A hotel room for four people during the summer holidays, a vacation rental in a popular city, plus breakfast or parking: With many trips, the vacation budget is already surprisingly small before departure. Exactly why the question quickly arises: What does home swapping really cost? My honest answer after several swaps: significantly less than traditional accommodations – but not always exactly zero euros.
The big advantage of home exchanging is that you don't pay per night. Instead, you make your home available to other members and can stay at theirs in return. This is especially pleasant for families: a kitchen, separate bedrooms, often toys, and plenty of space without every additional person driving up the price.
How much does home exchanging really cost on HomeExchange?
At HomeExchange, fundamentally a annual membership It currently costs 220 euros per year and applies to all people in the household. With it, you can arrange as many exchanges as you like within a year—without paying a booking fee for each stay again.
At first glance, that sounds like a hurdle, but by comparison, it is surprisingly manageable. Do the math: a single vacation rental for a week in many European cities or on the coast quickly costs more than this annual fee. Families who do just one longer exchange can often make the amount back already. With two or three trips, the difference compared to hotels and vacation rentals usually becomes really significant.
A security fee of 500 euros is added to this. Important: This is not an extra expense that you simply lose. It is held as a security deposit for the first confirmed trip and refunded at the end of the membership, provided there are no outstanding damages. It is intended to give both sides peace of mind, especially when opening your own apartment to guests for the first time.
So the costs are transparent: 220 euros annual membership plus a refundable security deposit. No night rates, no final cleaning fees by the platform, and no surcharge for traveling with children.
The costs that still remain with you
Home exchanging replaces the cost of accommodation, not the entire vacation. Travel expenses, food, admission fees, and of course your own daily life at the destination remain. Airfares in particular can still be the largest expense during school holidays.
Even with the exchange itself, there are a few things that you should realistically plan for. Small host gifts are not mandatory, but they are often part of the tradition for us. A regional specialty, chocolate, or something small for the kids doesn't cost much and is simply a nice gesture. Anyone arriving by car must also factor in tolls, fuel, and, if applicable, parking fees.
Some hosts ask for a contribution to exceptionally high utility costs, such as for long-term stays in the winter in a heavily heated house. This is not standard and should always be clearly discussed before confirming. The same applies to the use of a car, an e-bike, or a cleaning person. The more specifically you ask in advance, the more relaxed the exchange will be for both sides.
For normal stays, every guest takes care of smaller everyday items themselves. If the milk runs out or you use up the last of the toilet paper, you buy more. This is not a hidden fee, but good hospitality – just the way you would want your own place to be left.
Mutual exchange or GuestPoints: The difference counts
Whether your vacation actually works out without any further accommodation payment depends on the type of exchange. With a simultaneous exchange, you stay in the other family's home while they stay in yours. This can happen at the same time, such as when you swap homes for two weeks. However, it can also happen at different times: you are in Copenhagen in the summer, and your exchange partners come to you in the fall.
In addition, HomeExchange has a system involving GuestPoints. When you open your home to guests, you receive points. You can use these for stays with other members, even if they do not want to travel to your place themselves. Especially for families is that practical, because the perfect direct trade is often difficult to organize in terms of timing.
For a stay with GuestPoints you also do not pay a nightly rate. The number of points required depends on the accommodation, location, size, and amenities. A large apartment in Paris costs more points than a small studio outside the city. This is fair, but requires some flexibility: during holiday seasons and in popular metropolises, the particularly attractive accommodations are quickly in demand.
My tip: Don't just look for a single dream destination. If you are somewhat flexible with neighborhoods, travel dates, or the country, your chances increase enormously. And often, those are the exact trips we remember most fondly later on.
An honest comparison for a family of four
Take a family with two children who want to go to Amsterdam for ten days during the summer holidays. A vacation rental with two bedrooms, a kitchen, and good transport connections easily costs 220 to 300 euros per night. For ten nights, that comes to 2,200 to 3,000 euros – even before the train, food, or museum admissions are paid for.
When swapping apartments, the same trip costs at best the annual membership fee of 220 euros, provided there are enough GuestPoints available or a direct exchange takes place. Even if you spend another 30 euros on a host gift, 50 euros on groceries, and 100 euros for an additional final cleaning, the difference remains huge.
Of course, this is no promise that every accommodation will be available at all times. Anyone who insists on finding a specific apartment in the center on the first Saturday of the school holidays will have fewer options than someone who is flexible by a day or is also willing to look at adjacent neighborhoods. Home swapping rewards planning, friendly requests, and a bit of openness.
When membership is particularly worthwhile
For families, home swapping often pays off with just a single trip. The larger your family, the faster the benefit grows, because hotels usually require multiple rooms and vacation rentals calculate prices based on the number of guests. Having your own kitchen saves additional money without feeling like a sacrifice. Especially with children, being able to have a relaxed breakfast in the morning and not having to look for a restaurant every evening is worth its weight in gold.
It can work even for people with a completely normal rental apartment. You don't have to own a house with a pool. A clean, personal apartment in a well-connected location is often exactly what other travelers are looking for. We've learned: perfection doesn't matter, but rather a home where guests can feel comfortable.
Membership is less rewarding if you want to take a very spontaneous trip for just a single weekend, do not want to make your home available at all, or are exclusively looking for luxury hotels. Home exchanging is not a hotel substitute with a reception desk and daily room service. In return, you get something that hotels can hardly offer: real living for a period of time, neighborhoods instead of tourist backdrops, and space for normal family routines while on the go.
How to avoid nasty surprises
The financial rules should be on the table before any commitment. Ask nicely if there are any special additional costs, if cleaning is expected, and what you need to do upon departure. Also, check out the reviews. They usually quickly reveal whether hosts communicate reliably and how previous guests experienced the accommodation.
A good request also makes a difference. Don't just write: „Is your place available?“ Briefly share who you are, why you are interested in the place, and how you treat other people's homes. If you are traveling with children, be open about it. Many hosts are actually happy when their apartment is used by another family.
At the end of the day, home exchanging is not a trick for us where you secretly compromise on quality. It is a different way to travel: more personal, often more comfortable, and financially much more relaxed for families. If you are planning a trip anyway, your own home can suddenly become the most valuable part of your travel budget.
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On my travel blog Wandernotizen I'll take you along on our family trips around the globe. Between wanderlust and everyday chaos, you'll find honest travel reports, tips, and plenty of material to ignite your wanderlust. 🧭 ❤️ 🏝️