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How to Get More Real Travel Time for Yourself, Despite the Economy

Copyright (c) 2006-2012

More travel is a major goal for most of us. What else broadens our horizons, lets us meet new people and lets us learn about new cultures? What else is so much fun? For many travelers, though, vacations and trips are becoming smaller and smaller. Thanks to the high costs of travel, most of us get away for tiny trips now and again rather than treating ourselves to the rich travel experiences we deserve.

According to the Travel Industry Association of America, the average traveler spends only 3.3 days in a hotel room, motel, or bed and breakfast. Roughly 2.6 million hotels rooms are sold everyday in the United States. Could the high turnover rate be the direct result of high prices of hotel rooms?

After all, consider that many hotels and other travel accommodations charge anywhere from $100 to much more per night. Lower-end motels charging $50 or so a night are not always in the best places. For many travelers, the choice is clear: spend less time traveling to make a trip more affordable.

It's not really a solution is it? If you spend weeks or months working for your trip, what are the chances that 3.3 days of vacation will actually soothe and rejuvenate you, never mind give you enough time to appreciate all the beauty of your destination?

Consider the vacation home exchange option - you swap your home for an agreeable amount of time with some in another destination. Some exchanges are simply long weekends not too far from home, others are a month or more abroad. As one home swapper enthuses, "Exchanging your home is the only way to travel when you plan to be in a country for an extended period of time. It's fabulous."

Home exchange allows you to actually live in your destination - rather than just pass through. Plus, you get to stay in an actual house or apartment, one that may well be filled with local art, furniture, books, magazines, and everything you need to appreciate your destination. Doesn't it sound better than a hotel room already?


There's something else, though: when you travel the home exchange way, you save so much money on accommodations that you can extend your vacation and see even more of your destination. One travel exchanger and member of the Digsville Home Exchange Club saved so much money on a trip to Hawaii that she was able to rent a small plane to get a bird's eye view of the islands.

With all the money you save, you can stay a week or even months without digging into your savings account.

Plus, since you can use your host's kitchen to prepare meals, you can save quite a bit of money on eating out for all of your meals. Chances are good that your host will provide you with a long list of their favorite dining spots that you'll be frequenting with all the savings. The added bonus is how healthy you'll stay by actually preparing some of your own meals at home prepared with locally grown ingredients from the local market. In some cases, you can also arrange to use your host's sport equipment, and even their car, saving you plenty on rentals.

This type of travel can be almost as inexpensive as staying home - but allows you to see the world.

Where can you go with home exchange? How does anywhere in the world sound. The online swapping communities lists thousands of potential home swaps from all over the world. From busy cities to villas away from it all, you can stay anywhere you like, and in homes ranging from townhouses to penthouses to historic lofts.

With home exchange, you have all the choice you could possibly want.

Traveling the home exchange way is so much less expensive than your traditional tourist experience that you may be traveling more than you ever imagined. In fact, many home swappers find that they travel more often and further when they discovered home exchange - simply because they can afford to and the opportunities were endless.

Digsville member since 2001 Helena Medina admits that "We plan two to three exchanges every year" and other Digsville community members have exchanged dozens of times over the years.

Getting started couldn't be simpler, either. All you need is a detailed description of the home you are willing to swap. Then, simply use the internet to find homes in the area you are interested in traveling to.

Many home exchange clubs are now online, meaning that finding accommodations is as easy as pointing and clicking. As home exchange has become very popular in recent years, finding experienced swappers is easier than ever.

Simple guidelines such as how to prepare your home, clear communication about your needs and house rules will have you feeling comfortable in no time. As long as you stay slightly flexible about arrangements, there's no reason why you can't start traveling right away!


About The Author:
Helen Bergstein is the founder of the Digsville Home Exchange Club and an internationally-recognized expert on home exchange. Helen has written countless articles, newsletters, and surveys about home swapping and has won awards for her online home exchange service. Even though she keeps busy acting as chief, editor, customer service leader, and domain expert for Digsville.com, Helen still finds time to exchange her own home and do what fueled her passion for home exchange - travel. http://www.digsville.com/ Copyright 2006, Helen Bergstein

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Top-Level Category: Family Articles || Related Categories: Travel and Leisure Articles

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