First time home swappers - Meet Margaret from South Africa

This week we’ve caught up with our first-time home swapper Margaret from South Africa. Margaret swaps her stunning home in Cape Town with her husband and two sons Leo and Joshua. Having lived in the UK for several years and regularly travelling with work, Margaret is used to jet-setting around the world. However, she is completely new to home swapping and only joined Love Home Swap this year. We wanted to speak about how she and her family came across home swapping and how it’s changed the way they travel.

Margaret and family

Where did you first hear about home swapping?

I became interested in home swapping earlier this year and joined January 2019. We researched home swapping and Love Home Swap came up as number one site for swapping globally.

What made you decide to choose Love Home Swap?

Having an entire home for the family is like having a home away from home. More fun and interesting than staying in a hotel. I stay in hotels a great deal for work, so really enjoy the home experience for a holiday.

Margaret's home in Cape Town, South Africa

Your first home swap was this year. How did you find your first home swapping experience?

The home we swapped with in London suited our family perfectly. Four storeys - so plenty of space for us and our boys! Beautiful, creative home in a great location in London - central to friends and places we wanted to explore. It was a wonderful experience and we enjoyed meeting the charming owners.

Lyndsay’s home in Tufnell Park, London  that Margaret and family home swapped for earlier this year

What did you get up to on your swap?

Saw friends and went to some fun London art exhibitions. Boys went to Camden market and explored some clubs.

Margaret and sons enjoying Masterpieces exhibition in Chelsea, London

Where would your dream home swap be?

We are interested in California and New York as well as Europe for 2020.

What advice would you give someone who is thinking about trying home swapping for their next holiday?

Swapping your home is a great way to travel. It is important to establish good communication with the other home owner – so that both you and they know what to expect! We also took special care of the home we stayed in and had it professionally cleaned before we left. They appreciated that.

How to get started home swapping

Interested in getting started home swapping? Build your own profile and start our free trial today. Or if you’d like to chat more, get in touch with our team – we’d love to help. Want to share your home swap story? Tag us using the hashtag #welovehomeswap on social for the chance to be featured on our blog