We’ve been house-sitting in the UK and Europe for two years now, since we sold our house and planned a move to Portugal then changed our minds. But we’re in no hurry to settle down as we’re enjoying the nomadic life. Everyone we meet is interested in what we’re doing - so many people say ‘Ooh, I wish I could do that’ - and I’m wondering what other situations bring people to house-sitting. Obviously some people use it as a way of visiting a place and living like a local from time to time. But I’m interested particularly in those people who, like us, are doing it more or less full time. What got you started and is there a reason why you’re still doing it? We’ve learned a lot about ourselves and have got the nomadic bug. I’d love to hear from other people and get their take on this.
We have a base in Portugal, so technically not full time nomads and we do about ten months sitting a year. Your feelings towards sitting pretty much reflects ours and we have no intention of stopping. We love the lifestyle.
I do it for many reasons, and one of which is to spend time close to my ageing parents (but without having to spend a lot of time staying at their houses!)
Hi @CatherineL
We didn’t start out intending to still be doing this fourteen years later.
In the beginning it was curiosity more than anything else. A sense that there might be another way to structure life — one not automatically tied to a fixed address, a conventional timeline, or the usual “we’ll settle later” narrative. House-sitting offered a doorway into that experiment. It felt low-risk, practical, and interesting. A way to explore without burning everything down.
At first it was about movement. New places. New rhythms. The novelty of waking up somewhere unfamiliar and learning how to belong there, even temporarily.
But somewhere along the way it stopped being a series of trips and became a framework. Not because we rejected settling — but because we realised we didn’t need to rush toward it. The lifestyle was flexible enough to grow with us.
We’ve had phases.
There were years where we moved frequently and chased variety. Years where we slowed down and stayed longer in certain regions. Periods where logistics took centre stage, and others where experience mattered more than efficiency. We’ve learned to refine how we travel, how we choose sits, how we pace ourselves. We’ve become more intentional about energy, not just geography.
What’s kept us doing it isn’t novelty. It’s adaptability.
The lifestyle hasn’t boxed us in — we’ve been able to shape it as our priorities changed. As we’ve matured, our criteria have matured. As our tolerance for chaos shifted, so did our planning. As we understood ourselves better, we adjusted the model.
It’s not about “free accommodation.” It’s not even really about travel anymore.
It’s about autonomy.
It’s about designing a life that feels aligned rather than inherited.
We’ve learned a lot about ourselves — what we actually need versus what we were told we should want. We’ve learned that routine and movement aren’t opposites; you can build rituals anywhere. We’ve learned that home can be something you create repeatedly, not just something you own.
And perhaps most importantly, we’ve learned that there doesn’t have to be a final version.
People often say, “I wish I could do that.” What they’re usually reacting to isn’t the travel — it’s the permission. The idea that a life can be iterative.
Fourteen years in, we’re still doing it because we’ve been able to evolve the lifestyle as we’ve evolved. It hasn’t required us to stay frozen in the mindset we had when we started. It’s stretched with us.
Maybe one day it will shift again. That’s fine.
But for now, this version still fits.
I am not a nomad now but was one twice in my life. Both times after I sold the house I was living in. I did not sell the homes to travel but became a nomad before I bought another home. I wanted complete freedom of not having to worry about a house. Not worrying if Airbnb guests were destroying the house or still having to deal with maintenance problems that may have occurred. Both times were for 9 months. Love living like a local for a short time. I was in 5 different countries each time. Now I am old and always have been a homebody at heart. So now I enjoy short getaways. I love animals and would rather be in a new area in a neighborhood than a hotel so THS works well for me. If I had to do it over I would have started being a nomad much younger than I did.
@CatherineL, we’ve been full-time housesitters for three years. Unplanned. Opportunistic. Early retirees. Heck, we had never heard of housesitting. We are fortunate to housesit by choice. We have used it to visit international family; to adventure to new countries (15); to bridge a time gap until next life phase; and to explore shortlisted countries for future residency. We periodically touch base and assess whether we’re still enjoying the housesit experience. Fatigue is real so we try to balance dogs, cats and no pets. Curious your reference to Portugal - we were actively planning to relocate there (lovely spot) but changes in NHR tax program two years ago caused us to pivot … and to apply for housesits to explore a Plan B location. For us, housesitting has yielded several epiphanies - per recent thread.
But sometimes it’s as simple as carpe diem - seize the day. Photo from walking dog this morning. Life is good 
We’re in the same position regarding my elderly uncle who has carers and will soon move into full time care. At the other end of the age continuum we prefer not to stay too long with our adult son and his wife as our various lifestyles don’t work out when they’re working and we’re chilling so pet sitting allows us to visit as if we lived nearby.
Thanks for replying. Yes, the nomadic itch is hard to scratch. Out of interest, what do you do with your Portugal base when you’re not there? We’re thinking of doing similar - not with a base in Portugal but with one in the UK. Do you Airbnb it or leave it empty?
That’s a great idea and I could see how that would work well. Thanks for replying.
Such an interesting response and in fact it chimes a lot with our experience. The idea that there isn’t a ‘final version’ of your home. As Dorothy Parker famously said, ‘When you get there you find there’s no there there.’ Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing this. There is something very liberating about not having a house - as long as it’s a choice of course. I know that in the UK people are obsessed with home-owning, and not so much in other countries. Glad you’re still doing the house sitting and still enjoying it even if it’s not as full-on as it used to be.
We’re almost full time house sitters and nomads, 5 years into the adventure. We wanted more slow travel at less cost & could both work online from anywhere post Covid so it didn’t matter. Around 25 countries in & still loving it, we must have similar tastes to @oztravels on what we look for as two sits have been the same 
We have a base in Kalkan 
which we don’t rent out (gaps, cancellations, wardrobe changes, storage & parking) and our UK place is rented out long term. Maximum freedom with some fall back (we’re early 50s). We slept in our own bed for 4 weeks last year & that was ideal! Met some incredible people, stayed in super interesting places & all the pets are a bonus. Currently on a 5 week, 6 cat sit in an immaculate villa with mountain views, heated pool, a case of wine, bikes, a cleaning lady and chilled hosts. We will sit in Kenya 
this summer which is just magical. #whatsnottolove
@Cuttlefish Can I ask you if the sit in Kenya is for a cat called Forest? If so, we did that one during Christmas. Loved it!
Hi. We leave it empty as our plan B if anything were to go off the rails.
No, it’s new one in Karen for two dogs called Bob & Treacle 
(am already sold 
). There’s an incredible one in the Rift Valley that we have our eye on too. Will report back! #kenyakapers
No house , when there is a break between sittings where do you go.
Friends, relatives, AirBnB, cheap hotel, camping - I’ve done all of these, and have slept a night in the car on long journeys.
This sounds amazing. I think I’m still struggling with the idea of continuing to do this longterm but the way it makes us feel free right now is brilliant. For example, our daughter is in Thailand and we might just go and spend six months there. We wouldn’t be pet-sitting but the experience of pet-sitting has made us realise that this kind of freedom is perfectly possible. If we’d still been in our UK house with all its responsibilities we’d never have contemplated an extended stay in Thailand. Great to hear from you.
We’re very lucky because my mother has enough room for us and we regularly go back there (it suits her too, having us around) but we never go there for more than a few days. Still it means that we don’t have the anxiety of not having a fall-back or buffer. It would be much, much more stressful without that and I honestly don’t think we’d manage it. So yes, we’re lucky there.
What a gorgeous, helpful, insightful discussion!