Wellington Evening Post - 2004
Home away from homes that's free
Holiday exchange schemes take the accommodation costs out of a holiday. By Marina Skinner
John & Valerie Martin have had lots of overseas adventures in the past ten years. They've stayed in mansions and humble villas - and it hasn't cost them a cent. They reckon they've saved themselves over $100.000 in accommodation and car hire costs by belonging to a home exchange programme, HomeLink International.
Last year they stayed in an apartment, managed by the Hotel Radisson and normally let for $US 350 a day. "We stayed for 2 weeks for nothing" says John. The wealthy owners of the apartment lived 80km away in a mansion where the Martins spent the last 2 days of their holiday. "If we sold all my house, I could have bought the furnishings in their dining room" he smiles.
The Texans did a swap with the Martins more modest Auckland abode before heading to the South Island. They were happy with their reduced comfort level since the objective of swapping homes is not just about saving money but getting the chance to live in a community. Rather than passing through a series of identical hotel rooms as a tourist, neighbours and family members often do their best to make the visitors welcome..
The Martins joined HomeLink several years ago and have travelled to Europe, Britain and the United States. The Organisation, which began in the Unites States in the mid 50s and has been in New Zealand since 1989 has up to 16,000 members in 68 countries. Yearly membership costs around $200 which gets you listed in Directories which are published twice a year and on the internet.
In 1999 the Martins arranged home exchanges in Bavaria, North Italy , Florence and Birmingham. The next year they went to Texas and Arizona. "We've had over 15 exchanges and never struck a dud", assures Martin when asked about the pitfalls.
On their last European jaunt they stayed in an 18th century villa outside Florence in a National Park village overlooking Arezzo. The plumbing was almost original but that didn't faze the Martins, who usually spend their holiday out and about.
The scheme is sometimes seen as elitist, but Martin stresses that many homes are basic- though clean and tidy- and that by taking accommodation costs out of a holiday, overseas travel is more achievable
Most New Zealand members are aged more than 50, though in Europe many families with children are part of the scheme.
Often the family car is part of the package. Usually no money changes hands , even for the power. You're invited to help yourself to food, wine and other provisions, so long as they're replaced. People can make other arrangements. including house-sitting, youth or student exchanges and rentals.
Newcomers to the the scheme often worry about security while strangers are in their house, though the organisation seldom has complaints. Particularly precious things can be locked away and some rooms can be declared out of bounds to visitors. John says he always takes greater care in the houses he visits than in his own. Pets can also be looked after. On their trip to the Arizona Desert, the Martins happily looked after 2 dogs.
"There's a great demand for houses in New Zealand, some of it hard to meet , especially in Wellington where we could do with a lot more members" says Martin.
