Travelling can be expensive, especially in certain countries such as the UK, USA, New Zealand and Australia to name a few. Expensive accommodation means dwindling funds and long term travel getting cut short. This blog is going to open your eyes to an unconventional way to stay in the UK for free!
Free Accommodation
House sitters Uk was an angelic find for us, my partner was arriving to the UK for a few months and we were limited on cash flow. Obviously, we wanted to keep costs down as we had big plans to continue the travelling adventure. Previously, I had looked at house sitting websites and found the membership cost was high. With such a bold start up cost, I was worried if it was worth it, would I even get any house sits from it? Was competition too high? Then I found House sitters UK, with an attractive membership of £29 (at time of publishing), how could I refuse? It would cost more for a 2 star hotel! So I signed up.
Membership cost: £29 per year. Join HERE
Profile: Create a unique introduction of yourself and how much you love animals. Be sure to add lots of pictures.
Getting House Sits: Either wait for owners to contact you or reach out to house sits that you are interested in to start confirming your free accommodation.
Reviews: Always ask and give reviews it will build up your profile and make it more attractive.
I joined the site with my partner at the start of November 2022, we then had close to continuous sits until March 12th 2023. Only stopping as we moved out to Thailand. It was surprisingly easy to obtain house sits that line up one after another. Here is an outline of our schedule.
Across the UK
1 month, 1 week or even 1 day, you can find House Sits that fit with your plans. We applied and confirmed 3 week sits for the most part. This allowed us to settle in, really explore the area and get to know the animals. Despite being from the UK, I have seen more of it in the last few months than in my whole life. With stays in Wales, Scotland and England! Check out the sights we saw with the corresponding furries.
Shanni’s Best Bits
- All reviews you get on the site are transferable! This means you can use the for house sitting in New Zealand, USA, Australia and Canada.
- You will stay in the house for free with all bills included. Some owners even leave food for you to eat, especially if it is a short Sit.
- Tips are not guaranteed but can happen. If I had a really far house sit, I would also ask for a contribution to petrol money.
- Generally owners left recommendations for the local area, this ensured we explored the best spots.
Using dog sitting as your main form of accommodation not only allows you to have the comfort of furry animals but is also more sustainable as you are likely to stay in an area for longer periods of time. Helping the environment but also yourself as you will be less rushed to explore all the surrounding adventures. Membership costs less than one night hotel accommodation. What are you waiting for? Check it out free accommodation HERE
More House sitting sites!
Trusted House Sitters
NZ House Sitters
Check out my top tips for travelling HERE