Unique Travel Needs? Roofswap.com Has You Covered!
Nicole Frank is one of the leading experts of the home exchange community. Nicole has been an avid home exchanger since childhood and has completed dozens exchanges around the world with her family. Nicole’s "Key to Home Exchange" appears weekly on RoofSwap.com with do’s and don’t regarding house swapping and tips and advice on a wide array of travel topics. Have a question for Nicole or want to share some insight of your own? Visit Member Forum section and post your comments and questions.
If you have ever dreamed of living a different life, at least temporarily, you will love "trying on" new ways to live through roofswapping. When you use another family's home you take on their lifestyle, to a greater or lesser degree. Perhaps you have your morning coffee on their deck while looking out over the ocean. Meanwhile, they are vacationing in your home where the view is of a bustling urban street scene.
Some aspects of how people live are less flexible. Here is an email from a new Roofswapper that just landed in my mailbox:
"I just discovered your website and I think it 's brilliant, creative, ambitious, just great! I have wanted to do something like this for a long time. But, we have a Kosher home and that is an important part of at least having a family in our home. Is there a place within your site for this need . And how do you post and see what is available in general ? Thanks for your input!"
Naomi C.
This family "keeps kosher". That means they follow rules about preparing food that are based on the Bible. An important part of home exchange, for this family, will be making sure that potential swap partners use their home's kitchen in such a way that those rules are not broken.
Is there a way for this family to make sure that other Roofswappers can respect this important part of their lifestyle?
Luckily, Roofswap.com is the only major home exchange site that makes it easy for exchangers to identify swap partners who share or respect the needs of a Kosher home, as well as other factors crucial to certain families. On Roofswap.com's "Search Listings" page, you simply click on "Advanced Search". This allows you to select criteria for swap offers such as "Kosher Ready"; accessible for people with disabilities; "Pets Allowed"; if the home has public transportation (for those who can't or won't drive); elevator access if stairs are a problem; whether pets, smoking and/or children are allowed; and many other options.
Searching for "Kosher Ready" homes, I found pages of homes around the world. Barcelona, Los Angeles, England, Oregon, Minnesota, Colorado, Boston, Mexico and other places have kosher homes.
Another way to find a swap with people who will respect strict religious dietary laws would be to go to the same RoofSwap search page and enter a key word like "vegetarian" or "vegan". Doing this brought up different pages with listings noting features like "gourmet vegetarian kitchen". Because most food restrictions center around meat, those who swap with strict vegetarians avoid problems.
Among my more than 50 home exchanges is one with a family whose home was kosher. We understood and respected their request that we use disposable plates and cutlery, and a special set of cooking equipment, to avoid using their kitchen in ways that did not mesh with their spiritual practice. The same approach could be used by a vegetarian family exchanging with meat-eaters.
Home exchange means respecting and learning from the way others live. Roofswappers should feel comfortable communicating such needs to possible swap partners. A family's openness about working within another family's reasonable request for how to treat their home will indicate a lot about what a swap with them might be like.
