Repeat Exchanges For The Places We Love

After five years of home exchanges, with twenty exchanges made through Homeexchange.com under our belt, and having saved over $37,000 while vacationing, we now find ourselves returning to favorite locations, as well as continuing to visit and explore new destinations.  This adds another benefit to home exchanging - returning to a city, or even a home, you already know and with which you feel very comfortable.   We don't waste time trying to figure out where the best restaurants, stores, and golf courses are, and are able to jump right into a vacation knowing what we want to do and where we want to go once we arrive.

Welcome Back To Scottsdale, Arizona

We had stayed in in Scottsdale a year ago when we went to watch our daughter play waterpolo for the San Francisco Olympic Club in a masters tournament held at Arizona State University, and decided this year to return to watch the team play again, as well as to enjoy a few days of desert golf.  Since Scottsdale is a very spread out community we decided to try a different area this time and found this gorgeous desert home located about twenty minutes from the ASU pool, and close to numerous golf courses.  This home, unlike the one we exchanged for last year which was a second home, was Lynda and her husband's primary residence.  We have always tried to stay away from primary residence exchanges as they seem more difficult to coordinate and sometimes seem cluttered and inappropriate for an exchange.  However, we could not have been more wrong about Lynda's beautiful home!  I felt like I was in a luxury resort with elegant decore, an amazing back yard with pool and spa, an outdoor living room, and views out over the desert.

Just One Of The Little Spots To Enjoy A Good Book In This Lovely Desert Oasis

Linda and her husband thoroughly enjoyed their week at our home in Lake Tahoe, skiing and playing in the snow, while we enjoyed their Arizona sunshine for the week.  We have even agreed to make this a repeat exchange next year.  We have come to thoroughly enjoy the Scottsdale area, having surprisingly fallen in love with the desert, and are looking forward to making this an anual trip without having to buy a home there to enjoy it!


A Return Trip To The Palm Springs Area

We love to golf, and many of our vacations are centered around playing at beautiful golf courses.  We decided to return to the Palm Springs area again after having exchanged for a wonderful place last year in La Quinta, located right on the PGA West Golf Course.  I contacted the owner of that home again to inquire about another exchange, but unfortunately he had sold the home, so we looked for another place in the desert to make an exchange.  We found a home in the community of Rancho Mirage in a gated subdivision, but not on a golf course.  It proved to be large and very comfortable, but certainly not up to the same standards as the one we had stayed at the previous year.  This home is used mainly as a rental property, so, like other rental homes we have exchanged for in the past, it did not have the personal details and care that a vacation home or a main home has.  

                                                           

The JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort Golf Course 

Even though the home was not quite what we expected, we enjoyed a lovely week of golf at some spectacular golf courses, such as Silverrock in La Quinta and the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort Golf Course in Rancho Mirage, and look forward to returning to the area next year to play these courses again, without having to buy a home of own in the desert. 

 Returning To Our Favorite Exchange On Balboa Island

Last year we exchanged for a charming cottage on Balboa Island in Orange County, California which has proven to be our very favorite exchange so far.  We were in Orange County for a week looking at wedding venues for my son's wedding to be held there in June of 2012, and Maria and her husband, who live in their Balboa cottage full time, spent two weeks in our ocean view condo in Costa Rica, telling us we could return when ever we wished to spend another week at their home.  We decided to take them up on their offer and will be returning next month to spend a week there during the actual wedding celebrations in Orange County.  I can't wait to return to this special home on such a unique island in Southern California.  I already know that I can walk one block to Starbucks, two blocks for an amazing Italian dinner, drive over the bridge into all of the shopping centers of Orange County, take the ferry over to the beach, take a long morning stroll around the complete island, and sit on my front patio while chatting with the friendly neighbors.  Feels like I'm coming home!   

Some things I have learned after making twenty home exchanges:

• First homes, as well as second homes, can make excellent exchanges 
• Rental homes are fine for exchanges, but often not as nice as primary or vacation homes  
• There are lots of wonderful people with lovely homes just waiting to make an exchange
• Everyone should give this a try!!

Two Weeks Of Exchanges In Southern California

In January, 2011 our daughter Gillian informed us that she would be playing in a waterpolo tournament in May in the town of La Jolla, near San Diego. Of course that meant another exchange opportunity for us in one of our favorite cities, San Diego. We had done an exchange a year earlier for a beautiful high rise condominium in downtown San Diego, so I began another exchange search on Homeexchange.com for something similar. Unfortunately I was unable to find another high rise unit with the gorgeous view we had in the past, but found Jennifer, an owner of a smaller complex a couple of blocks from where we had stayed before who was eager to make an exchange for our condo in Costa Rica. Jennifer and her husband rented their place out when they were not using it, but it was available for an exchange for our dates in May. An exchange was set!

San Diego Balcony View

Soon afterwards our son informed us that he and his finance would be in Orange County, an hour north of San Diego, the week after our stay in San Diego making wedding plans for their wedding scheduled for June, 2012. Another excuse for an exchange, and this time back to back! So again I began a search, and found one in the charming beach community of Balboa Island near Laguna Beach, California. Maria had been to Costa Rica before and was eager to return. Her home in Balboa was her primary residence but she and her husband were going to be gone the month of May, so whenever we wanted to stay was fine. They wished to come to Costa Rica in November, so another exchange was arranged.

Balboa Island Beach Home

After making all of the exchange plans for a week in San Diego, followed by a week in Orange County on Balboa Island we were informed by Gillian that she would not be playing in the tournament in San Diego after all. Oh well, more time to play golf, discover San Diego, and enjoy city life. After all, we don’t need to watch waterpolo games all of the time!

San Diego Kitchen

On May 5 we loaded up our trusty Travel Air and flew down to San Diego, landing at the general aviation airport, Montgomery Field, located only fifteen minutes from downtown San Diego. After picking up our rental car we drove into the city and arrived at our new home for the next five nights. It was located on the fourth floor of a small six story condominium development downtown. The cozy two bedroom unit was beautifully decorated, very comfortable, and in a great location within walking distance of everything.

San Diego Living Room

We had a great five nights in our city apartment, and even looked at real estate in downtown San Diego as well as in Coronado, the island across the bay from downtown which we fell in love with!

A Fun Bike Ride Around Coronado Island

We took the little ferry across the bay to Coronado where we road bikes around the island, had lunch at the famous Hotel Del Mar Coronado Resort on the beach and oogled the cute beach cottages and large mansions on the island, thinking about what a wonderful place this would be to retire to.

Of course we also had time to play some golf at two beautiful golf courses. The first one was the Aviara Golf Course in the town of Carlsbad where we had played the last time we stayed in San Diego which is a gorgeous course and not too difficult to play. We also played at the Rancho Bernardo Golf Resort in the town of Poway which is an old classic resort and spa with another lovely golf course.

Mexican Dining in San Diego With Fun Street Activity

We enjoyed walking the two or three blocks to the the Gas Lamp district of downtown San Diego every night where we dined at wonderful restaurants and experienced the exuberance of city life. After living in the suburbs our entire lives we so enjoyed the downtown experience of our stay in the city.

The Bright Lights of San Diego Gas Lamp District

After five nights in San Diego it was time to pack up and head north. We flew our plane up the coast for the short 20 minute flight to the John Wayne Airport in Orange County where we were going to spend the next seven nights visiting Van and his fiance Megan, looking at wedding sights, enjoying the beach life on Balboa Island, and of course playing some more golf.

Beautiful Balboa Island

Arriving on the island of Balboa we were once again pleasantly surprised when we arrived at our cute three bedroom cottage located one block off of the main street and four houses from the water and Balboa Harbor. We loved walking to Starbucks every morning to get our coffee only one block away, strolling the beautiful streets of the island, and enjoying the friendly little community of Balboa Island located in the middle of Orange County.  After spending the week there I have to rank this home as one of our top exchanges and someplace I would love to come back to.

Our Balboa Island Living Room

 Master Bedroom With A Fireplace 

Megan and Van In Front Of Our Balboa Cottage

The best part of home exchanging is that we can have guests stay with us. This time in Balboa, Van and Megan stayed with us in our little cottage. We had not seen them in over five months as they had been living in Pittsburgh, PA, so this was a special time for us to be able to be with them for this extended period of time, and not something we would have been able to enjoy if we had been in a hotel room. 

The Spectacular Colors Of  The Beautiful Tustin Ranch Golf Course

 In between looking at wedding sights and wedding dresses we were able to play golf with Van, do lots of visiting, and of course enjoy some wonderful Southern California restaurants. Van is a gourmet chef and loves to try unique restaurants. Having been in Pittsburgh for the last year he and Megan missed the Mexican and Asian food of Los Angeles so we filled up on our share of that!

Dinner At Xanh Bistro - A Vietnamese Delight In Fountain Valley

After almost two weeks of being on the road we regretfully packed up our bags, locked the door of our Balboa cottage and headed out to the Orange County Airport where our plane was waiting for us. Another great vacation and two outstanding exchanges!

When I was back in Sacramento I started looking for another exchange, but this time for a larger home in Orange County for the summer of 2012 which could accommodate lots of family members who would be in town for Van and Megan’s wedding. Now wouldn’t that be a great place to host the rehearsal dinner? Keep your fingers crossed for me that I can find the perfect place!