Join the HomeExchange UK and Ireland Open Homes Day!

Sunday 9^th June 2024

Drumroll please, because we’re delighted to announce that our first ever Open Homes Day is coming to the UK and Ireland on June 9^th 2024! For just two hours on the same day, we’re hoping that our members will meet with their friends, neighbors and other local travel-enthusiasts to share their insights on how other people can get involved in exchanging their homes too.

Intrigued by how you can get involved? Then read on!

What will happen on the Open Homes Day?

On June 9^th 2024, HomeExchangers who wish to take part will meet up with their guests for just 2 hours. These guests are people who are curious about the concept of home swapping – and they probably have a few doubts about it too! So anyone who is hosting will be willing to invite their friends, relatives, neighbors and local travel-enthusiasts to meet them, so that they can share their experiences of using our platform, and help their guests overcome any concerns they have about home swapping.

How you choose to host this event is entirely up to you! Simply pick the time that suits you best, and let us know where you'd like to meet your guests. This could be at home, in your garden, in the local park or even in a cafe! All we ask is that you spend just two hours sharing your HomeExchange experiences with your guests. We'd suggest running this event from 2pm to 4pm, but you can pick whatever hours work for you!

We will provide anyone who is hosting with lots of information and support, and we simply ask that you enjoy a chat with your guests, and answer their questions about home swapping. You might even want to demonstrate how the website (or app) works, or show some photos from your exchanges – it’s entirely up to you!

We will help you promote this event by sending an email to everyone in our database to tell them about the Open Homes Day, signposting them to an online map which will show them the approximate location of homes that are taking part. Every home will be allocated an individual reference number, so if people would like to come to your home, they will complete a registration form in which they will specify which home they would like to visit. You will then receive the names, email addresses and phone numbers of anyone who has signed up for your event, and they will receive an email a week before the event with the address of your event, and your contact info.

We will also promote the Open Homes Day via the media, and if you would like to proactively share news about your event (such as through your WhatsApp groups, or displaying posters in your local supermarket or library) then that would be even better!    

How you can volunteer to host an Open Homes Day event

• If you would like to host an Open Homes Day event, you will need to complete this form by May 6th 2024. You’ll find a registration button below too.
• Once you’ve submitted this form, we’ll assume that you’re happy to host guests on June 9^th 2024, possibly from 2pm until 4pm (but pick the time slot that works for you), so put the date in your diary!
• Your home will then be added to our interactive map which will show where all participating homes are (we'll create this map once our members have started signing up for the event). This won’t be a precise location – your home address will only be emailed to people who have registered to attend your event (sign-up forms will be made available soon), and we will ensure you also have their names and email addresses, so that you can contact them in advance if you’d like to. This also means that you will know precisely how many guests will be coming to your house on the day. In other countries where we have trialled this scheme (such as the Netherlands and Germany) each home had around 4-5 guests, so you won’t be overwhelmed!
• For any members who agree to host guests, we can offer the following incentives:
• 300 GuestPoints for hosting. You will receive this regardless of whether or not anyone registers to attend your event. The 300 GP for hosting will be added to your account in the month after the event (by 9th July 2024).
• You will also receive 500 GuestPoints for each attendee who pays for their subscription using your ‘Refer your friends’ code. This offer is valid between June 9th and July 9th 2024. In this case, the first 250 GP will be added to your account when your friend activates their membership, and the remaining 250 GP will be added in the week of July 23rd if they still have an active subscription.

Why is HomeExchange arranging an Open Homes Day?

1- Because HomeExchange is local. When we've organized physical events in the past, we've always had to decide which location we would visit. So we have hosted events in London, Barcelona, Paris and so on – but that has always left us wishing we could reach more places, and in particular, locations that may not be so well-known, but where many of our members reside. Which is why we came up with the idea of an Open Homes Day.

2- Because we want to get in touch with people who have similar values. We often ask ourselves how we can make more people aware of this fantastic way of traveling – because with more members joining our community, we can all benefit from more travel opportunities! We know that our greatest advocates are our loyal members, and there is no one better than them to share their anecdotes, and explain the values of HomeExchange. We're therefore hoping that likeminded travel-lovers will be able to find out more about the first-hand experiences of our members, and discover what home exchanging is all about.

 3- Because HomeExchange is a community of likeminded people. HomeExchange members best reflect the values that home exchanging represents. Our members put trust in each other, and they go out of their way to ensure that their guests enjoy the most amazing holidays in their homes. And the very concept of an ‘Open Homes’ event is a great way of summing up these values. By participating in an Open Homes Day event, our members are demonstrating the trust, hospitality and respect that underpins every successful home exchange.

Open Homes Day in other countries

This is the first time we have tried an event like this in the UK and Ireland, but Open Homes Days have already been held in other countries such as Germany and the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, 250 houses took part, while in Germany 175 houses welcomed guests. Italy and Spain are currently planning similar events for this year, and in Spain they already have more than 850 homes taking part! Across all countries that have taken part, both hosts and attendees have all agreed that they enjoyed a great afternoon talking about travel and home swaps with likeminded people.

 Open Homes Day in Germany.

Over to you!

Would you like to participate in the first ever UK and Ireland HomeExchange Open Homes Day? We're determined to spread the word about HomeExchange as being the best way to travel, so we'd love to see Open Homes Day events all over the UK and Ireland! Just fill in the form below, then start planning your own amazing event (and don't worry, we'll be there every step of the way to provide you with support, info and plenty of ideas)...