Saturday, July 30 is International Day of Friendship - a day to acknowledge the bonds that bring us together. Here at HomeExchange, swapping homes often involves getting to know your exchange partner well, since they’ll be staying in your home. That makes the relationships in our community built on trust, honesty, and communication. As such, many members have made friends with their hosts or guests that have persisted despite distance, COVID lockdowns, and time constraints. To celebrate this day, we’ve gathered a few stories of friendships formed while exchanging homes.
Travel with HomeExchange"We are now the best of friends"
“We exchanged our home in the UK with Tom and Kim in California. We Facetime-d prior to the swap but never actually met. In 2018 they came back to the UK and spent three days at our house. Wow! What an absolutely lovely couple! We had the best time and were really sad when they had to leave us to travel on to Scotland. This year they were once again in England and so with the agreement of their exchangers, we went to spend some days with them in Weston-super-Mare. So many cultural things to teach them but top of the list was an introduction to fish and chips! Tom surpassed himself by ordering what looked like a small whale but managed to clear his plate. What a guy! We are now the best of friends and it can only be a matter of time before we are back in the USA and visiting them on their home turf. They have promised (threatened?) to introduce us to the delights of Pickleball” - David
"Just a good example of the friends we made on our exchanges."
“The hosts came to our place prior to us going there. We made great friends and when we arrived the not only invited us for meals, but we met their parents. They had an oyster farm and we ate so many of them that we couldn't believe it. After this they came to Argentina to visit us a few years after we met there. Just a good example of the friends we made on our exchanges.” - Pedro
Discover HomeExchange"Just because they felt at home..."
"Our new friends from South Africa brought us gifts from their home, we had them over for dinner and they are hoping we can come and stay with them some day.
Our Spanish friends fixed our outside light fixture, just because they felt at home...
Our exchange family from last summer made a great impression on our neighbors, all of their 5 kids and our neighbors’ three kids got along really nicely, although the kids couldn’t speak a common language." - Stéphane
"We hit it off so well"
“We hosted a wonderful family from Canada back in May and when I found out their plane was still a day after we got home, I invited them to stay one more night on hospitality. We hit it off so well that in a few weeks we are all going to France for 10 days together.” - Angela
"More than a transaction"
“Our exchange partners from last summer have become our good friends--the relationship is more than a transaction. They helped us have an amazing experience at their home, and we hope to do the same when they come to our home this year.” - Dave and Chauna
Hopefully, these stories of friendship were able to put a smile on your face. If you have a story to share about friends you met during an exchange, we’d love to hear from you!
