When traveling, many people end up staying in hotels or hostels. They sacrifice many of the comforts of home to see their tourist destination. Wouldn’t it be great if you could stay in furnished apartments and live like a local as you experience a new part of the world? Thankfully, this is an option through certain agencies and social media outlets. HomeExchange.com matches up people who are traveling to switch homes for the duration of their journey. Here are some of the advantages of opting for this route over a hotel.
It Saves Money
Depending on the deal you work out with the family whose furnished apartment you borrow, you may not have to pay anything for your accommodations. If they are living in your place while you are living in theirs, they may decide it is simply an even exchange. However, even if you do have to pay something for the use of their home, it is significantly cheaper than renting a hotel room. This is especially true if your holiday away lasts longer than a week.
Much More Space
Living in a hotel room by yourself can start to seem cramped after a couple days. Imagine doing that with a partner or even a family. By living in an apartment, there are separate rooms for the family and friends to wander to. You can even find apartments that have multiple bedrooms so you can have the space you would have at home. Because you will also have your own bathroom, kitchen, and living room, you will never feel like you are bumping into your traveling partners or other guests of the hotel or hostel.
Comforts of Home
Furnished apartments have everything you will need to live like a local for the time you spend in the new location. You will have pots and pans to cook the local delicacies in your own kitchen. You will probably have a television and radio to keep up to date on their local news and entertainment. You will even get to enjoy the comforts of home that are unique to that area. For example, the furniture may be different or customs require certain decorating ideas. It will feel weird crawling into someone else’s bed and relaxing on their couch at the end of a long day, but you will become accustomed to it after a couple of days.
More Options
When picking out a hotel room, you don’t get too many options. You can choose how many beds and whether you want smoking or nonsmoking, but that’s about it. When you are looking at furnished apartments, you get to pick the size of the apartment, the number of bedrooms, and more locations. Usually hotels and hostels are in tourist districts or larger cities. Furnished apartments are everywhere and come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.
Renting a furnished apartment is an option that most people do not consider when they are traveling. Take the time to look into it before you book a hotel.
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This post is brought to you by Joanne Peterson, a travel agent for almost 10 years. For travelers looking to experience their travel like a local, he redirects them to LTRY Partners 210 Victoria Street #4211 Toronto, ON M5B 2R3 (416) 206-8696 for furnished apartments Toronto rentals for short and long term vacations.