Travelling in Europe is not cheap. I know. A few years ago, we spent three months backpacking around the continent with our two teenage kids as part of our year-long escaping from normal life world adventure.
Arriving in Europe after being in Asia was a bit of a shocker, especially on the old budget.
That’s why I’m so glad we discovered TrustedHousesiiters and were able to travel for free by housesitting.
Not only did house and pet sitting save us $$$’s, but the kids got to relax and slow down (and, more importantly,) we got to drink delicious wine from the terraces of beautiful properties.
Win, win.
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Housesitting In Europe. Why you will LOVE it!
You’ll Save Money
Europe is mega expensive.
And I’m no stranger to expensive travel. Before flying to Europe, we spent three weeks in Japan, which is supposedly known for its high price tag — all the same, when we got to Europe, we were frightened half to death by how quickly our money disappeared.
Want to try Housesitting? Use This Link For Housesitting Discount:
Sign up to Trusted Housesitters, and you can use my exclusive discount code to save yourself 25% by Clicking here.
Our latest Housesit in the Loire Valley region of France was attached to a Chateau!
Experience a Home Away From Home (Albeit a Posher One)
Housesitting means you can unpack your case and move in for a few weeks.
Personally, I wouldn’t bother taking a housesit unless it was two weeks or more. We did a house sit in London for five days, and by the time we got settled and got to know the dog, it was time to go. But, hey… you may think differently.
While there are certainly many pros and cons to housesitting, it is hard to ignore that (if you choose carefully) you will land yourself a luxury house in one of the world’s most beautiful destinations you could never otherwise afford to stay in.
I don’t know about your financial situation, but at the moment, ours would not stretch to a five-bedroom farmhouse in France.
House-sitting allowed us to pretend we were rich for a few months!
Honestly, I can’t understand why more people don’t do this.
Tell me about Housesitting
Housesitting is VERY straightforward. You can read my TrustedHousesiiters review for more info, but for now, here’s a quick sum-up:
You sign up to TrustedHousesitters (browsing is free).
You decide to join (don’t forget to use your 25% discount).
You create a profile, and then twice a day, you are sent emails (such as the screenshot from my phone below) listing available properties in the counties of your choice, including Italy! (Who doesn’t love Italy?!)
I am including a couple of screenshots of the kind of houses that are on offer if you want to travel to Italy!⬇️
Here is a screenshot of the regular emails I receive letting me know of housesits in Italy.
You Get to Try Different Experiences
Every house sit we did in Europe with the kids was remote, meaning we got to explore the countryside.
For us, because we were housesitting with kids, this was ideal—loads of space to walk the dogs and lots of fresh air.
My teenagers were reluctant to go and experience any of this fresh air, but they were forced up and out of bed at 8 am so that they could at least say they had seen an early sunrise in the French countryside.
We are excellent parents in that way.
I can’t think of a better way to relax than to spend time in the countryside with animals while exploring parts of Europe that you might not otherwise get to see.
Housesitting. Why You Need To Do It (Seriously!)
We started housesitting as a family a year ago when we quickly realised that we needed to find a way to pay for our travels.
Without some free accommodation, our budget to travel the world would be shredded, and we would probably be hitching a ride back home to New Zealand within six months.
That’s when we started Housesitting.
House sitting isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. I have met plenty of travellers who say they can’t think of anything worse than looking after someone else’s home and pets, but I disagree. Strongly.
For the sake of being careful with the china teacups and making sure the house is cleaned thoroughly at the end of the stay, you get to save yourself an absolute fortune by house-sitting in some of the world’s most expensive and unique destinations – especially in pricey places like Europe.
Want to try Housesitting? Use This Link For Housesitting Discount:
Sign up to Trusted Housesitters and use my exclusive discount code to save yourself 25% by Clicking here.
Experience European Cities For FREE By Housesitting
Housesits come up all over the world, but if you are particularly interested in cities and you are longing to see Europe with your kids then house-sitting is the thing for you.
Paris, Rome, Venice, Athens, Dublin, Berlin, London and loads more – there are hundreds of gorgeous housesits in every one of these cities advertised every month, just waiting for people like you.
How Much Money Can You Save On Accommodation By Housesitting?
As well as New Zealand (our home country), we have had housesitting opportunities in Italy, Paris, Bath and Ireland.
Some were better than others, and all, except London, were for a minimum of three weeks.
The creme de la creme was last summer when my husband and I house sat for a little pet cat in a villa overlooking the Mediterranean in Porto San Stefano in Tuscany, Italy for six weeks!!
When you combine those housesitting experiences, we probably saved over $30,000 on accommodation.
I’ll say that again. $30,000 saving!!
I know. That’s a lot of money to save when you are going on vacation, isn’t it?
But. Before you run and grab your passport and international travel checklist, first things first.
What is house and pet sitting, and how does it all work?
The places that you get to stay in while house-sitting will blow you away. House sitting for three weeks in the French Alps.
How To Become A Housesitter. The Basics.
There are many housesitting websites on the world wide web, but we found the best one out there to be Trusted Housesitters.
Their website interface is straightforward to use, especially for technophobes like me, you can upload videos onto your profile (big help – more on that later), and everything just seems to work.
Pretty pictures, lots of information, and like I said, very easy to use.
The customer service is excellent and very accessible, and they have a live chat along with a free 24/7 vet helpline. Perfect if you need that extra reassurance when you are dog or cat sitting.
I’m going to use Trusted Housesitters as an example. Yes, I am an affiliate for them, but they are the house-sitting company we use, and I love them.
They have saved us an absolute fortune and provided us with experiences that we would never have otherwise had the chance to have.
For Pinterest!⇓
How Housesitting Works.
- You are a traveller who wishes to visit a city or country.
- You like animals.
- You sign up for the website Trusted Housesitters. This will cost you approx $140 a year. Think about that for a minute. You will make that fee back on your first night’s free accommodation. Even better than that you can use my exclusive discount code to save yourself 20% by Clicking here.
- You are a responsible human being who can be trusted. Trusted Housesitters. Get it?!
- You make a profile. On this profile, you add lots of photos and as much information about yourself as possible. Remember, people are trusting you with their home and pets; they will expect more than a few lines saying ‘we are nice’.
- You can add a video to your profile. More on this later.
- You are sent emails every day with the latest international housesitting opportunities. You start searching.
- You find you’re perfect housesit. It is in Rome, and you’ve always wanted to go to Rome. Lots of nice Italians and cheese.
- You apply by way of email through the site. (More on this later)
- The homeowner falls in love with your profile because you have listened to my advice and your profile beats everyone else’s hands down.
- The host contacts you and perhaps arranges a Zoom call. You have a chat, and before you know it: Mamma Mia! You’re going to Europe to housesit in Rome for two weeks!
Is there anything more gorgeous than European architecture? And you get to experience it for free!
How To Housesit Like A Pro. Make Sure Your Profile Rocks!
This is one of the reasons I preferred Trusted Housesitters to the other housesitting websites. You can do so much with your profile.
Your profile is everything on any housesitting website; it’s your one chance to shine.
Make sure you cram it with as much information as possible. As well as putting lots of lovely photos up of yourself (preferably with animals), make sure you write your description with personality – meaning let your voice come through.
You are far more likely to appeal to a homeowner if they can tell that you are a real person and not just someone with a pocket thesaurus.
Make a Video!
This is what we did, and I can guarantee that this is what got us so many housesitting gigs.
I simply stood in front of my husband’s phone and walked around our home (which I had spent five hours tidying beforehand) while he filmed me showing the viewer where we lived and that we were a genuine, friendly family.
I got the kids to talk to the camera while they were with our pets (we own a dog, four cats and five sheep) so that people could see we were animal lovers.
It sounds like a big effort, but honestly, it’s worth it. And it’s fun to make the video!!
Our video was about five minutes long but remember, it doesn’t have to be anything flash, just as long as it gives the potential house owner a chance to see who you are and what you are about.
I guarantee that by going this extra mile, you will have more chances of getting the housesit that you want.
Housesitting in France. We were there for Bastille day. Can you imagine what that would have cost us in a hotel?!
Want to try Housesitting? Use This Link For Housesitting Discount:
Sign up to Trusted Housesitters and use my exclusive discount code to save yourself 20% by Clicking here.
Our Experience Of Housesitting in Europe
I thought I’d share with you the fabulous things we got to do as a family all because of Housesitting!
- Experienced the French winning the world cup from a farmhouse in the countryside.
- Rode horses through the Irish countryside and played at being the lady of the manor for three weeks.
- Sipped Italian wine from our very own vineyard in a small chateau in Soave.
- Visited our old hometown of Bath in the UK, reminded ourselves of why we emigrated to New Zealand ten years ago and got to show the kids around the Roman baths for free as the owner left her utility bill for us to pretend we were local.
- Got to bathe an old English Sheepdog in his very own doggy shower!
Want to know more about HOUSESITTING?
Listen to the PODCAST that my husband and I made telling you ALL about HOUSESITTING and how we are able to stay in Tuscany for six weeks for FREE!
Housesitting With Kids
If you are travelling with kids, you must realise that not all housesitters will want to book you.
I applied for a fabulous apartment overlooking the Eiffel Tower in Paris. I could tell the guy was super keen to let me come, and I worked hard at contacting him and reassuring him that my teenagers weren’t hooligans, but in the end, we didn’t get it.
And I understand that.
I don’t know how I’d feel if I owned a million-dollar penthouse suite and four backpackers turned up.
Never mind, we got another apartment and so we still got to see the Eiffel Tower!
Housesitting in France. because of the money we saved on accommodation, we could afford to do fancy things in Paris. Like, walk all the way to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Hurray!
Want to try Housesitting? Use This Link For Housesitting Discount:
Sign up to Trusted Housesitters and use my exclusive discount code to save yourself 25% by Clicking here.
Know that housesitting with kids can work in your favour.
If the housesitting host that you are looking at has kids of their own, then they will often prefer to have a family staying in the house especially if they have animals that are used to having kids around.
I honestly didn’t expect to get as many housesitting opportunities as we did and I think a lot of this came down to the fact that the people we housesat for had kids of their own.
There aren’t that many families doing housesitting so you will be surprised at the choice.
Related posts that you will enjoy!
Travelling with kids. How to stay sane before wine o’clock
Returning home after a year of travel. What I never expected
8 Travel tips that you can safely ignore ’cause they are crap
Couchsurfing with kids. The good, the bad and the bucket
Turn your life around in 2019 with these 5 quick habits
The Pros of Housesitting
As you can tell, I am a massive fan of housesitting. Here are some reasons why I think you should be too.
The Cost Of Paying For Accommodation When You Travel
Nothing. You pay nothing to the owner.
It’s free. There’s your first clue.
Look after gorgeous pets!
You get to look after pets.
Pets can be a pro or a con depending on which way you look at it. We have a dog and four cats, and after being away from them for months, we were craving some animal company. Kids just don’t love you the same.
If you are an animal lover like me, you will see this as a massive plus.
Housesitting Perks
The housesitting host often leaves a vehicle for you to drive.
Not always the case but two of our hosts did, and it saved us even more money on car hire.
Big win.
Meeting Likeminded Travellers
You get to meet different people.
It is customary to arrive at your housesitting job at least a day before the owner leaves, this way you get to meet them and their animals, learn where the hoover lives and what day to put the rubbish out.
If you’re lucky, as was the case for us in Ireland, you will be shown where the stables are so you can tack up and ride the horses every morning!
You do feel as though you are living with the locals when you housesit. It’s nothing like a hotel.
You get to do the things that you would do at home, meet the neighbours, collect the milk off the doorstep experiment with your cooking skills in a nice new kitchen.
fancy housesitting in Ireland?
Like This Post? Save It To Pinterest! ⇓
The Cons of Housesitting.
As I said, I’m a fan, but there are a few niggles that you have to deal with, and there are times when housesitting sucks.
So. Before you sign up skip off to the French Riviera, remember…
Downsides to Housesitting: Cleaning
You have to clean the place before you leave, unlike a hotel where you can get up in the morning with nothing to worry about but what eggs you should have for breakfast.
I hate cleaning, and I especially hate it if I know the owner of the house is coming home to inspect the place, so this is a con I suppose.
Being Careful
You have to be super careful. People are trusting you with their possessions. Thankfully, after housesitting in Europe for three months, the only thing we broke was an outside table and a candlestick. The owners were lovely about both, but you must be aware and try not to be cack-handed when setting the table for dinner.
You are looking after pets.
House-sitting isn’t just about looking after nice properties in Europe, it’s also a job that requires you look after animals.
Sometimes you will get lucky. You will land yourself a chateau in the Swiss Alps with only a goldfish to feed. Or a feral cat. But mostly you will have pets to look after.
If you are a pet lover, then this won’t be a problem, but you do have to consider that the dogs might need to go out for a walk before you set off to go sightseeing in Florence for the day.
You may have to cut the grass. We did this in France, although to be fair we made our teenage son do it. We are nice like that. Seriously, if you don’t like gardening, you will have to remember to mention this when you apply. Or hire my teenage boy.
Are you a traveller but are struggling to make that move to quit the 9 to 5 regular life and get out there and do it? Come and join me and I’ll talk you through it!
I will send you a newsletter when I remember, and we can grow old together.
What do you think?
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That Sums up Housesitting and this review of Trusted Housesitters!
In my opinion, there is no better way to get to spend time in a country for free than to house sit.
If you are thinking of ways to save money, experience living in fabulous places for free and have the adventure of a lifetime, then get your name on the Trusted Housesitters website. We are big fans of Europe, and we will be housesitting every time we go over to visit.
And don’t forget – Sign up to Trusted Housesitters and use my exclusive discount code to save yourself 25% by Clicking here. It doesn’t get better than that!
Let me know how you go and whether you found this article helpful. What are your thoughts on housesitting? Have you ever done housesitting in Europe? What are your biggest fears or concerns? Leave me a comment and let’s chat!
Hello! My name is Julie and I’m getting married in a year and we are planning a honeymoon to Ireland. Looking to save money and house sit, would like more information.
Hi Julie, congrats! If you would like to housesit then I recommend the trusted housesit site as I mentioned in the post. There are lots of Ireland sits come up every day. Make sure you make a fabulous profile – good luck!
Hello! Im turning 25 next year and want to spend a month in Europe. It would me and my best friend. We don’t have any children and we do love animals. Would this site be for us as well?
Darleny, this site would be PERFECT for you! Just make sure you include a fabulous profile with good clear pictures of you both (and preferably a video – doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just do it on your phone). Housesitting is competitive so you need to beat the competition with your profile! Good luck 🙂
Loved this little book. My sister any I will be going to Italy in 2020, Sep. wondering if you wil be doing a trip then? We would love to go with someone experienced and just a few women.
Ohhh… now you’ve got me thinking! I am currently creating an online course on budget travel – everything that enables families (or friends/couples) to reconnect through travel without having to spend the college fund or give up your job…We travelled for a year and it cost us half of what we would spend in New Zealand. After I have finished my course I may look into doing personal travel guide tours. Have you ever been with a travel guide? I’d be interested to know what your experience was like 🙂
If you are house sitting and they have pets how do you get to go out and explore the area for a day or more?
Hi Robin, talk to the owners beforehand.They will let you know if the dog is “needy” in which case you don’t do it. But if you looking after a dog for example and are staying local you can take the dog with you (we did that in Lyon) or, depending on the breed, most dogs require a good walk early in the morning and then a short walk before bed which gives you a whole day to explore further afield.
Some places only want you to look after their house or maybe feed the fish (although I would imagine these are harder to find) When we were in Napier in New Zealand we were looking after a schnauzer – we went all over with him! He loved being in the car and on the lead. Just make it clear with the house owners what is expected of you 🙂 Good luck!
We’re getting ready to leave for a family gap year (July!) and I’m wondering if it’s worth looking into housesitting if we have FOUR kids (17, 15, 10, 6) and no pets to use in photo ops. We do like animals and I worked in a vet clinic before I married 100 years ago so I’m not completely idiotic when it comes to pets.
I’ve sent you an email Kim! yes! It’s definitely worth it. PS: Only 100 years ago??? 🤣
I loved your article on travel and house sitting l recently turned 60, my husband is 5 years older and still working. I love travelling and all animals. I would be the major pet caregiver although he is not adverse to pets, he does has some allergies to ‘dirty’ cats. I think house sitting is an awesome way of traveling. I look forward to our next trip. Thank you for your great advice.
It is the BEST Leora! I know that things have been very tough with travel these past few months but hopefully, it won’t be long before travel is possible again. We are now at Level 2 in New Zealand meaning that we can once again travel around the country Soooo…I have just signed up for a weekend cottage by the sea for me and my daughter to get away for a weekend and look after 4 lovely cats. I couldn’t afford to do that without housesitting so I am a huge fan. 🙂 Thanks for your lovely comment and let me know where you and the hubby take your first trip!
This is something I am considering after I “retire” at 55 in two years. I hope things will have settled down by then. One of the questions/concerns I have about this is how to get from one house sit to the next, especially if, like you said, many times they are remote. I can’t imagine renting a car for months or a year, but also not sure I would want to purchase a car over there.
Oh gosh! Retiring at 55?! Don’t tell my husband that – he is 57 and I’m always on at him that he has at least another twenty years to go?!! haha!
In answer to your question Tracey, it depends. Some housesitters (like our housesit in Ireland) provide a car. So then you would get the train or bus to the nearest big town and either ask the owners if they could pick you up or else get a taxi.
If a car isn’t available and the Housesit is remote then you can either stay local and walk or you could hire a car for a few days to sight see.
To get from one housesit to another is simply a case of taking public transport or hiring a car for a couple of days and then asking the owners if they would mind driving you to the car rental drop off so you can return the car (that would be for more longterm housesits). Every single host that we have ever stayed with would say yes to this request (as long as you have asked them beforehand so that they can allow extra time etc).
When you read the advert the owners will always say whether or not a car is available so you will know in advance. Other than that, perhaps look for housesits in towns or cities and use public transport? Hope this helps! Liz
Hello, I loved your article. I’ve never heard of “ house sitting abroad. I love to travel. I’m a single 57 year old RN and I’ve traveled to Europe every year for the past 6 years (except this year due to Covid ) and would be interested in house sitting. Do you feel it’s safe for a single women? I would be interested in any advice you have . Thanks for your time .
Hi Gloria,
Thank you for your message.
Absolutely I would recommend housesitting for a single woman – if fact, lots of the listings actually state that they would prefer a single person or a couple (that way they are getting sensible people who aren’t going to let their kids run wild and trash the house or have parties!)
Because housesitting is a paid site (as in, the owner and the sitter pays a subscription to be on there) you are not going to get dodgy people. Every single house we have ever sat for has been gorgeous and cared for.
Being the age you are (beautiful and in your prime) you are going to have an advantage when it comes to finding sits.
I can see that you have read the post so I will try not to repeat myself but my advice to you would be to start by getting a brilliant profile together. Be as real as possible, include lots of photos (and if you can manage it a video).
Maybe include photos of your own home (people love to see this) but don’t worry if you can’t. References are huge – because you haven’t done any housesitting before think of any friends or relatives that have had you look after their homes or pets and be or bribe them to write you a review!
You will NOT regret joining Housesitters Gloria they are the best thing that has ever happened to us where travel is concerned – here is the link in case you don’t have it!
Hope this helps – good luck!
Liz
Hi there,
Loved your article.
I am seriously contemplating a long term Europe trip (6 months?) when I retire – unfortunately a few years away. Housesitting seems like THE best way to travel.
Do you know anyone who lives like this and what would they do in between sits for accomm/transport?
Thanks
Thanks Paul,
so glad that you liked the post. In answer to your question I know LOADS of people who do this fulltime, and I’m like you, when we retire (which at this rate will probably be never) 🤣 we will be housesitting full time too. The in-between time is literally only a few weeks, in which people will either stay with friends or rent an Airbnb for a few weeks (usually somewhere cheap).
For the transport option why not check out one of the many car rental places that offer relocation or drive away? (we did this in the UK) That would be the perfect option!
Hope this helps! Good luck with the retirement plan
Liz
Hi there
I am looking to go to Ireland next year to visit a friend and then travel around Europe for 2-3 months and as you say, housesitting would be the way to see new places and and save money at the same time.
Just wondering – how did you get on with when housesitting in Italy and other countries where English is not their first language, or do you speak other languages. And is this a problem when applying for housesitting jobs in non English speaking countries. Look forward to your reply 🙂
Hi Tania,
Thank you for reading and for reaching out to me! What an exciting trip you have planned!
In our experience, the people who live in non-English speaking countries are usually ex-pats or else speak excellent English. To give you an example, we have just done two housesits in France. One lady was English and the other guy was French but had lived in the US for ten years.
We are about to take a housesit in Tuscany for 6 weeks (yay!). The owners are Americans who have lived in Italy for the last twenty years.
Hope this helps and eases your worries Tania!
Have fun and let me know if you have any more questions 🙂
Liz
I just stumbled across your page via Pinterest. I have never heard of this Housesitting and I am intrigued. I do not get to travel as much as I want to due to my job and cost of things. This would be a great way to save money! It would change the way I travel but I think I could get used to it for the savings it would provide. I would love to quit my job and just house sit for people! ha! what a dream that would be!
Hi Emily, thank you so much for reading and for taking the time to say hi! I hope that you get to try H/S, it really is an amazing way to see the world. Please email me if you would like any more info – remember Emily, where there is a will there is a way!!
Happy travels!
Liz
YAHOO!! I stumbled upon your Pinterest article & this fit the bill for my family. We used your discount, did the background check & got our first sit within a couple weeks of creating our profile. We’re staying with a lovely dog & cat in SW United States for Christmas. The home owner is using the app during her get away to care for another “Trusted Housesitters” pet in SOCAL.
My husband & I travel for work many months at a time but miss the companionship of animals. This app allows us to enjoy time with furry babies & knowing we’re help out a pet parent is an amazing feeling!!
I am SO EXCITED to leave a comment that this a really, tested & true app.
Thank you for sharing.
This makes me SO happy Windy! Thank you very much for sharing! It is wonderful to hear how others are benefiting from H/S. Quite often I write these posts, put them out into the world and never ever know if what I have shared has made a difference, so to receive this comment from you means the world to me. Thank you and continue to enjoy fabulous Housesitting!!
Liz x