A beautiful comfortable home in a lovely peaceful setting in St Albans. Within easy walking distance of the town centre, the Abbey and just a 20 minut...
Read More...Sophie & Jean
France
07.08.2022 - 23.08.2022
Wurden Mitglied in: 2014
Ablaufdatum: 14/Apr/2027
We are a New Zenglish couple (Joanna a Kiwi and Matthew a Brit) with three children (13, 10 and 6).
We try and get back to visit NZ and family every two years, so are always interested in the possibility of a swap to Auckland.
We are also interested in Easter, summer and October holiday opportunities in Europe or elsewhere.
Given we are from different sides of the world, it is important to us our kids grow up understanding their world is bigger than their backyard/hometown. We want them to gain a love of different countries, cultures and peoples and all the things that come with exploring new places. It's not taking them back-packing off the beaten track, but we hope home swapping in different places now will start a love of exploring that will grow with them (as long as they come home sometimes to give their old Mum hugs!).
Meine Vorlieben
Radsport/Mountain Biking,
Grossfamilien,
Wandern,
Gourmets/Feinkostliebhaber
MehrWenigerBeruf
Commercial property fund manager / Mother
Sophie & Jean
France
Martin Hørlück
Denmark
Alison
New Zealand
A beautiful comfortable home in a lovely peaceful setting in St Albans. Within easy walking distance of the town centre, the Abbey and just a 20 minut...
Read More...A beautiful comfortable home in a lovely peaceful setting in St Albans. Within easy walking distance of the town centre, the Abbey and just a 20 minute train ride in to the centre of London.
Read Less...Craig and Colleen
New Zealand
Haus-/Wohnungstausch gleichzeitig
Ich biete an Ihr Haus zu hüten
Rauchen ist nicht erlaubt
Kinder willkommen
Autobenutzung angeboten
22.07.2024 - 31.08.2024 | Auckland, New Zealand | Pacific Ocean |
Offen für alle Zeiträume | Turkey |
Offen für alle Zeiträume | Italy | Spain | Scandinavia |
Offen für alle Zeiträume | France | Portugal | Greece |
Offen für alle Zeiträume | Croatia | Sweden | Norway |
Beschreibung unseres Tauschangebotes
Our home is a 4 bedroom detached house, with a big family-friendly garden in the lovely city of St Albans, Hertfordshire.
We purchased the house a few years ago as a project and have been busy making plans around the work we want to do. Covid has, unfortunately, slowed us down, so in the long term, the house will be slightly different but in the meantime, we have tidied it up considerably (various features of the house are ready for retirement, but in the meantime, we have painted most of/nearly all the interior to improve things in the short term). So while it is not quite Home Beautiful ready, it is clean, tidy and comfortable.
Currently, downstairs we have a front room (in these post-covid times, one corner/side has been multi-purposed to office space), a back room that includes dining area and tv watching area, kitchen, conservatory we use as a playroom (and part gym if you feel so inspired with a treadmill) and a toilet room.
Upstairs we have four bedrooms (the master bedroom has an ensuite with bath) and a family bathroom with shower.
We have a lovely large garden, with a veggie patch, patio with dining table and bbq, large trampoline and lots of great spots to sit and relax.
We are a family, so we are family friendly with lots of children's kit and equipment available - travel cot, UK-compliant car seats, high chair, crockery and cutlery, push chair, toys, books, bedding etc etc! Basically what we wished we had at a holiday destination so we could travel light!
Cleaner once a week if you wish.
Happy to talk car exchange too.
Please note:
Some of our previous feedback is for swaps we undertook from our previous home (also in St Albans) and the last picture in our photos is that home (for reference - the brick terrace with the teal door).
Typ
Haus mit EG und OG (oder mehr Stockwerken)/ Hauptwohnsitz
Annehmlichkeiten
Entertainment / Unterhaltung
Extras
Umgebung
Beschreibung unserer Nachbarschaft und Gegend
St Albans is a cracking place to live and a brilliant base for visiting.
It's a historic city (it is a city by definition of having an Abbey but the size of a big town) with Roman ruins, historical buildings, pubs (with claims to the UK's oldest), lots of parks, the UK's newest forest and with a lovely feel. A royal charter market runs twice weekly, as well as less often organic, French or other specialty markets.
But it has a modern side too with great shopping (in modern and old buildings), bars, restaurants, theatres and cafes.
One of the great things about where we are, is nothing is very far away.
We're a 25/35 min walk from the center of town, rail station and we are on a bus route. As well as our own garden, we have a good size park behind us with a playground, basketball hoop and football goals. Verulamium Park, forrest, wood and riverside walks are not far away, as are lots of cycle paths/routes.
While town is bustling, it is surrounded by countryside with links in all directions. London is only 20 mins away by train (20 mins to London St Pancras, 40-odd to the West End). The M25 and M1 are nearby meaning London Heathrow is 40 mins away. In terms of things to do and places to visit, Warner Bros Harry Potter Studio is 30 mins, Windsor is about 45 mins, Cambridge an hour and Oxford just over an hour. Rail links from St Albans are also useful as we have one of the few rail links that go straight through London - London Luton is about 20 mins north, while London Gatwick (about an hour), Brighton and more are to the south. Our branch line to Watford also opens up connections to Northampton, Birmingham and beyond.
Within a half a mile walk, we have a multitude of amenities. We have a convenience store about five/ten minutes walk from the house in one direction and about ten minutes in the other direction we have a good sized block of local shops where you can find two good sized food stores, a cafe, pharmacy, bakeries, health store, hairdressers, a pilates studio as well as a great fish and chip shop and Italian and Indian restaurants (that also do great take outs). In town, there are two more food stores as well as multiple supermarkets a short drive away (there are also various supermarket delivery options too).
Our bit of St Albans is central, quiet, friendly, family-orientated, well equipped and great for accessing destinations around town and further afield.
Outdoor Aktivitäten
Freizeitmöglichkeiten
Kulturelle Aktivitäten
Nahe öffentlicher Verkehrsmittel
In der Nachbarschaft
Das sollten Sie sehen oder unternehmen, während Ihrem Tausch bei uns
St Albans is a great base for all sorts.
Historically, St Albans has a lot going on. The ruins of the old Roman town of Verulamium are on the outskirts of town, with various sites to visit, including remains of a Roman hypocaust. The Abbey (part built from stones sourced from the Roman ruins) is stunning. Two battles in the War of the Roses were fought in St Albans, with one just around the corner from our home (memorialised by white and red cherry trees - representing the colours of the Houses of York and Lancaster - lining the road the battle was on - a stunning sight in the spring when they are all in blossom).
There are also museums, two theatres, a local forest (the UK's newest with most of it recently planted by locals), numerous parks, walks, cycle tracks and an old rail line that now makes for a great cycle or walking path to Hatfield.
In the summer, St Albans hosts various festivals, including comedy, food and music (sometimes all in the same event!). In the winter there is a Christmas market and various events at the Abbey including carol singing. The Abbey also hosts various events throughout the year including light shows, tours, concerts and workshops.
A good mix of shopping can be found in town, but the treasures of London are on the doorstep, as well as various shopping centers (Brent Cross, Watford) and quaint villages surrounding us.
Again town has a great mix of cafes, restaurants, bars and pubs but being close to the countryside, there is also a list of country pubs or village tea shops not far away too.
For kids, there are lots of both big and small local parks, playgrounds and woods. A play farm (with Peter Rabbit & Friends), ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, pools, soft play centres and much more are not far. Roald Dahl's hometown and museum is about 30 minutes away, as are oddities like the Natural History Museum at Tring (it was the private museum of an old Baron Rothschild and is one of the finest collections of stuffed mammals, birds, reptiles and insects - and keeps kids intrigued for hours!). And of course, for any Harry Potter lover, The Warner Bros Harry Potter Studio Tour is near nearby Watford (about 25 mins away).
The famous and historical sites, museums, theatres and everything else London has to offer is 20 minutes by train.
Historical homes are also accessible in nearby towns and villages, including Hatfield House (often used in film shoots including the likes of The Favourite - about 20 mins away), Clivedon (where Meghan Markle stayed the night before her marriage - about 40 mins away). Windsor is about 45 mins away. Both Oxford and Cambridge are approx an hour away.
Several theme parks are nearby too - as well as The Warner Bros Harry Potter Studio Tour (Harry Potter) there is Legoland, Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures and Paultons (a la Peppa Pig World) all being 40-90 mins away. For Thomas the Tank Engine fans Drayton Manor (with TtTE World) is a little further away at just under two hours, but still doable as a day trip (they conveniently open at 10am).
Hertfordshire is a beautiful part of the UK, with lots of lovely small towns and stunning scenery. Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice was based in Hertfordshire and many of the local towns and homes apparently provided her with inspiration. Is Rothamsted Manor in Harpenden the inspiration for Netherfield? Was Harpenden (our next town up the train line) Meryton? We shall never know, but it is fun imagining!
As mentioned previously, the local train line provides good links north (directly to Lution and using our branch line to Watford, to Northampton, Birmingham and beyond), as well as south through London and down onto Brighton.
St Albans also has a public swimming pool, a number of gyms, a movie theatre (St Albans' original art deco theatre was beautifully restored a few years ago and showing a huge mix of films). A weekly 5km ParkRun is held at Verulamium Park or at nearby Jersey Farm (a favourite for those trying to do the A-Z of ParkRun courses!), with an annual half marathon for the very keen! We are also home to more tennis and golf clubs than you would think one town would need (including The Centurion Club which has hosted various pro tournaments).
All in all, as well as having a lot to keep you busy locally, St Albans is a great base to see and explore both London and SE England.
Unsere empfohlenen Restaurants
Gute Cafes und Bars
Spezielle Plätze und Shops
Freizeit-und kulturelle Aktivitäten
Spazier- oder Joggingwege
Fitness Clubs
Interessante Tagesausflüge
Was wir mögen und was nicht… Dies sind unsere Wünsche und Hausregeln.
We would ask you treat our home as you would want us to treat yours, and leave it in a clean and tidy condition (as we would leave yours).
We are non-smokers so not smoking in the house is an important one for us.
We have a cleaner come weekly, so are happy to talk about her continuing during any swap.
We have done various house borrowing, sitting and swaps, so our children are used to staying in other people's homes. We stress to them the importance of respecting other people's homes and belongings. We like to think they are house-trained!
Please check our exchange preferences below.
Konditionen
Autotausch
Home Exchange Type (Tauschverfahren)
Wurden Mitglied in: 2014
Ablaufdatum: 14/Apr/2027
We are a New Zenglish couple (Joanna a Kiwi and Matthew a Brit) with three children (13, 10 and 6).
We try and get back to visit NZ and family every two years, so are always interested in the possibility of a swap to Auckland.
We are also interested in Easter, summer and October holiday opportunities in Europe or elsewhere.
Given we are from different sides of the world, it is important to us our kids grow up understanding their world is bigger than their backyard/hometown. We want them to gain a love of different countries, cultures and peoples and all the things that come with exploring new places. It's not taking them back-packing off the beaten track, but we hope home swapping in different places now will start a love of exploring that will grow with them (as long as they come home sometimes to give their old Mum hugs!).
Meine Vorlieben
Radsport/Mountain Biking,
Grossfamilien,
Wandern,
Gourmets/Feinkostliebhaber
MehrWenigerBeruf
Commercial property fund manager / Mother
Sophie & Jean
France
Martin Hørlück
Denmark
Alison
New Zealand
A beautiful comfortable home in a lovely peaceful setting in St Albans. Within easy walking distance of the town centre, the Abbey and just a 20 minut...
Read More...A beautiful comfortable home in a lovely peaceful setting in St Albans. Within easy walking distance of the town centre, the Abbey and just a 20 minute train ride in to the centre of London.
Read Less...Craig and Colleen
New Zealand
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