Globe-trotting couple inspired by The Holiday save £20,000 after ditching hotel stays for home exchanges

A couple who ditched hotel stays for home exchanges after being inspired by the film The Holiday have saved £20,000 while travelling the world in the lap of luxury.

Paul Hurren, 58, and his partner, Phil Brown, 61 – both directors of a consultancy company living in central London, embraced home swapping in 2018, but their plans took an unexpected turn when Paul suffered a heart attack in August of that year.

Paul and Phil – fathers of three to Charlotte, 29, Daisy, 26, and Peter, 23 – continued hosting guests at their two-floor apartment with two bedrooms and two bathrooms via the website HomeExchange.

Paul’s heart attack only made them more determined to make the most of life and, after his six-month recovery, they started staying in other people’s luxurious homes across the world.

Including a trip to Kenya where they were greeted by an army of house staff, their home-swapping holidays have helped them immerse themselves in local cultures and avoid tourist traps, while saving thousands in accommodation.

Paul told PA Real Life: “It sounds really corny, but my two girls’ favourite movie is The Holiday… and we wondered how that works.

“I imagine (the holiday in Kenya) is what it is like going to Necker Island with Richard Branson.

“It was so remote that we had to place all of our menu orders before we left so the food could be delivered ahead of our arrival.

“Every morning, the housekeeper would give us a bowl of corn, and at the same time each morning, a mother warthog and her four young would trot up to the veranda for their breakfast.”

After feeling inspired by the 2006 romantic comedy movie The Holiday, starring Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet – which follows two women from the UK and US to swap homes, Paul looked online to see how home swapping works.

In March 2018, he came across HomeExchange, a website which allows users to swap homes on mutually agreed dates, and if a member prefers to lend their home without an exchange, their guest can offer GuestPoints as a token of appreciation.

Intrigued, Paul and Phil soon listed their home.

Eager to please and in fear of “failing guests”, they were soon re-assured after a pleasant stay by a woman from Newcastle, from which they received “fantastic” feedback.

But their plans took an unexpected turn when Paul suffered a heart attack in August 2018.

While Paul recovered, they continued hosting guests, accumulating thousands of GuestPoints which would later secure them free stays – and the experience gave them an even stronger urge to see the world.

“It does polarise your thoughts as you get one crack at life,” he said.

“This isn’t a rehearsal, this is it… so for our holidays, we decided to go big.”

Their first home swap in 2019 took them to a house in St James, Barbados, on the island’s exclusive Platinum Coast.

Their nine-day holiday was the trip of a lifetime and despite only costing them £2,000 for one business class BA flight due to the free accommodation and using one business BA companion ticket, it was filled with catching up with friends, cooking, rum-tasting and sightseeing.

In the same year, Paul, Phil, and their children then spent nine days in a quirky 1950s bungalow in Palm Springs, California, complete with an Audrey Hepburn shrine and pet hummingbirds.

“It was the last family holiday before the kids went off to university and things so it was special,” Paul explained.

“They (the owners) left a pack of hummingbird food, you just had to make it into a liquid and pour it into the feeder.

“The feeder would be buzzing with hummingbirds all day, which was really sweet, really quirky.”

In 2020, Paul and Phil stayed in Kenya, where they were greeted by a team of house staff, including a chef, housekeeper, and security.

They stayed in two homes – one overlooking an elephant sanctuary with an infinity pool and another on the beach.

In 2024, they returned to Kenya to stay on a family estate, Tandala House, in the African hills.

“One of the bedrooms had windows into the pool, it was mind-blowing,” Paul added.

“The owners, Stuart and Sandy were incredible and we’ve stayed in touch.”

Paul believes having staff made the experience “even more special” as they woke up to breakfast already made, enjoyed sunset drinks, and avoided “other Brits queuing for a buffet”.

Over the years, they have also visited Oregon, Lanzarote, Portugal, as well as UK spots like Norfolk, Horning, and Tynemouth.

All of their stays were free because of earning so many points, besides a small cleaning fee of around £40-50.

They have had 19 lots of guests stay in their London home, including a family from the US to explore the UK, as well as guests from Australia, California, and New Zealand.

Before home swapping, Phil had worked in America and Amsterdam and Paul backpacked around the world at 26 – so both of them were already “well travelled”.

But, home swapping allowed them to immerse themselves in local cultures and explore places they might not have otherwise visited.

“I wanted to return to some places like Canada and Oregon, but this time away from tourists,” Paul explained.

“We went to Rome last year and it wasn’t on the tourist strip – everyone around us was Italian, buying their morning bread and having coffee.

“I like to become part of the furniture, I don’t feel like I need another English person apart from my husband on holiday.

“You speak to local people you wouldn’t necessarily meet, and see areas you might not if staying in a hotel.”

To those considering house swapping, he said: “You have to be prepared that complete strangers are going to be sleeping in your bed – but if you were going to a hotel it’s not that different, you just have to get over that.

“We have had 19 incoming stays and we have not had a broken glass, a chipped plate, spilled glass of wine.

“People are respectful, and they care for your property so I’d say 100% swap and do it.”

For more information, visit HomeExchange’s website here: homeexchange.com