Home Swap Travel

For retirees living on a fixed income, home swap is a great way to travel the world on a budget.

If you are interested in travelling around New Zealand, or the world, but are on a budget, a home swap may be an option to save on accommodation.

After a life dedicated to work and raising children, retirement is the time to enjoy life – arts and culture, music, food and wine, sport and, of course, travel.

The number of New Zealanders aged 65 and older has tripled in the last 50 years, according to Statistics New Zealand, with the fastest growing bracket of the group being 80 and older.

HomeExchange.com includes an active community of retirees around the world. For this fast growing sector, home swap is an alternative way to travel on a budget year-round. 77% of active retirees exchange their primary residence while 23% list a second home, which enables additional flexibility for non-simultaneous exchanges.

HomeExchange members Sue and Murray Pearson are a retired couple who have been exchanging their home in Auckland for over three years. Since joining the programme, they have been able to enjoy the beauty of the world; including Monaco, Devon, Sydney, and London to name a few.

“HomeExchange has enabled us to afford extensive overseas travel. And much more homely than staying in hotels, motels or bed and breakfasts. We enjoy the opportunity to shop locally and have the full facilities of a kitchen for preparing our own food. Of course balancing this with enjoying all the local restaurants that our hosts recommend,’’ explains Murray.  ‘’In addition, we have had several home exchanges that included a car exchange. Very convenient and saves money.’’

The travel opportunities for retirees are diverse: discover the world, explore one’s own country, or visit children who live faraway while enjoying the comfort of a real home. Home exchange also offers a way of testing a retirement destination in order to live “as a local” before moving permanently.