HomeExchange community: Meet our ambassadors

Our ambassadors are our spokespeople out in the community. HomeExchange Ambassadors are avid home exchangers who help spread the word and bring the community to life.

They help support the team on many varying levels. From doing interviews with journalists, helping to manage our Facebook groups and testing product features before they are released, to helping members navigate the website with the online chat— they are truly invaluable! We are so thankful every day for all that they help us with, so we wanted to shine the spotlight on them and help members get to know them.

Meet Rita from Colorado

Rita has been home exchanging since 2014 and helps us with everything from planning events to the support chat.

Her favorite exchange?

"Building friendships is an added plus with most of them. I think one of the most memorable experiences has been going on an exchange to Lexington, Kentucky. This is not on most people's typical list of vacation spots but the exchange was among the best because of the quality of the home, the exceptional hosting ability of the owners, and the fact that we learned so many things going to a place we had not thought of - horse breeding, horse racing, and bourbon! It has expanded our acceptance of considering exchanges not on our typical must do travel list because we discovered we can learn a lot about a place and have a ton of fun going off the typical beaten travel path."

Meet Jerri from California

Jerri started home exchanging right after an early retirement and has since lost count of how many exchanges she's done! Her travel plans for 2021 are limited to domestic travel in USA but several are in the works, as she will be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 shortly.

Her favorite exchange?

"Every memory is fantastic! Each exchange has had its highlights.  Once I came home to find an adorable ceramic statue of a Siamese cat! I have a Siamese and the cat went on the exchange with me. It was such a thoughtful "thank you" gift from the lovely woman who stayed in my home."

Meet David from Rhode Island

David has been exchanging his home in Newport, Rhode Island for more than a decade. He loves HomeExchange because "It allows us to take longer vacations than we would otherwise be able to afford. More importantly, it lets us have a more authentic, hands-on experience in the places that we visit. Finally, we have visited places we had never even considered (or heard of!)."

His favorite exchange?

"Too many to narrow it down! Hiking in the Italian Alps and Canadian Rockies? Staying in the heart of amazing cities like Copenhaven (a block from Tivoli Gardens), Venice (on a canal), or New York (Greenwich Village)? Warm Christmas holidays in Florida (twice!) or Southern California (Catalina Island)? But also getting to know our exchange partners who in many cases we still talk about like friends (even some who we never actually met in person)."

Meet Faye from Virginia

Faye and her family joined HomeExchange in 2006 after hearing about home exchanging on the Today Show. As an ambassador, she volunteered to be interviewed by the press about this way of traveling.

Her favorite thing about HomeExchange?

"In addition to visiting new places (and going back to some old favorites) the best thing about home exchanging is definitely getting to know our exchange partners which has happened on the majority of our exchanges. We have kept in touch over the years. One French family has come back twice to visit us and once they traveled several hours to see us while we were on an exchange in another region in France. Last year our first exchange partners, a charming Italian couple, drove to Switzerland to spend a weekend with us at our Lugano exchange (with permission of the Swiss couple, of course)."

Meet Della from California

Della started home exchanging after seeing the movie "The Holiday" and has since traveled all over the world, including Iceland, Costa Rica, and Denmark. Della and her husband homeschool their children, so they have added flexibility.

Her favorite exchange?

"All of our travel memories are wrapped in HomeExchange. I don't think I can separate the two but I'll try: beachfront in Costa Rica with monkeys throwing mangos at us, walking to the cheese shop and then the meat shop and then the veggie shop in Amersfoort, standing under the most magnificent waterfall in Iceland, using guest points to stay out side of Byron Bay in Australia in the most magnificent house walking distance to the beach, arriving to every home with some sort of gift, wine, cheese, dinner etc. , meeting the fellow exchangers in the airport or at a hotel and sharing drinks, and the list goes on."

Meet Misty from Vancouver

As a HomeExchange ambassador, Misty pitches in with answering questions on the support chat and helps us develop our website. She said HomeExchanging is perfect for families with children, because guests enjoy the comforts of home like a kitchen and washing machine, and it makes family travel affordable.

Her favorite thing about HomeExchange?

"I love the feeling of possibility. I really feel like the world has been opened up for us and that we can travel anywhere in the world we like. The feeling of security and comfort that comes with "meeting" somebody from another location and being introduced to their culture is something that we couldn't get any other way."

Meet Bonnie from Australia

Bonnie and her husband began home exchanging in 2005, "after realising that our travel aspirations and budget needed some mediation!" When they retired a few years later, they chose their retirement location based on what would be attractive to other home exchangers so they could travel as much as possible!

Her favorite thing about HomeExchange?

"The concept of using “points” provides a much more flexible exchange experience. There are some locations on our “bucket list” where we would have had no hope of achieving a traditional exchange. Now, by using GuestPoints, we find the opportunities are there for us to realise our dreams.  The combination of the website and app provide easy access to homes worldwide, available for exchange or points. We will always maintain the original spirit of sharing and caring, and look forward to many exchanges to come."

Meet Wendy from France

She’s been exchanging for more than three years.
What she helps us with: our online chat and participating in interviews

Her favorite exchange?
“There are so many to choose from, but maybe the exchange in Brittany for the 11th birthday of my youngest son: the house near the sea with a swimming pool and jacuzzi was everything my son dreamed of. .A TV crew was even there to immortalize the event, when with sparkling eyes he told me, “ It’s the most beautiful birthday of my life!”  I was overjoyed!”

Meet Corinne from France

She’s been exchanging for 9 years.
What she helps us with: our online chat and connects members looking for exchanges, to find their way around the site and answer other questions!

What she loves most about home exchanging?
“Total trust and making new friends.”

Meet Jean-Philippe from France

He’s been exchanging for more than 9 years.
What he helps us with: our online chat

His favorite exchange?
“It's hard to say as there were very positive things for each exchange.

Sometimes it's a situation out of the ordinary, an impression of being at the end of the world but with an extraordinary view.
Sometimes it is the action of taking care of chickens, goats, donkeys or  hamsters...
Sometimes it's meeting extraordinary people, who take care of you and do everything to make sure you have a good time, to whom we have already returned the favor.
Sometimes it is the unusual places that can make you dream.

In any case, they are always unique, enriching and exotic experiences.”

Meet Ana from France

She’s been exchanging for 7 years.
What she helps us with: our online chat, product-testing and events

What she loves about home exchanging?
“The meeting of new people, the sharing, the friendliness, being able to allow families to visit Paris at a lower cost, and discovering other ways of living…”

Meet Etienne from France

He’s been exchanging for more than 10 years.
What he helps us with: our online chat, our HomeExchangers in English and All About HomeExchange Facebook groups, organizing meetups, product-testing, interviews and events

His plans for 2021?
“We’ve done 3 exchanges since the pandemic started in France. This year, we’ll also try to do some exchanges in spring and in summer if the situation allows. The aspect of new sanitary requirements are easy to oblige if you just give the house a quick wipe down upon arrival. Then you have your own safe, clean, private space!"

Meet Marie-Anne from France

She’s been exchanging for more than 7 years.
What she helps us with: our online chat

What she loves about home exchanging?
“We love to find out how the families we exchange with live. We come back from each exchange with new ideas to improve our daily lives. It's very rewarding! Whether we exchange at the end of the world or one hour from home, the exchange allows a sharing of cultures.”

Meet Smets from Belgium

She’s been exchanging for more than 12 years.
What she helps us with: our online chat

Her plans for 2021?
“Since last summer, we have been going on short, last-minute stays within our own country. In September, we were able to enjoy the late summer on the North Sea.Then in December, before the exams of our young college bound kids, we explored and discovered the unusual landscape of the port of Antwerp and the ghost village of Doel between the nuclear power station and the windmills. I have just finalized an exchange in Ghent for next weekend, and I am contacting potential exchange partners for the Carnival Holidays. Everything is moving at a faster pace than ever before to finalize last minute exchanges, always according to the changing sanitary rules, of course.”

Meet Joanna from France

She’s been exchanging for more than 2 years.
What she helps us with: our HomeExchangers en Francais Facebook group (open only to those with an active membership)

Her favorite exchange?
“We had a lot of exchanges (14 I think) during our road trip in September 2019, and on the first day, we met Carmen, who had offered to welcome us in hospitality in her apartment in Cahors. We spent an incredible evening there. When we arrived, she told us, "I saw that you like mojitos. I love them, but I don't know how to make them so I bought the right stuff so you can make me some". It was so much fun! In the end we had no mint but syrup, no lemon but pulco. We laughed a lot as we sipped our "mojitos"!

Recently, we needed someone to take care of our cats, so we invited Carmen, who lives in an apartment and can't have them anymore, but who told us she was in love with them, take on their care.”

Meet Florent from France

He’s been exchanging for 10 years.
What he helps us with: our HomeExchangers en Francais Facebook group (open only to those with an active membership), TV reports, promotional videos, meetups, live sessions

His plans for 2021?
“In the end, only one exchange was made in 2020, of two weeks in the summer. For this year an exchange is planned in April in Spain if conditions allow it. For this summer we are open, we will move forward, and we will adapt, all according to the proposals we receive. We will stay in France, in any case, for many reasons, not just health requirements!”

Meet Nathalie from France

She’s been exchanging for more than 5 years.
What she helps us with: our online chat, interviews, sharing her testimonials and product-testing.

Her plans for 2021?
“I have a lot of projects, covid or not, but am being reasonable and targeting only France for the moment. This avoids disappointment if I had to cancel. I have two exchanges coming up, one with a colleague ambassador and a second one in Vendee (as a gift to share with my parents). I trust HomeExchange because the site has proven itself for a long time, and after 45 exchanges I have never been disappointed. Simple, reliable and reassuring. Good assistance in case of problems.”

Meet Elisabeth from Spain

She’s been exchanging for 11 years.
What she helps us with: interviews, participating in videos, writing about us on her blog, sharing her testimonials

Her plans for 2021?
“We did more than 20 exchanges in 2020. We have plans to travel this coming summer and some weekend and long weekend exchanges starting in June. We trust HomeExchange because it gives us more security to go to the home of someone who takes better care of their space than in a hotel does.”

Meet Miguel from Spain

He’s been exchanging for more than 5 years.
What he helps us with: our online chat, our HomeExchangers en Espanol Facebook group, sharing his testimonials

What he loves about home exchanging?
“What I value most is the humanity involved in the whole process. The welcome and the feeling of being embraced as a family member, where I can recommend and receive recommendations that are not included in the typical guidebooks. There is mutual trust between host and guest.”

Meet Ari from Spain

She’s been exchanging for 4 years.
What she helps us with: our online chat and sharing feedback and opinions

What she loves about home exchanging?
“The philosophy is based on respect for the space of others without any economic exchange per month. The possibility of living unique experiences without feeling like a tourist. Being able to meet fantastic people from the place you want to know and discover…”

Meet Beatriz from Spain

She’s been exchanging for a year.
What she helps us with: interviews, our online chat, sharing her testimonials

Her favorite exchange?
Two months after finalizing their exchange for summer 2020, when her exchange partner from Marseille, France, visited Madrid (where Beatriz lives) to visit a friend in December 2019, they met for the first time. On top of a splendid meeting, her exchange partner had brought along with her a nice guidebook with great photos about Marseille so that we could start planning for their trip. Unfortunately their plans changed with the pandemic and they were not able to do the exchange during that summer but they continue to keep in constant contact, sending pictures to each other, etc.

“With HE you not only travel and get to know places and their people and customs; you also make friends with people you would never have imagined  in different parts of the world, and that is something magical…”

Meet Rubén & Lucy

They’ve been exchanging for 4 years.
What they help us with: interviews and sharing their testimonials

What they love about home exchanging?
“The feeling of still being at home while traveling.”

Interested in becoming an ambassador like them?

Want to connect with more members in the community to share your stories and experiences, or to ask for opinions and advice? Join our Facebook groups! Discover them all here.