Beat the crunch with a home swap on home turf

There's a new trend in home swapping, according to Home Base Holidays. The economic downturn has prompted many members - mainly in the UK - to look for exchanges in their own country.

"In the past, swaps closer to home had often been primarily for short breaks but now many more are exchanging for longer holiday periods," says the site's blog.

Could this perfect way to escape the mortgage shackles and get the break you need, without falling victim to guilt?

"It's easy to take for granted the many attractions close to your home," say Home Base Holidays, who are living up to their name in new ways. "With many people having to make savings on holiday costs, now is a perfect time to re-discover your own country."

If economic doom and gloom is getting you down and your job enables you to work remotely, why not try a temporary change of scene?

Sample properties include the above - Huntly, Highlands & Islands in Aberdeenshire, Scotland (HE10019): "Converted 19th-century mill house in heart of Scottish countryside on the Castle Trail in Aberdeenshire. Situated in a valley with lovely views of the surrounding hills, waterfall and stream, which runs through the garden. The garden extends to about an acre and is a mixture of lawn, flower beds and woods stepped into the valley."

The rise of cyber-hitching

"In these uncertain financial times, more and more people are turning to cyber-hitching - car pooling via the internet. Would you get into a car with a stranger?"

This was the question I asked on the Guardian travel site this weekend. So far, there have been some interesting responses. Read them here.

Local travel means cheaper travel

Here are a few tips I've written for the Guardian's money-saving special this weekend.

Learn to share

Want to take a trip, save some cash, decrease your carbon footprint and a possibly make a new friend en route? Liftsharing can tick all these boxes. Carpooling website PickUpPal.com has seen sign-up rates double in the last month, meaning they are now racking up 5,000 new members a week. "Our members are looking at ways to weather this economic storm," says co-founder Eric Dewhirst. He describes the site as "like eBay for transportation": you say where you want to go and drivers suggest a fee for taking you there. Since launching in January, the site has accrued 100,000 members worldwide. It's free to join and they have now scrapped the original 7% commission charge.

Find a city B&B

Now that all small hotels are labelling themselves "boutique" and using this as green light to raise prices, it's time to revert to the good old-fashioned B&B. When in Rome, stay with the Romans via Sleeping Rome (0039 068 620 9286, sleepingrome.com, from £20pp). In Paris, try Alcôve & Agapes, which offers full profiles on each host to ensure a truly personal experience (bed-and-breakfast-in-paris.com, double rooms from £60: note that the office is shut until Oct 14.)

House swapping

Nicole Feist, the blogger behind the hugely informative Home Exchange Travels (homeexchanger.blogspot.com), says she's been inundated with enquiries about this money-saving mode of travel. She points out that home exchanges are not just for long-haul, long-term trips to places such as Australia. "We love doing exchanges over long weekends, and, in Europe, budget airlines make it even easier," she says. For good European coverage, Nicole recommends Dutch site homeforexchange.com, or try the Guardian's own home-exchange service, guardianhomeexchange.co.uk. Both cost around £35 for one year's online listing.

More money-saving tips for European travel here.

Breaking news: house swapping exists

"Budget travel have found a new way to travel for free," announces CNN. What's new? Home exchanging, apparently.

Somehow I doubt Budget Travel magazine, who run a hugely informative, on-the-ball website, are under the impression they've "discovered" this mode of travel. The travel press have been covering it for years. However, as I mentioned last week, it seems to be entering a resurgence due to tough economic times.

You can read Budget Travel's honest and entertaining account on the secrets of happy house swapping here, while the CNN interview (above), although nothing enlightening for experiences swappers, is still worth a watch.

In the meantime, watch out for more articles about this "brand new trend". The same description is often given to Couchsurfing.com, even though it's been going since 2004.

Credit crunched? Try a home exchange

In times of hefty morgage payments, rising fuel bills and general financial doom, the Daily Telegraph has offered a solution: make your home your passport. Home exchanges are nothing new, but, as the credit crunch takes hold, the idea of living abroad rent-free has never been more appealing.

Last month, the Observer also renewed interested in such schemes with an entertaining account of a London-NYC home swap.

Juliet Kinsman writes:

Our introduction to the immediate neighbours was a hello over the fence - followed by the offer of a paddling pool loan. To parents of an infant in the sweltering city heat, this ranks with a private hotel infinity pool. Imagine our delight when they reappeared brandishing guests passes to MoMA, a mountain of toys and fresh-from-the-oven New York Times recipe cookies. We hadn't been there 48 hours and they'd already made our holiday.

It was a lovely piece and a huge success in terms of online page views. Well, who wouldn't be tempted to click on headline reading 'New York for a month without spending a dime'? (Even if this did seem to overlook living expenses and flights.)

The Daily Mail's money section has also been enthusing about home-swapping this week, while the Guardian launched its own home-exchange service, powered by Home Base Holidays, in January.

In general, as listing sites get more sophisticated, it's becoming even easier to arrange a house exchange. Although that doesn't mean swappers aren't thinking ahead: according to the Travel the Home Exchange Way blog, exchange plans are already underway for the London 2012 Olympics. Time to get on your marks? Here are the Telegraph's home-exchange tips:

Register with an agency, which will cost from £40 to £250, to display your home details on a professional website and give you access to details about other homes Describe your home thoroughly with plenty of digital pictures, and remember that American and Australasian visitors love history To start making a swap, either wait for another client to contact you or identify a place and home you like, and email the owners Most agencies have checklists of details to discuss with your exchangee – cars, pets, wear-and-tear and breakages, insurance, and what’s out of bounds Some agencies have pro forma contracts which can be exchanged between the two sets of home owners

Further advice on house exchanges on the Which website.