Did you know that it is possible to get free accommodation whilst traveling? You may have heard about ways to travel the world and work, therefore receiving free accommodation as part of your payment. But what if I told you that you could travel the world, staying in places completely free, and all you were expected to do was look after a cat? Or a dog? Maybe even just a bird or fish tank?
Sounds easy, right?
Well, it is. And it is completely possible, legit, and available to anyone that signs up to Trusted Housesitters!
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Table of Contents
- What is Trusted Housesitters?
- Where can you go?
- Is it really FREE accommodation?
- Is Trusted Housesitters for you?
- How to sign up
- Trusted Housesitters discount code
- Create a winning profile
- Applying for sits
- How to get good reviews
- Save more money on Travel
- Summary
What is Trusted Housesitters?
Trusted Housesitters is a website that allows pet owners to go on holidays, or trips away from home, and leave their house in the care of someone that is trustworthy enough to look after it. Usually, there will be pets involved as well. What this does, is take away all of the worry and stress on homeowners and pet owners. They can go away without having to be concerned about leaving their pets to fend for themselves, or leaving their home vacant.
So where do YOU come in?
It’s easy. You simply sign up on the website as a pet SITTER. You don’t need to own your own home, as this is not an exchange like that. You just need to be responsible, mature, and be able to look after a house and care for pets as if they were your own.
Where can you go?
You can go all over the world with Trusted Housesitters!
There are many countries that don’t really get many sits, but if you are looking to travel to the United States, Australia, United Kingdom, or pretty much anywhere in Europe, then you are set. There are literally hundreds of sits being advertised every single day on the Trusted Housesitters website.
Personally, I only signed up to Trusted Housesitters when I was already in Europe. I wanted to save a bit of money on accommodation, and therefore allow myself to be able to travel for a bit longer on the funds that I had. I spent an evening creating a kickass profile, and before I knew it I had booked my first sit!
Over the next 6 weeks I had completed two sits in Manchester UK, one in Lyon France, and one at Lake Zurich Switzerland. These were all places that I would not have been able to afford to visit without Trusted Housesitters! Now, I have some good reviews to go with my profile, and I am actually receiving offers from around Europe to do sits. I’m not even applying!
Is it really FREE accommodation?
As far as payment goes, YES it is free accommodation!
What you have to keep in mind though, is that this is an exchange of services. You are required to look after the owner’s house, and care for their pets. But in general, no money will ever change hands. They get the peace of mind of you being in their house while they are away, and you get to stay in the house for free.
This can be wonderful in the majority of house sits. You could be staying in a house on the Italian Lakes, caring for a cat that needs to be fed twice a day. The rest of the time is yours, and so long as you are there every morning and stay in the house every night, you might be free to explore the surrounding area and even do some day trips. Sometimes, the owner may ever leave a car for you to use. Every sit is different.
Just remember that you have obligations and responsibilities when you sign up and accept a sit. Personally, I like to spend my time around the house that I am sitting. I spend a lot of time with the pets, and if anything, the dogs get OVER walked! This is because I am a blogger, and I take the opportunity of being in a house, instead of hotel room, to get some work done.
In fact, I am typing this article whilst doing a sit in France right now!
Is Trusted Housesitters for you?
Do you love pets? Do you love travel? Are you interested in free accommodation?
Then yes it is!
But let’s look at it a bit more realistically.
Trusted Housesitters is for you if:
- You are responsible
- You love pets and are willing to care for them like they are your own
- You know how, and are able to look after a house
- You like to travel
- You are able to commit, and not cancel at a moment’s notice
- You are a mature person that can be trusted
- You know how to handle emergency situations
- You are traveling and miss having pets around (this was me!)
Trusted Housesitters is NOT for you if:
- You don’t like pets or are allergic
- You can’t commit
- You are not mature enough to handle it
I personally think that ANYONE can do house sitting. There are so many pets that need to be cared for, that you will find your niche. Allergic to cats? Then only apply for sits with dogs, birds, or even horses!
How to sign up
All you have to do is head on over to the Trusted Housesitters website and sign up. It’s easy, and only takes a few minutes.
If you are still unsure, you can have a bit of a browse around at what sits are available. I did this multiple times when I was deciding whether I would take the leap and sign up. The annual fee is not cheap, but in the end I thought it would be a good investment. Now, the $200 (approx.) that I spent has paid itself off time and again, as I have saved over $3000 in accommodation in the past month alone!
Trusted Housesitters discount code
Ok. So here is the kicker. You can get a cool 25% off your membership fee by applying through THIS LINK that Trusted Housesitters has given me. That’s a pretty amazing saving!
When you do, I will also get an extra 2 months added onto my membership at no cost to you. It’s a complimentary “thank you” from Trusted Housesitters.
Simply click the button below or any of the links on this page to get the discount!
Create a winning profile
The first thing to do on your journey to free accommodation with Trusted Housesitters, is to sign up and create yourself a profile. Now, this is where you can really start kicking some goals early!
If your profile is good, you will find yourself doing well with applications. If it’s GREAT, then you will have a better chance of instant success!
So how do you make a winning profile?
Here are some good tips that I followed when I made my own profile. Keep in mind that I was pretty successful with applications from day #1.
- Choose a good profile photo – A good photo means it shows your face clearly. No sunglasses. If you are a couple applying, then have a photo with both of you. If you have a really nice photo with a pet, then use it if it shows your face clearly.
- Add lots of photos – When you apply, you want people to get to know you. This is your introduction to them. Put at least half a dozen GOOD photos of yourself. Personally, I provided several photos of myself with pets that I either own or have cared for, and then a few personal photos showing who I am.
- Add a video – I didn’t do this, but was successful without it. If you can, though, and you want to really strengthen your profile, add a video of yourself talking to the camera. This is a really great way to “tell” people about yourself, and make them feel comfortable with you from the start.
- Fill out your “about” “experience” and “why I want to house sit” sections fully – I cannot state this enough. You really want to introduce yourself in these sections. Tell people about yourself and remember there is NEVER too much information. I went into great detail about myself, my experience with pets and as a home owner, and why I wanted to house sit. You wouldn’t necessarily say you want free accommodation, but you can highlight the main reasons you want to house sit, such as your love for pets!
- Get some references – I was concerned about this when I first signed up. There were so many qualified house sitters with reviews applying. How could I be successful? One thing to boost your profile is to get character references from family and friends. Focus on your experience with pets, and with looking after houses. If you have ever owned or rented, have them mention that.
- Mention your age – If you are a more mature person (older) then mention your age. It can be the thing that pushes you across the line to be successful. Many home owners prefer an older sitter, or a younger sitter. It all depends upon the situation, and the pets.
- Mention if you are alone, a couple, or even a family – Some pets are used to just a single owner. Some are used to a house full of kids. Trusted Housesitters is all about keeping the pets in the environment they are accustomed to. So no matter what your situation, you are likely to find a match!
Applying for sits
So you have created your profile, and now you need to find sits to apply for. That free accommodation isn’t just going to land in your lap, so you better start searching!
Applying is as easy as hitting the apply button on a sit that you think is a good match, and sending a message to the house/pet owner. You can make it as brief or as long as you want. Just remember that this is like a job application, and this will be your first impression. If they like you, they will then look at your profile. So make the first contact count!
Here are a few tips for a good application message:
- Be polite and friendly – This goes without saying.
- Mention the pet’s name – This will show the owner that you have read the post. If you can, mention something else too, like the location, a characteristic of the pet, or something else in the post that will show that you have read it and actually care. Which you do.
- Introduce yourself – Begin your application with a friendly “Hi” or “Hello”. Then move onto your name, age, and a bit about yourself. It only has to be a single sentence. For example “Hi! My name is Elizabeth, a 25 year old student and traveler from Australia”.
- Pretend it’s a job application – Which it is. This is your first contact. You don’t want it to be thrown away because of a spelling error! You created that winning profile, so the point of your first contact is to get them to read your profile and fall in love with you.
How to get good reviews
One of the big tricks to being successful on Trusted Housesitters, and start to book up that free accommodation, is to get good reviews. You can start out with a couple of good character references, but once you do a couple of house sits, you want to start getting good reviews as well.
The only way to do this is to do a good job! Follow these tips to ensure you get a good review once you finish your sit.
- Be on time – This one is obvious, but has to be mentioned. Remember that the home owners are going on vacation. They may have a plane to catch. Being late is not a good start. I personally like to get there the day before if it is convenient for everyone. This ensures a good handover and also allows everyone to get comfortable.
- Ask questions – If you are unsure about anything, then ask! This ensures there are no miscommunications, and also shows the that you care.
- Be relaxed and friendly – No need to elaborate here. A relaxed and friendly person is a lot easier to trust, and makes everyone else feel relaxed.
- Keep in contact – I like to send daily messages to the owner. I let them know how things are going, and maybe ask a question, or tell them a funny story about something that happened that day. A photo or two also helps.
- Make sure the house is clean when they return – No one wants to return from vacation to find a mess in the kitchen, or dirty carpets and floors. Clean the house thoroughly on the final day, and hand it back in better condition than they left it. It’s the least you can do for that free accommodation, after all!
Save more money on Travel
It’s all well and good getting free accommodation, but that is not the only money that you have to spend when you travel. I travel for a living, and my blog is all about creating guides full of tips for all the countries and cities that I visit.
Here are some of the ways that I save money when I travel.
- Use Skyscanner for my flights – I have used most of the major booking sites, and no one can beat Skyscanner. They have the best deals and prices, as well as providing all the options available. Check out Skyscanner at THIS LINK.
- Eat cheaply at railway stations and bus stations – This is a tip that I found in Eastern Europe. The cheapest food was always around the metro stations and bus terminals. There is always a cheap bakery with great pizza, breads, and even kebabs.
- Don’t eat near major attractions – NEVER eat at a restaurant near a major attraction. Nomadic Matt lives by a 5 block rule – walk 5 blocks away to find cheap food. I live by the same rule!
- Travel by bus in Europe – You can get great deals with trains, but traveling by bus in Europe can’t be beaten. Especially Flixbus. I book through Bookaway at THIS LINK.
- Accommodation through Agoda – It’s not all free accommodation. In between house sits I book my accommodation through Agoda. Check them out HERE.
- Travel Insurance through SafetyWing – This cannot be understated. I never travel without travel insurance, and neither should you! SafetyWing are incredible, and I wouldn’t insure with anyone else. Check them out at THIS LINK, or my review at THIS LINK.
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Summary
Trusted Housesitters is probably the best way to get free accommodation that there is! If you are responsible, reliable and love pets, then it’s really a no brainer. Signing up was one of the best things that I ever did, and has saved me thousands of dollars. So check it out at one of the links in this article, and start saving money today!
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