(who did an interview with me last winter about moving to Mexico), had some questions about it also. I sent her an email and she did a blog post about it today. If you are interested in housesitting you can head over there to read it.
Housesitting can be a fun and enjoyable experience if you do your homework before leaving. Have some experience with the pet varieties that you will be housesitting. As an example, if you have never had anything to do with birds, it is probably not a good idea to apply for a housesit that involves lots of bird care. Use your common sense. As with anything else in life, remember that people are not always the same in person as they portray themselves in emails or on the phone. Be prepared for unexpected things, be flexible, be open and hopefully nasty surprises will not happen. We have been lucky so far, with very few misrepresentations given us by the homeowners; but it does happen so be aware.
Remember, when you do a housesit you are there to look after the homeowners house and pets, it is a BIG responsibility and that responsibility is YOURS. It is NOT all about you wanting a free vacation. If there are pets involved you will only be able to be away from the house sightseeing for limited hours at a time. The pets need to be looked after, fed, walked, and loved so please remember that it is not all about you.
On the other hand we have gotten to see some things that we probably wouldn't have otherwise. The first time we went to Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA it was during their big Balloon Fiesta
and the many balloons were a sight to see. The second time we went to Albuquerque for a housesit we arrived a day early and went and spent the day in Santa Fe. We are not big on touristy type towns, so we probably wouldn't have gone there, gotten a hotel and stayed. This way we just went for the day, wandered around and saw the sights and then headed to our housesit. We enjoyed spending a few afternoons wandering around "Old Town" Albuquerque looking at the shops, galleries, buildings and listening to the street music. We went to several museums, botanical gardens, etc. and really enjoyed our time there.
Entrance to "Old Town" Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Church in Santa Fe.
We spent 7 weeks in a beachfront home on the Sea of Cortes on the Baja Peninsula. Unfortunately, after being told that we could swim, snorkel and fish, the beach and water were full of big rocks, so we did not swim, snorkel or fish after lugging our things all the way from here on the buses and ferry. You live and learn.
View from the patio on the Baja.
We also spent a few weeks close to home in San Carlos, Sonora. We got to walk to the beach on Christmas Eve and watch the lighted boat parade. We probably wouldn't have driven out there to see that and it was a pretty sight to see.
Overall we have had good experiences, so go ahead and try it, you might like it.
