Henry Vanderpump, 42, and his wife Elliw, 39, have turned their five-bedroom house in Tarporley, Cheshire, into a bargaining chip for budget travel. Over the past two years, the couple and their two young children have completed two home-exchange holidays, staying in families’ homes in Hamburg and Copenhagen while those families stayed in theirs. Another swap is planned this summer. The accommodation costs nothing – neither side pays – though the Vanderpumps pay an annual membership fee to Home Link, the listings site they use. Henry estimates they have saved about £2,500 per trip on accommodation and a further £700 on transport, which included swapping cars. “We used to have one holiday a summer, now we have two,” he says. But for Henry, the real draw is not the savings but the immersion. In 2024, the family stayed in a Hamburg suburb and lived “like a German family for a week”, exploring lakes on the city’s edge recommended by their hosts. Last year, they found a “very Scandinavian house” in suburban Copenhagen – “all on one level and with no clutter” – where their Danish hosts left electric bikes. “We cycled to the beach, swam in the Baltic and tried restaurants they recommended,” Henry says.
The practice of home swapping dates back to at least the 1950s, but commentators say rising living costs and a desire for authentic travel are driving more people to embrace it. Not everyone is comfortable with strangers sleeping in their bed, and preparations – tidying, clearing personal items – are considerable. May Burrough, 38, a chief operating officer from London, has done 34 swaps over three years using HomeExchange. Instead of direct exchanges, she hosts people in her central London flat while she stays with her partner in France, earning points she can use for future trips. Home Link says members typically send 10 to 15 messages before securing an offer, and last-minute bookings often fall through. “Last minute bookings won’t always work,” says May. As more families like the Vanderpumps discover the savings and the chance to live like locals, home swapping may become an ever more common path to a cheaper, more authentic holiday – provided you can stomach the idea of strangers using your kitchen.
“Family saves £6,000 over two years by swapping homes with strangers for holidays, says BBC.”