificent natural park and mountain region of the “Vosges”, an ideal location for hikers, bikers and nature lovers. You will find fewer tourists there. I spent a whole week during my college years on a very isolated but romantic “gite”, i.e. a cottage.

We had tried to find home swapping partners on the French site, in vain. We almost made a deal, i.e. signed the exchange contract, when the French found out that it’s likely to be very hot in Florida in the month of August. Indeed. Though there are many picturesque towns of a similar nature on the German side of the border, the French has a more exotic feel to me, being German. And the food in the restaurants is different, even the baguettes are better…although a bit more expensive. Strasbourg, by the way, is very expensive territory with a normal iceream sundae I enjoy in Germany on a regular basis costing here almost twice as much.

With this being our last excursion of this year’s European stay, we enjoyed every minute in spite of the crowds, and we took plenty of photos. The weather was only glorious. We wished we could have stayed along the banks of the river Rhine which runs almost all the length of the border between the two countries. We brought home some regional delicacies like “foie gras” and wine. We skipped the pottery that is typical for this region, colorful stoneware, but just too heavy  to bring back on a plane. Hubby and I, both agreed that Colmar had a more intimate feel to it. But now we had “done” the entire Alsace.
All there was left to do after this excursion was pack up or numerous gigantic bags and clean the house we had spent 3 happy weeks in for our departure back to the US.