Topics Covered: Christmas in Utah: New Zealanders' First Home Swap Information for Home Exchange Guests: Sample Folder Coming Soon: New Features on Home Base Holidays Website Busy Families: Swapping 'Real' Homes, Not 5* Hotels Home Exchange Request: Australia for South America A Home Exchange Agreement = A Firm Committment Airfraid: Conquer a Fear of Flying Newsletter Contributions

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Christmas in Utah: New Zealanders' First Home Swap

'We have just returned to Auckland, New Zealand from our first house exchange and what a wonderful experience it has been!

At the end of December 2002 I contacted Pat Barney, a member from Logan, Utah, US who had advertised they wanted to go to Norway, Australia, Manitoba or Saskatchewan for 3-4 weeks - they ended up in New Zealand for 5 weeks (including a few days in Fiji on their way home). They were travelling with a couple from Las Vegas, and we were able to stay in both homes and use both cars!

Although we no longer ski we wanted a White Christmas and Logan certainly gave us that - on Christmas day we cooked ourselves a traditional Christmas dinner, sat in their beautiful home watching the snow fall outside, something we don't ever have in Auckland (the photo above shows a more typical local Christmas day), and it was truly magical. The houses were lovely and never once did we feel apprehensive about them being in our home. They left one of the cars with friends of ours in Los Angeles, (they flew out of LA) which meant we were able to fly into LA, pick up the car and drive it to Las Vegas. No trouble finding the house (although we had been to LV before we had been visitors that did not go far from the Strip - LV is huge!). After a couple of days there we drove up to Logan and ensconced ourselves in this lovely home, set about enjoying ourselves in this very scenic part of the country. A highlight was Christmas Eve dinner with the Barneys' daughter, family and friends. We then spent the last 10 days of our holiday back in LV exploring areas as suggested by our hosts.

On our return to New Zealand we met the two couples at LA airport and handed over the car and I can honestly say meeting them there was like meeting old friends. Having shared each other's homes we felt we all knew each other so well. The feeling was mutual as their pleasure in meeting us was so obvious. We now have four new friends! We all had left notes about house, cars, insurance details, contacts - both friends/family and plumbers etc, places to see and go and as far as we were concerned all sides covered all eventualities (see article below on leaving Information Folders for home exchange guests). I can really recommend this form of travel - we are semi retired and can see this becoming a way of life for us!' - Cathy Lawie-Phillips, HE12437

View Cathy & Laurie's New Exchange Offer: HE12437

	Information for Home Exchange Guests: Sample Folder
Pat Barney of Logan, Utah, wrote: 'This is the "other half" of the Utah - Auckland home exchange (see previous article). We, too, enjoyed and appreciated our home exchange with Cathy and Laurie as did our friends from Las Vegas. All needs were anticipated so that the exchange went flawlessly. This was our third home exchange and we have found those with whom we exchange most accommodating, helpful and careful with our home and vehicles. By living in another's family home much is learned of that person, and of the culture in which they live. The Phillips were most helpful, making sure we didn't get lost in Auckland as we arrived (they booked a shuttle for us from the airport to their home). It is rewarding, and a little amazing, that with just one face-to-face meeting we've become close friends who care for and value the friendship. They had neighbours alerted to our coming, who were also helpful while we were in the Phillips' home. The home exchange program has been most beneficial to us over the years. We are now, again, trying to get to Norway, as we were when the Phillips contacted us!' - Pat Barney, HE14874 Although, from Cathy's and Pat's comments on the car/home swap arrangements, this must have been quite a complex exchange to arrange, careful planning by all involved insured it went smoothly. Referring to an article in the Feb/Mar 04 issue of Home Swappers, 'Laid Back or Meticulous: What's You Home Exchange Style?', Cathy commented: 'Re Connie's experience with a member saying she emailed too much - I must say I feel the same as Connie and quite frankly the relationship developed over a year of emailing built up a tremendous feeling of confidence in the people we were exchanging with, so much so that originally we were going to give them our older car (1996 Rav4) to use; however, the relationship we built up with them made us feel very confident in leaving our fairly new Lexus RX300 4x4 car for them to use. The emailing meant we had become friends prior to the exchange - not strangers'. An important part of pre-exchange arrangements is compiling information for your home swap partners' use while living in your home. Cathy has very kindly shared the notes she had prepared in advance of the exchange. It can be quite perplexing trying to figure out how to operate unfamiliar appliances. Cathy's instructions are so clear and detailed that I wish she could talk me through our own DVD system (more than one remote control causes panic at times!). Although each member's information folder will be unique, skimming through this sample folder should be a reminder for others of the type of information that is useful to leave for exchange guests. Once compiled for a first home swap, it will be easy to update an information folder for later exchanges. The link below is to the Lawie-Phillips' sample information folder which also includes direct links to both their next exchange offer and that of the Barneys in Utah.   Sample Information Folder Contents »

	Coming Soon: New Features on Home Base Holidays Website
We receive many positive comments on the listing information and the ease of use of the various search options on the Home Base Holidays website. We always welcome new ideas that could improve your experience in using the site. We keep all such suggestions in a 'wish list' folder, discuss each in detail with our home exchange agency partners and our programmer to decide which will enhance the site and can be implemented. We are now ready for another site upgrade (hopefully Nick, our much in demand programmer, will be able to start on this very shortly). Although this upgrade involves much behind the scenes programming, some of the new features members will see in the next few weeks include: Photo Upload Facility - this will enable members to upload their own photos (up to four). Photos will be automatically re-sized to fit the listing layout Membership Form - an improved layout will make it easier to read listings and encourage members to include the most useful information on their homes, areas and families in their listings. There will also be additional tick box options (with corresponding search facilities), including second home symbol, over 55s, languages spoken, home office amenities Exchange Portfolio - save links to listings in your member area as you are searching. When ready, contact members with your exchange offer Login Page Help - information on causes and solutions for login problems Member Contact Form - standardised form to enable members to contact others to suggest an exchange directly from the website Notice Board - to display important information for members in member area Browse Current Home Exchange Offers »

	Busy Families: Swapping 'Real' Homes, Not 5* Hotels
After reading the feature article, 'We're a Busy Family: Can We Swap Our Home?', in the Dec03/Jan04 edition of Home Swappers, recent UK member Sally Baker, wrote: 'I just thought I'd let you know that after reading this article I decided to join. I have previously been put off joining like your writer, as some of the homes on the site look so tidy and glamorous. This writer made me realise that there are other families like mine that don't live in show houses who would be interested in exchanging with someone like me who is definitely not the perfect housewife!!! So to everyone who has been put off by this and have "lived in" homes like mine I'd like to say "go for it and join." I think as long as you are honest with prospective swappers (I shall email photos), and make sure that the place is clean for them when they arrive, all will be ok. At the end of the day the purpose of home exchanging is to stay in a family home and not a 5* hotel!' - Sally Baker, Bristol, UK, HE14730 View Sally's Exchange Offer in Bristol: HE14730 »

	Home Exchange Request: Australia for South America
Imagine your own home-from-home apartment in Queensland on Australia's Sunshine Coast. Situated on the edge of a tidal lake and a short walk to a surf beach, it is just a couple of steps from the apartment to the pool in the courtyard. As well as a great base for a beach holiday, this three bedroom apartment is in an ideal location for exploring the area and only an hour's drive from the capital, Brisbane. Recent member, Tim McNamara, should normally have plenty of takers for his attractive exchange offer. However, Tim is keen to arrange a swap to South America (and is very flexible on dates and location). As yet, the home exchange concept is not so well known in South America as it is on other continents/countries, and this makes finding an exchange partner there more difficult. If you live in any country in South America, even if you can't consider Tim's offer at present, you are bound to find much interest in your own exchange offer if you join Home Base Holidays. Current members can view Tim's full listing by searching on the User ID, HE14903. Non-members: use the link directly below to access the listing. View Tim's Offer in Queensland, Australia: HE14903 »

	A Home Exchange Agreement = A Firm Commitment
Louise Peach wrote recently to describe her first exchange experience: 'In Dec 2003 we travelled to the UK to spend Christmas with our two daughters who are working over there. The first two weeks of our trip we exchanged our house on the Sunshine Coast in Australia for a flat in London. Everything went ahead without a hitch. Having a central base in London was a boon and we were able to visit many places of interest and the theatre to see 'The Lion King' and 'Le Miz'. Sofia Pucek, our London home swap partner, had arranged for a neighbour to visit and ensure we felt at home. Likewise, back in Australia, our neighbours ensured that Sofia was made welcome and included in the Christmas street party'. Editor's note: the photo above is of David and Louise at home in Caloundra, Queensland, with Sophia in the middle. Look out for Sophia's report on her exciting exchange experiences in Australia, including skydiving, in the next issue of Home Swappers. Sophia's listing in London, HE14196 Louise continues: 'Originally we had two exchanges organised: the first for two weeks in London and then three in Scotland. Unfortunately the second exchange fell through when the Scottish member withdrew her offer as she believed I had changed the details of the exchange. Although I did try to reassure her that this was not the case she refused to respond to emails or my phone call. This was very disappointing at the time as we had been regularly emailing for some months beforehand and I thought we had built something of a relationship. In looking back though we believe this exchange did have the potential to be problematic and so we may have had a lucky escape. The three weeks we planned in Scotland went ahead as we secured delightful (and cheap) accommodation in a village where we were made to feel a part of the community in no time. Our experience in London was extremely successful and I would love to exchange again. We are interested in a 4-6 week exchange again this year in June/July and are open to offers (photo of our home below). The Sunshine Coast is a very popular tourist destination but can be too hot for some over the summer. Our winters are always filled with sunny days and temperatures around 24-26C'. - Louise Peach, HE14054 Louise's positive attitude is inspiring and the cancelled exchange, although disappointing, didn't spoil her trip to Scotland. As members make exchange arrangements directly, it is often impossible to discover where blame lies when a firm agreement breaks down. Thankfully, such cases are very rare. Home exchangers are generally very responsible people who treat other members fairly; however, it must be acknowledged that serious problems can occasionally occur. There are legitimate reasons when an exchange may need to be cancelled or changed such as a death or serious illness in one of the families. Even in such stressful circumstances members have been known to go out of their way to help their exchange partners. We have, however, heard of an instance recently when an agreed exchange may be in jeopardy due to a member's concerns about a possible terrorist attack in the exchange location. We are all horrified by such atrocities wherever they occur but most people accept that the risk of being victims of such an attack are very small compared to the possibility of every day accidents in our own homes or areas. If you do have concerns, though, for whatever reason, it is far better that you miss out on the chance of a great exchange than that you agree to the swap only to let down your exchange partners later. If you cancel a firm agreement without good reason, you do have a moral responsibility to at least offer to help your exchange partners however you can, including with extra expenses they may incur because of your decision. An exchange may be agreed several months in advance but, closer to the date, one party may find it difficult to fulfill their exchange commitment due to unforeseen circumstances, e.g. a job loss or an imminent house move. If you find yourself in this sort of situation, inform your exchange partners immediately you know there may be a problem (hopefully before they have spent money on air fares, etc) and offer to do all you can to help them if they are unable to arrange another exchange. Note: Even if an exchange is agreed and most of the arrangements made several weeks ahead of the exchange dates, it is important that both parties keep the lines of communication open so that any potential problems can be picked up on early rather than later. A few suggestions if you can't fulfill an exchange agreed: Offer your home as a base for at least part of the period agreed if possible even if you can't take part in the exchange yourself Your exchange partners may agree to a non- simultaneous exchange, i.e. offering you use of their home at a later date in return for using your home for the exchange period as agreed Perhaps friends living close by would be interested in swapping homes and taking your place on the exchange If re-arranging an exchange is not possible, offer to help your exchange partners find reasonably priced alternative accommodation nearby View Louise's Exchange Offer in Caloundra, HE14054 »

	Airfraid: Conquer a Fear of Flying
What a terrible frustration it must be if you love the idea of travelling to different parts of the world but are scared rigid at the thoughts of flying. If this is you, you are certainly not alone. We were delighted when recent Home Base Holidays member, Lindsay Trill, sent us information on Airfraid, the website she started five years ago which is 'dedicated to help you with your fear of flying'. Lindsay has developed Airfraid into a wonderful resource, making it easy to access, in one place, the large amount of information available on fear of flying. Various levels of help are included - topical editorials, travel health advice, courses, etc. There is an on-line shopping section with carefully selected products available to make flying a more comfortable experience for everyone. The Airfraid book, which includes in flight exercises and information from the website, is also available. Airfraid development is on-going and a current project is the collection of editorials on the effects of long haul flights for travellers with diabetes, e.g. body clock changes, time zones in relation to the taking of medication, foods to take on board, etc. Do check out Airfraid (link below) and also see Lindsay's attractive home (see photo) in Pezenas, a medieval town in Languedoc Roussillon, France. Lindsay is open to exchange and rental offers. Members: search on HE14719; site visitors: use the Advanced Search option and find listing by member ID. Visit the AirFraid Website »

	Newsletter Contributions
We are always pleased to receive contributions for the newsletter - short articles about your exchange experiences, tips for those new to the idea of swapping homes and questions from subscribers considering a home exchange holiday for the first time. Please feel free to forward Home Swappers to friends and colleagues who may be interested in home exchange (see Forward Email link below newsletter). *Note: if you are reading this newsletter on the website but believe you should be receiving copies as published by email, please check the following as there can be a number of reasons for non-delivery: 1. an incorrect or out-of-date email address on our mailing list. Contact us with your new/correct address. 2. ISPs and/or mailing programs with overly rigourous spam filters that block many legitimate messages from opt-in mailing lists along with the unsolicted spam. Some ISPs will now only deliver messages to addresses that the recipient has added to a 'white list' or 'buddy list'. All Home Swappers content is copyright and cannot be used in any form without written permission from Home Base Holidays. Home Base Holidays, London, UK 1985-2004: 19th year providing a home exchange