House swaps 'can be an affordable way to holiday in Swiss Alps'

House swaps can be an affordable way to holiday in destinations such as the Swiss Alps, it has been advised this week.

The Dallas Morning News reports that the system has already caught on the US, where 1,000s of families have chosen to swap homes with a family in a destination where they would like to holiday.

Furthermore, when coupled with an inexpensive form of transport, such as a cross-channel ferry, this scheme can make taking a holiday in a traditionally expensive location an affordable option.

Mary Lou Branson of Fort Worth, who has tried the scheme, told the paper: "Hotels are fine but impersonal."

She explained that by staying in someone's home the holiday was given an authenticity that normal holiday accommodation could not have provided.

According to MySwitzerland,com, the nation has a population of 7.4 million, its capital is Berne and it has three main types of landscape: the famous Alps, which are a favourite with skiers, the hilly Mittelland and the rugged Jura mountains.