In this post, I’m going to reveal how you to make the most of a long term house sitting assignment. After all, once the dogs are walked, and pets have been fed and fussed over, there’s plenty of time left to explore the area you are temporarily calling home. You have the opportunity to live like a local and make the most of your time in an area.
Why Should You Consider Long Term House Sitting?
One of the reasons we love house sitting so much is the type of travel it offers. You get to enjoy a beautiful home with neighbors, a community, and all the associated perks.
We generally try to find long term house sitting assignments of a month or more. This time frame allows you to get under the skin of a place and experience it like a local. We’ll find our favorite coffee shops and happy hour spots, repeatedly returning as if we lived there.
You don’t get the same experience if you are staying in a hotel – no matter how fancy – or somewhere for a short period. Long term house sitting is a great way to experience a slower pace of travel. It can also be one that is rewarding, too.
How to Secure a Long Term House Sitting Opportunity
Sign up with a house sitting platform and start searching for long term house sitting opportunities. Trusted Housesitters and Mind My House are just a couple of examples to get you started. Enter code BEACHES25 at checkout to save 25% on any Trusted Housesitters membership option. Interested in just browsing? Sign up for free here.
Sites like Trusted Housesitters have the ability to save search criteria with certain membership bands. You will then be alerted via a push notification when something matching your specific travel plans comes online. So saving a search like ‘California for 1+months, between January and March’, is very doable. You’ll then have the opportunity to quickly apply once you are notified that something matching these details has gone live.
Longer term house sits can be popular so you’ll need a great profile to stand out from the crowd. Be sure to check out Rob’s posts – ‘How To Become A Successful House Sitter‘ and ‘The Informative Step-By-Step Guide to Applying For a House Sit’ for further in-depth information.
Is it Okay to Leave Pets Alone When Long Term House Sitting?
During the application process, you’ll have the chance to ask the hosts any questions. Make sure you establish how long their pets can comfortably be left alone. They will often volunteer this information as one of the first details; if not, ask the question yourself.
Of course, the answer will vary depending on the pet. Cats are notoriously self-sufficient, compared to say, a lively and energetic puppy. Remember the hosts normally have jobs, and a life of their own outside caring for their pets, so the animals are likely to be able to be left alone in the house for at least a few hours a day. As long as they have fresh, accessible water and a comfortable place to snooze, they’ll be happy!
We’ve had sits where the maximum time we could leave a dog was around 4 hours, and others where it was closer to 10 hours so it varies. Understand the pet’s routine before you plan anything else with your time, and always adhere to the host’s wishes. It’s one of the important responsibilities of being a great house sitter. Your priority is the well-being of the pets.
How to Make the Most of Your Free Time When Long Term House Sitting
Our favorite sits have been the ones that offer us at least a month in an area. As digital nomads, this time frame gives us a great opportunity to get into a weekly work routine. This can then be interspersed with exploring the location, drinks with neighbors, and even volunteering with local community projects.
Below, I’ve listed 10 ways to make the most of your spare time whilst enjoying a long term house sit.
1. Road Trips
One of the great things about house sitting is that hosts are sometimes willing and able to leave you a vehicle. This is a major plus, especially in the US where amenities are widely spread out. If you are staying in a hot climate, a 20-minute walk to the grocery store can be a sweat fest!
A vehicle can also open doors for you to explore further afield. Yes, you could use public transport but it is not always reliable, and will probably take much longer. Remember, you need to stick within the time frames that a pet can be left alone. Driving yourself is often a safer and more efficient bet.
Whilst house sitting in Durham, NC, our hosts offered us their car before they even left for their vacation. We were able to visit Wilmington and Carolina Beach, a couple of hours’ drive away for two nights. During the sit itself, we enjoyed day trips to Raleigh, and Charlotte and even crossed the border to Virginia.
2. Local Sporting Events
When we’re house sitting for an extended period, it’s fun to get into the local sporting rivalries. You’ll see the flags on porches, especially in the US, and games on in a bar with locals glued to the screen.
Again, when we were in Durham we got to experience our first taste of baseball. Not only were we staying in the location of a famous Hollywood film, but we were also able to watch several live baseball games during our stay. It was awesome to properly experience an all-American family pastime.
Even after a few games, I can’t pretend to know the rules, but the atmosphere and family-friendly vibe made it an unforgettable experience. It was a fun way to spend a few hours and share the city’s love of the Durham Bulls. If you are lucky enough to find yourself long term house sitting, get involved, and cheer on the local team.
3. Volunteer
During our first US house sit in Tuscon, Arizona in June 2022, we volunteered at a local food pantry. I found the volunteering opportunity using VolunteerMatch, which lists charities looking for help in any local US area. The team at Impact of Southern Arizona food pantry snapped us up!
We volunteered a few mornings a week handing out food parcels to those in need. I also volunteered at their affiliated clothes bank, which offered free clothes to those in need of support. They even offered suits for clients who had secured a job interview.
During our time in Mission, Texas we volunteered at a local dog shelter. We would walk over 70 dogs between us and the other volunteers each day! Volunteering at these organisations has been so rewarding and we have loved every second. We’ve met some amazing people and felt like part of the community and part of a team.
4. Digital Nomad Work
We spend about 3-4 hours, 5 days a week working from our laptops. As long as there is WiFi, we can work!
Having a long term house siting placement means you can set up your own office area and get a work routine together. Settling somewhere for an extended period can help you get your head into a project without the upheaval and disruption of packing up and having to adapt to a new environment every couple of weeks.
Spending some time working, is also a great way to bond with the pets you’re caring for. They often want to jump on your lap as you type or snuggle up by your feet. Easier said than done with some pets who are on the larger side! If you fancy a break from the screen too, they are always there for a scratch or a quick walk
5. Hiking
I’ve already spoken about the benefits of having a vehicle, but one of my favorite things about long term house sitting is exploring an area on foot. Dogs are the perfect companion for this. With daily walks, you can stroll through the neighborhood streets and discover a new coffee shop or place for dinner.
With a dog or not, we also always look for local hikes we can try out. We aim to head out at least once a week for a few hours to get some miles in and appreciate the natural beauty of the area we are calling home for a few months.
One of our favorite hikes was the Rattlesnake Gulch when we were house sitting in Colorado. A short drive from our house sit and we were scaling a trail to the site of the ruins of the Crags Hotel that had burnt down years before. The views were incredible, but it had very strong ‘The Shining’ vibes!
6. Workway
We’ve used Workaway before as a stand-alone volunteer program in Rome, Montenegro, and Costa Rica. It’s a great program that matches hosts with travelers, and exchanges volunteer work for food and accommodation.
This won’t work in the same way as a ‘traditional’ Workaway placement, as you won’t require the accommodation that usually comes as part of the exchange, but if there is a local project or family in need of a skill you can provide a few hours a week, reach out to them.
Rob did this when we were in Durham. His work schedule was a little lighter for a couple of months, so he contacted a local Workaway host who was looking for some help. For a couple of mornings a week, he went out to help her on the land. She paid him in delicious meals and secret local tips for the best BBQ in town.
7. Play Dates and Drinks
We’ve been so lucky with many of our hosts who have introduced us to their wonderful neighbors and their pet’s furry friends.
Many of the pets we have cared for have enjoyed regular pet play dates whilst we have been sitting them. We’ve had neighbors and their dogs popping around to the garden for a couple of hours so the dogs can play and burn off some energy.
In Toulouse, France, we enjoyed regular meet-ups with one of our host’s neighbors and her dog. So we felt like we were part of the community and had some friends to call on if we ever needed to. Read more about house sitting in Toulouse, in our blog post, ‘The Definitive Guide to House Sitting in Toulouse‘.
8. Finding Your Favorites
One of the reasons why I love longer term house sitting is that you can discover your favorite spots and look forward to returning there again. So often, when you are briefly passing through a town, you discover a great bar or amazing restaurant too late!
Whether it’s a local coffee shop, great bar, or buzzy brunch spot, we’ve enjoyed exploring and then staking out our favorites, returning several times and getting to know the locals and staff alike.
9. Visitors
We’ve been lucky enough to have friends and family come out to various locations around the world. In Toulouse, the hosts were gracious enough to let my parents stay in the house with us and the pets. It meant we could enjoy some quality time together. Rob’s sister and her partner also came for a visit later on during the same sit.
When we were in Nashville, my mum and her partner joined us, as they had never visited the city. After not seeing them for a long time, it was lovely to spend dedicated with them time every day, eating, drinking, or just exploring the city together.
Longer term house sitting allows you to share your favorite places with these visitors and help them enjoy the area as much as you have been doing. After being somewhere for a few weeks, you’ll have a decent idea of some of the best spots so visitors can arrive with ready-made tour guides.
Alongside caring for the pets, having loved ones visit and discover a new place with you is something we really enjoy. If you are in a location for a long period, the window of opportunity for them to join you is wider and gives them more flexibility with dates.
10. A Springboard For Nearby Points of Interest
Long term house sitting, and staying in a location for a while means that you have more time to explore nearby places, before, during, or after your sit.
Longer term sits allow you to research, learn from locals, and evaluate if there are any places close by that you’d fancy taking a closer look at. There is the opportunity to explore these during your sit if you have a few spare hours in a day or a week – but don’t neglect your time before and after a sit too.
If you are traveling from one house sit to another, or traveling long distance across a part of a country or state to get to a specific house sit, see if there are any places you might want to make part of your route. Somewhere you have always been interested in visiting might only be a diversion of an hour or so and one that you could easily make time for before being based somewhere longer term.
Conclusion
So there you have it, 10 ways to make the most of your time during a longer term house sitting experience. But this list is also 10 reasons why we love the longer house sitting opportunities that come our way.
I know circumstances may not allow everyone to travel and house sit for extended periods, but if you ever get the chance to experience a house sit of a month or more, in a location that appeals to you, go for it. You won’t regret it!
*Owners consent given to show property and pets
Interested in House Sitting?
If you are interested in becoming a house sitter and taking on some long term house sits yourself consider signing up for a free Trusted Housesitters membership. It only takes a few seconds and a couple of basic details to get access to the thousands of listings currently available. See where house sitting can take you!
You’ll need to be a paying member to complete an exchange but a yearly membership with unlimited sits starts at just $129/year. Remember to use code BEACHES25 at checkout to secure a 25% discount on any THS membership option, click here to get started.