How one can Turn out to be a Home-sitter in France

On this article, I’ll be outlining the very best methods to develop into a house-sitter in France. Alongside my husband, Rob, I’ve been touring the world repeatedly for 2 years. I often use home and pet-sitting websites to reinforce our experiences and hold our lodging prices down.

There are a number of glorious web sites obtainable for home and pet-sitting. Realizing the very best ones and find out how to use them effectively will enable you safe house-sitting jobs in France and the remainder of the world. I’ll be outlining all my experiences, good and unhealthy, on this article.

I’ve accomplished over thirty housesits; starting from taking care of a small ranch in Tucson, Arizona, to caring for beach-loving canines in Santa Theresa, Costa Rica. I house-sat and pet-sat three totally different instances in France over 2 and a half months. This included taking care of 2 lovely canines, 2 cute cats, and a menagerie of birds, simply exterior of Toulouse, France.

Since I began home and pet-sitting, I’ve not solely obtained free lodging worldwide, however I’ve discovered so much and have some good tricks to move on. Home sitting is an effective way to satisfy new folks and uncover totally different elements of a rustic that you just may not in any other case get to see. Let’s get began.

How one can Turn out to be a Home Sitter in France

There are a number of nice web sites obtainable for any burgeoning home and pet sitters. Discovering the appropriate one for you is the primary necessary step to take. Completely different websites have totally different execs and cons, so learn on to seek out out extra.

1. Trusted Housesitters

Trustedhousesitters.com is my go-to website and the one I’ve used greater than every other. Their app and website-based platforms are straightforward to make use of and there’s at all times a ton of listings obtainable. I simply checked, and at present, there are 6,530 listings accepting purposes for housesits all over the world…lots of that are luxurious home sitting gigs.

My favourite facet of Trusted Housesitters is the flexibility to save lots of your searches. For instance, once I was searching for choices in France, I set my dates, my location (nation or metropolis/space), and different search standards. Should you don’t get any hits instantly, it can save you a search and be alerted when one suits the invoice.

Primary yearly membership begins at $95 and permits for limitless purposes and housesits. Increased-tier memberships embody totally different advantages equivalent to insurance coverage, vet chats, premium customer support, and a search and alert perform. The highest membership is $190 a yr. Goats On The Street readers obtain 20% off utilizing this hyperlink and promo code GOATS20.

2. Home Carers

Housecarers.com is an easy-to-use website-only home and pet-sitting website. Though the variety of listings can’t compete with Trusted Housesitters, it’s a nice concept to maintain your choices open and to construct your profile. Most individuals itemizing their property solely use one web site, so the appropriate posting for you would be ready on one other platform.

Housecarers.com doesn’t but have an app facility, so it’s important to head to the webpage to maintain up to the mark. Members obtain e mail notifications and alerts for attainable housesits and when speaking with a bunch. The performance of the searches is nice and could be well-tailored to go well with varied preferences, places, dates, pets, and so forth.

Housecarers.com is an reasonably priced introduction to the world of housesitting. They’ve a free membership that lets you peruse all their listings in full. To use, you’ll have to develop into a fully-fledged paying member which at round $50/yr is a good deal.

Should you’re considering of turning into a house-sitter in France, Housecarers.com could be a great place to begin to get a really feel of what a housesitting web site presents and the way it all works.

☞ SEE ALSO: How one can Put together For Your Home and Pet Sitting Job

3. Workaway

Workaway.data is probably higher generally known as a volunteer/cultural alternate web site than it’s for housesitting, nevertheless it shouldn’t be ignored. I’ve used it to seek out placements everywhere in the world the place meals and lodging are exchanged for 4-5 hours of labor a day. Nevertheless, it has since develop into a precious software of mine for home and pet sitting.

Certainly one of their fundamental search choices is house-sitting and at a fast look, there are over 500 listings looking for sitters all over the world, together with many individuals searching for a house-sitter in France. Their web site and app are straightforward to make use of, listings are at all times nicely introduced with loads of particulars, and communication with hosts is normally fairly environment friendly.

Membership prices round $50/yr or $30pp/yr when a pair indicators up with a joint membership. I’ve made some terrific connections, long-term pals, and world contacts through Workaway. I extremely advocate it as a string to your house-sitting bow. See Additionally:

4. Thoughts My Home

Mindmyhouse.com is without doubt one of the longest-serving on-line platforms for house-sitting. It started in 2005 and has a terrific open ethos that advantages everybody concerned. They’re additionally one of many most cost-effective round at simply $29/yr.

I really like Thoughts My Home for the close-knit really feel of the corporate. When you’ve got a difficulty, you’ll probably converse on to one of many house owners of the corporate. They play an lively position within the day-to-day. The ‘About Our Members’ part of their web site is a good characteristic. It reveals what number of hosts and sitters are at present lively and the place they’re. Proper now, customers are at round 12,500 folks.

For my part, Thoughts My Home may simply be the appropriate choice to get you began should you’re missing just a little confidence in embarking on your own home and pet-sitting profession in France.

5. Nomador

Nomador.com is a good website should you’re seeking to develop into a pet sitter or home sitter in France. Though they do have listings all over the world, there are a ton in Europe. Their web site is similar to Trusted Housesitters, priced equally, and equally as straightforward to make use of.

An excellent membership choice with Nomador is their 3-month short-term primary bundle. It permits new customers to dip their toes in and see if the housesitting recreation is for them. Added advantages equivalent to insurance coverage, premium customer support, and early entry to new listings include increased membership costs. The highest-end bundle is round $190/yr.

Regardless of not having an app, Nomador is a good choice for newcomers to deal with and pet sitting. See Additionally: Inquiries to Ask a Residence and Pet Proprietor Earlier than Accepting a Job

Private Expertise Housesitting in France

My husband and I pet-sat in France for simply over two months. It was superb! Even in mid-November, it’s heat sufficient to drink a beer exterior within the south of the nation. Whether or not you’re in a small city out within the countryside or one of many massive cities, it’s such a good looking vacation spot with one thing for everybody.

Home-sits in France usually embody a pet, or pets, to take care of. In rural areas, a component of gardening and watering normally comes into the equation too. Simply housesitting listings (no pets) do come up, however for essentially the most half, a pet or pets are sometimes at all times a part of the discount. Every time I’ve been a house-sitter in France, the hosts have included a automotive too (extra on this later).

I sorted 2 lovely largely outside cats in Bergerac, the place my greatest process was sustaining the swimming pool! Then I moved additional north to Limoges and took care of a pleasant little Jack Russel terrier known as Alfie. My remaining cease was simply exterior Toulouse, within the tiny however beautiful village of Cologne – 2 cats, 2 canines, and let me rely… 23 birds!

☞ SEE ALSO: 15 Execs and Cons of Home and Pet Sitting

Greatest Areas to Home Sit in France

As I’m initially from the UK, I’ve visited France many instances prior to now. There are many nice areas to go to from small cities within the countryside to large cities. Listed below are a number of of my prime locations to think about house-sitting in France:

1. Paris

Probably the most iconic, and maybe the obvious, place to take pleasure in house-sitting in France is the French capital, Paris. It’s a really great metropolis filled with artwork and tradition that bubbles with life and ambiance — there are limitless issues to see and do in Paris. World-class eating places, cool bars, and cafes that set the usual for espresso tradition worldwide are round each nook.

Home-sitting in an enormous metropolis like Paris will imply extra of an city setting and the expertise will likely be akin to a metropolis break reasonably than a rural retreat. Smaller metropolis homes and flats appear to dominate most of the listings I see on the housesitting websites for Paris. This after all comes with the additional benefit of getting on a regular basis facilities in your doorstep.

I haven’t but been to Paris for a housesit, however have visited many instances for quick weekend breaks. It could be a tremendous place to base your self as a house-sitter in France.

Location: Paris is situated in direction of the North of France, round 2.5 hours from the coast and three hours from neighboring Belgium. Discover it right here.

2. Bergerac

My first expertise as a house-sitter in France was truly in Bergerac and it’s the right place to kick issues off. The gorgeous and historic city dates again to the Center Ages and has many well-preserved medieval buildings. It sits on the gorgeous Dordogne River and is a in style vacation spot for vacationers.

An excellent profit to house-sitting in Bergerac is that lots of people converse English. That is because of the quantity of British vacationers and expats that reside within the area. I ordered a spherical of drinks in my finest unhealthy French, and the waitress responded in a thick London accent, “Lets speak in English as an alternative?”.

There are a great deal of cute cities located close by equivalent to Pereguex and Riberac, and Bordeaux is simply over an hour away. Good transport hyperlinks make getting out and about straightforward. It’s normally fairly low cost too. I used BlaBlaCar a number of instances, which is a good ride-sharing app unique to Europe and really low cost.

Location: Bergerac is situated in direction of the southeast of France, round an hour east of Bordeaux and 6 hours south of Paris. Discover it right here on the map.

3. Toulouse

I house-sat and pet-sat simply exterior Toulouse for a few month. My location was fairly a small city simply exterior of town nevertheless it was very easy to get to central Toulouse. Fortunately, the hosts left their automotive behind to be used throughout our keep. There’s an categorical practice into Toulouse that I traveled on so much, which at sure instances of the day prices round $1.

Toulouse is named ‘The Pink Metropolis’. That is because of the variety of terracotta brick buildings that give it a heat and rosy glow. The Canal du Midi, a UNESCO World Heritage Website, runs by means of Toulouse, with many nice spots for leisurely strolls, boat rides, or just stress-free.

Toulouse has a bustling vibe, with full of life markets, cafes, and a thriving restaurant and nightlife scene. A visit to the Convent des Jacobins is a tremendous expertise. Drinks beside the Garonne River and Pont Neuf are additionally a should. Home-sitting on this area can be supreme for anybody looking for quiet retreats on the outskirts, barely exterior of a extra fast-paced metropolis expertise.

Location: Toulouse is situated within the southern a part of France, round 105 miles (170 km) from the border of Andorra and 155 miles (250 km) from Spain. Paris is round 420 miles (678 km) to the north.

4. Montpellier

Montpellier was the primary metropolis I visited in France and it presents a singular expertise for anybody contemplating turning into a house-sitter in France. Certainly one of my favourite issues about being a brief native isn’t just visiting however actually dwelling someplace. Think about waking up in a centuries-old dwelling with slim medieval streets simply exterior the doorstep – that’s Montpellier!

An excellent perk of housesitting in Montpellier is indulging within the many culinary treats. Contemporary produce is offered every day at native markets and there are a number of excellent eating places and cafes everywhere in the metropolis. Montpellier can also be recognized for its full of life ambiance due partially to it being dwelling to certainly one of Europe’s oldest universities.

Past town, housesitting within the Montpellier space might even embody seashore stays alongside the Mediterranean coast or extra rural properties surrounded by the pure great thing about the area. Situating your self right here would provide the freedom to discover the seashores, spend time in nature, and embrace a vibrant metropolis as a house-sitter in France.

Location: Montpellier is situated on the Mediterranean coast within the south of France. It’s round 2.5 hours east of Toulouse, 3.5 hours west of Good, and 280 miles (450 km) to the Italian border. Click on right here to seek out Montpellier on the map.

5. Limoges

Limoges was a brand new metropolis for me. I knew it was a reasonably centrally situated, massive metropolis, with a college, and that it had good direct practice hyperlinks to my subsequent already-confirmed placement in Toulouse.

I’m glad I opted to go to Limoges. It’s a metropolis steeped in historical past and it exudes an old-world allure, with its cobblestone streets and half-timbered homes. Though my house-sit was a reasonably trendy residence, house-sitting alternatives right here may very well be for centuries-old properties. What an expertise that will be!

There are some nice museums, an impressive cathedral, and a few fascinating historic websites that can delight fellow historical past buffs like me. As a college city, there are many cool bars and nice locations to eat to go well with each price range, and there’s at all times tons happening. My husband and I spent his birthday in Limoges and it was an ideal day of meals, drink, and cultural sightseeing.

Location: Limoges is situated pretty centrally in France, edging in direction of the south. It’s round 4 hours south of Paris and three hours north of Toulouse. Discover it right here on the map.

Is France Protected?

I discovered France to be a secure place to go to, and it’s thought-about a secure vacation spot for vacationers. Like several nation, it’s necessary to stay vigilant, particularly in crowded vacationer areas the place petty theft can happen. Train frequent sense, equivalent to maintaining a tally of private belongings and staying conscious of your environment.

French authorities take safety severely, and main vacationer websites are sometimes well-monitored. As a house-sitter in France, do your finest to remain knowledgeable about any advisory warnings, and in case of any emergency, dial 112 the European emergency quantity. Having an insurance coverage coverage to cowl issues equivalent to private damage, lack of belongings, and theft is at all times extremely advisable.

If it’s your first time as a house-sitter in France and you intend to drive, it’s at all times a good suggestion to familiarize your self with native driving laws forward of time. Don’t study issues the laborious method, particularly should you’re renting a automotive or utilizing the house owners’ automobile. Even skilled drivers will profit from a fast read-through of one other nation’s driving customs.

Execs and Cons of Being a Home Sitter in France

There are execs and cons to staying anyplace. Listed below are a number of of the important thing factors which have cropped up throughout my time as a house-sitter in France:

Execs of Dwelling in France

• High quality of Life: France constantly ranks excessive for high quality of life. It has a robust healthcare system, glorious public providers, and a great deal with work-life steadiness.
• Culinary Paradise: Famend for its gastronomy, France has a various and beautiful tradition with meals that’s deeply ingrained in its tradition and historical past. As a house-sitter in France, you’ll be spoilt for alternative!
• Public Transportation: Environment friendly and in depth public transportation networks make commuting and journey inside France handy and eco-friendly.
• Cultural Richness: France’s wealthy artwork, literature, and structure historical past is unparalleled.
• Scenic Landscapes: From the picturesque countryside to the gorgeous Mediterranean coast, France is dwelling to many breathtaking landscapes.
• Unbelievable Wine: France is well-known for making a number of the finest wine on this planet. Good bottles of wine can be found in supermarkets for as little as $2.

Cons of Dwelling in France

• Paperwork: France is thought for bureaucratic processes that may typically be advanced and time-consuming.
• Language Barrier: The language barrier could be difficult for a house-sitter in France who isn’t fluent in French. Although many French folks converse English, many additionally don’t.
• Strikes and Protests: France has a historical past of strikes and protests, which may often disrupt public providers and transportation.
• Price of Dwelling: The price of dwelling in sure areas, particularly in main cities like Paris, could be comparatively excessive in comparison with different international locations.
• Climate Variability: Whereas France usually has a pleasing local weather, climate situations can differ, and a few areas expertise excessive temperatures and climate occasions.
• Significantly Rural Areas: Should you like having facilities in your doorstep 24/7, a few of France’s extra rural areas is probably not for you as they lack on a regular basis conveniences. Many small cities and villages require a drive into greater cities for providers.
• Weekend Hunters: Searching with weapons or packs of canines is a well-liked pastime in lots of areas of France particularly on weekends. Should you’re pet-sitting or planning to develop into a house-sitter in France take additional precautions and search recommendation out of your hosts about the place to go and when.

Suggestions for Home Sitting in France

With a lot to think about earlier than taking up an inventory, I’ve put collectively a number of of my prime ideas for house-sitting in France:

• Know your location: France has some very rural areas and housesits could also be method out within the countryside unsupported by public transportation. Be absolutely conscious of the precise space you’re heading to and the way straightforward it’s to get to grocery shops, cafes, and so forth.
• Ask a few automotive: If the folks you’re housesitting for are leaving the nation they might be leaving their automotive behind. Normally, the insurance coverage in France covers anybody with a sound license to drive a correctly insured automobile – excellent for a house-sitter in France!
• Be taught the market schedule: Weekly markets are nonetheless a extremely popular factor in France, it’s how loads of locals get most of their produce. You’ll discover every thing from garments and quick meals to contemporary and reasonably priced groceries at a city market.
• Carry some money: Most locations, even the markets, settle for card funds however not all. Should you’re staying exterior of an enormous metropolis discovering a cashpoint that doesn’t cost a hefty price is usually a actual ache. Seize an affordable money float when you’ll be able to.
• Put together for spotty WiFi: Most hosts will likely be clear and upfront in regards to the WiFi scenario. We’ve had a number of connection points in rural France so I like to recommend having a pay-as-you-go SIM for knowledge as a backup.
• Plan your procuring: Many supermarkets, even the actually massive ones will shut round midday on Sundays. So plan your procuring accordingly.
• Put together to make fires: I discovered that many rural homes in France have been heated nearly solely by a hearth. Hosts ought to at all times go away you ample provides of wooden and present you find out how to function them, however constructing good fires is a necessity out within the French countryside.

Home Sitting in France: FAQs

Listed below are some solutions to essentially the most generally requested questions on house-sitting in France:

In Conclusion

I hope this text has helped with some concepts on find out how to develop into a housesitter in France. It actually is a superb nation and one which I really feel everybody ought to expertise sooner or later of their lives.

Home and pet sitting supplies a tremendous alternative to journey extra cost-effectively. For me, it additionally heightens the expertise of each journey. I’ve made some lifelong pals alongside the way in which, with each the folks I’ve sat for and their pals and neighbors.

I rave about home and pet-sitting to anybody who will hear. It’s one thing that’s modified my life and has opened up so many home windows of alternative for journey that I by no means thought attainable.

Good luck!