We have a wonderful large child-friendly family home with 5 bedrooms, sleeping 7 in the main bedrooms, with two double sofa beds in further rooms, and a recently-relandscaped private garden. We have recently installed double/triple glazing throughout the house, so it is warm in winter and cool in the heat of the summer.

Ground floor has a double reception room - living room part of the room has woodburning stove, large sofas (one of which is a sofa bed), and our home cinema system, with DVD projector and pull down screen. Dining room half of the room has upright piano, and large dining table normally set up for 8-10 people, but which can be extended to seat 16-18. We have hundreds of books and stacks of CDs/DVDs.

Corridor leads down a few steps to a large kitchen/conservatory/family room that has been entirely refurbished this summer. It has underfloor heating throughout the room, a family dining table (suitable for 4-6 people), a sofa and a play area for the children, and a large tropical freshwater aquarium. Double French doors lead out to the garden. The ground floor also has a toilet, and a door leading down to a large utility room in the basement, which houses our washing machine, tumble-dryer and large freezer.

The first floor has a children's bedroom with bunk beds (Bedroom 1), a family bathroom with bath and separate shower cubicle, a bedroom with double bed (Bedroom 2), a large room used as our study which has a double futon as well as computer equipment (Bedroom 3), and a small single bedroom (Bedroom 4).

The second floor has our master bedroom (Bedroom 5) running the length of the house, with king size bed, balcony with views of Alexandra Palace, and an ensuite bathroom.

There is a small front yard with a bicycle shed, and a large rear garden with patio, lawn and playhouse above a shed, with climbing equipment and fireman's pole (very popular with our kids and their friends).

Crouch End is a family-friendly North London "village" favoured by artists and media professionals, surrounded by loads of parks including Alexandra Palace (with ice rink and boating lake), Priory Park, Finsbury Park, Highgate Wood and Hampstead Heath. It houses an eclectic mix of boutique shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and art galleries, as well as sports and leisure facilities (including several swimming pools). There are several cinemas within walking distance (or alternatively a short bus ride away), and numerous theatre and arts venues close by.

Our house is within easy reach of the West End and central London. Finsbury Park underground station (Piccadilly or Victoria Lines) is a 5 minute bus ride away, and Highgate underground station (Northern Line) is a 10 minute walk away. There are also direct buses from Crouch End to central London.

We are tied to the British school holidays. Non-simultaneous exchanges possible.

We are looking for a house in the alps (France/ Switzerland/ Austria) or dolomites during August 2013.

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We are a family with two children aged 6 and 8. Kelyn (Mum) is a barrister, Pete (Dad) is a house-Dad and freelance IT consultant. We're keen on books, music and outdoor sports, especially cycling and rock-climbing/mountaineering. We often travel together with another family, so we are usually (though not always) looking for an exchange house that can accommodate 8-9 people. We also hope that our exchange partners will be happy to look after our tropical fish in our absence!

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