Amid rising travel costs and restrictions on mass tourism, peer-to-peer home exchange has emerged as a rapidly growing alternative. In 2025, more than two million people chose this model for holidays or tourist stays, reflecting steady growth compared with traditional accommodation options.
Home swapping allows travellers to stay in someone else’s home while the owner stays in theirs, with no financial transactions between the parties. In Spain, the trend is expanding alongside conventional tourism, with a notable boom in recent years. However, it operates within a regulatory grey area concerning taxation and tourism, prompting debate over its legal framework.
An expanding model without clear rules
Unlike holiday rentals, which are subject to registration, tax identification and reporting requirements, home exchange operates outside of tourism regulations and without defined tax obligations. Legal experts note that, although it does not generate direct income, the practice produces a “benefit in kind” that is difficult to classify under current tax law, leaving authorities in a state of legal uncertainty.
This model not only eliminates direct accommodation costs but also promotes more collaborative, affordable tourism with a lower environmental impact. Families and travellers view it as a more authentic and respectful way to travel, with a strong emphasis on reciprocity.
One of the main drivers of this trend is HomeExchange, the world’s leading home exchange platform, which recorded 43% year-on-year growth in 2025. Its use has tripled over the past four years, and the company projects 15 million overnight stays in 2026, reflecting the consolidation of home exchange as a growing trend in global tourism.
The platform’s community now exceeds 270,000 members across 155 countries, becoming increasingly integrated into the travel habits of thousands. “Trust between individuals can transform the way we travel and provide more authentic and accessible experiences,” note industry analysts.
Home exchange gains momentum across Spain
In Spain, home exchange saw remarkable growth in 2025. The platform now has over 40,600 active members and recorded a 43% increase in completed exchanges during the year. The regions experiencing the strongest growth include the Valencian Community, Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura, though Madrid, Andalusia, the Canary Islands and Galicia also reported significant increases.
This expansion is occurring across urban, rural and coastal areas, helping to redistribute tourist flows and ease some of the pressures associated with conventional tourism, such as strain on housing and local infrastructure.
As European destinations grapple with the negative effects of mass tourism – including overcrowding, rising property prices and tensions with residents – home swapping presents an alternative that does not burden the housing stock or drive intensive tourism development. Its reciprocal nature encourages longer stays and experiences embedded in local life, without traditional commercial transactions.
Tourism experts highlight its potential both to relieve congestion in popular destinations and to promote more sustainable, human-centred tourism. However, the absence of specific regulations remains a challenge – one that the growing popularity of this practice may compel authorities to address in the coming years.
Home swaps in Spain: a rising holiday trend with unclear tax rules
Every summer, hundreds of families in Spain exchange their homes with others in search of free holidays and unique experiences. This rapidly growing practice, known as home swapping, operates in a legal grey area: there are no tourism regulations, no clearly defined tax obligations, and no administrative oversight from the tax authorities. What many see as an affordable and sustainable alternative to holiday rentals remains, for the government, a sector shrouded in legal ambiguity.
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