How to Travel Cheaply with International House & Pet Sitting

I’m starting to believe that one of the most underrated travel hacks of the 21st century is this: house and pet-sitting abroad.

As a traveler, it’s one of the best ways to save money while traveling internationally (or domestically), live “locally,” and discover a destination off the tourist trail.

And did I mention free accommodation?

While house/pet sitting means free housing in exchange for XYZ services (e.g., caring for pets, watering plants, etc.), it is not entirely free.

Most house/pet-sitting websites require membership, which costs a low monthly or annual fee, not to mention the cost of getting there. But I digress for now!

The sitting membership paywall can be a bit frustrating initially, but it truly pays for itself with your first sit.

Use my link for 25% off your TrustedHousesitters membership!

Proof is that I am currently on my 8th (?) house sit, caring for a sweet pup in a luxurious 3-bedroom apartment in the heart of Tokyo, Japan. That’s right! I get to live in Tokyo rent-free?? Say less.

I could not afford this accommodation in Tokyo for two months without house-sitting. Plus, I get free dog cuddles and can use the family’s e-bikes and car! (How generous is that!)

The benefits of international house sitting in that regard speak for themselves.

Still, I’ll discuss the realities vs. expectations and responsibilities of house sitting more below.

I have been using housesits to travel slowly abroad while saving money as a full-time traveler and digital nomad for the last 2-3 years, starting with my first housesit in Vancouver, Canada, caring for a loveable German Shepherd mix.

But even if you aren’t fully remote, you should still consider international housesitting!

So, how much does international pet sitting really cost, and how can you find opportunities to sit abroad?

Read more below for my tips and personal experience.

Your Ultimate Guide to Traveling & International House/Pet Sitting

How to Become a Traveling House/Pet Sitter

Anyone can use house and pet sitting to score free accommodation abroad. Truly!

Logistically, to house-sit abroad, you only need:

• A valid passport (and/or valid visa documents)
• Verified profile on a house sitting site such as TrustedHousesitters (read below)

You don’t need any particular contract or special visas, as this isn’t a job opportunity. Think of house/pet sitting like Airbnb but with a service exchange.

With housesitting, you get free accommodation in exchange for providing a service (i.e., taking care of the house and pets).

Many people won’t (or shouldn’t) use house sitting to travel because this requires a few commitments, the most important of which is your flexibility and adherence to the pet’s schedule.

While you could use house/pet sitting to reduce vacation costs, you won’t be “free” like on a regular holiday since you may have pets to care for and/or have specific homecare instructions.

I will discuss general restrictions and the potential downsides of house sitting below!

Best Websites for Finding International House/Pet Sitting Opportunities

Using a trustworthy and renowned website for finding house sits abroad is the first place to start.

However, note that it’s not the only way to find these opportunities; destination Facebook groups, family/friends, and professional networks are good circles to explore, too.

Below are what I consider the best websites for finding international house and pet sits, but please note that I have only used TrustedHousesitters and not the others.

• TrustedHousesitters is my go-to platform! It’s recommended for those who want to swap pet care for free accommodation. It’s like Airbnb for animal lovers!

• Nomador: This platform connects sitters with pet owners, similar to THS (but less active). There seem to be a lot of France sits. I don’t like their website, and it doesn’t feel as authentic or as navigable either (lots of stock footage, not searchable unless you create an account first, etc.).

• MindMyHouse: It seems like a unique community where you can find house-sitting opportunities worldwide, sometimes in offbeat locations like remote islands or countryside retreats.

• HouseSit Match: This site (and social) looks outdated, but it uses traditional house sitting with an online matchmaking approach to help find that “perfect match” between homeowners and sitters.

• Luxury House Sitting: For those seeking an upscale experience, this site caters to luxury properties needing caretakers, offering lavish house living.

Fellow sitters I’ve met have mentioned that specific sites are better for particular regions.

For example, if you are looking for house sits in Europe, TrustedHousesitters might be a good option (they have tons).

Other examples are Aussie House Sits for finding Australia-specific opportunities and House Sitters America for United States locations only.

I have always found a diverse range of house sits available on TrustedHousesitters! I have even found sits without pets for when a family needs their plants watered or their mail checked.

There are various reasons why people need a house sitter while they’re gone, but security and peace of mind are the big ones!

Pros & Cons of International House/Pet-sitting

Besides free accommodation in epic destinations, what are the pros of international house/pet-sitting?

For many sitters, it’s the opportunity to travel slower in one location (but not always).

I’d say the second biggest perk after free housing is the animal-human contact. A lot of travelers leave their own pets behind (to travel) and miss the connection.

I’m a big animal lover, for example, so being able to “live” with other pets and get dog or kitty cuddles is a big perk of the experience.

To shorten the spiel, here are the pros of housesitting:

• Free accommodation while traveling
• Animal love
• Unique stays in epic places
• Local insight
• Experiential > touristy
• May include extra use of bicycles, car, etc

And some of the potential cons/downsides of it:

• Limited flexibility to “travel” once in-location due to pet schedules
• Sometimes requires more travel commitment and expenses pre/post-sit

To add to bullet point one on the downsides list, I don’t think it’s necessarily a con because the opportunity provides opportunities you’d otherwise not have.

For example, let’s consider my housesit in Tokyo:

Because of the dog that I was sitting for, I couldn’t take a weekend overnight trip out of Tokyo as I could as a tourist/vacationer. Still, I got to live rent-free in Tokyo for two months, discover local neighborhoods, make friends with locals, become a regular at my neighborhood cafe, bakery, and grocery store, and get lots of sweet cuddles each day from an adorable rescue dog, Coco!

I may be biased, but honestly, there aren’t really THAT many downsides to highlight here.

💡 House/pet-sitting abroad affords you opportunities you wouldn’t think possible.

On the other side, the home/pet owners looking for sitters are primarily concerned that their furkid is well taken care of and loved in their home to avoid needing to board.

That was the case for us!

After the FAQ, you can read more about my experience using TrustedHousesistters—as both a traveling sitter and a nomadic pet owner looking for sitters.

FAQs About Traveling While House & Pet Sitting

Can you apply to sits if you travel with a dog or cat?

Yes! We traveled everywhere with our cat, Yoda, until he passed in early 2024. We always sat for other dogs—and introduced them slowly for 3-4 days. Make sure to announce this in your application—it’s not a guaranteed “no” if you are coming with furry baggage.

Do you need special visas to do pet homestays abroad?

Nope! You can enter the country on a regular tourist visa but please check your specific requirements before you apply for a housesit, not after, as some countries take a few days or weeks to process some tourist visas (in the cases you do need to apply in advance).

Does it cost anything to house/pet sit internationally?

The only fees associated are your own travel expenses plus the annual membership to grant access to these opportunities.

Is international house/pet sitting ideal for tourists and vacations?

It depends on the nature of your vacation. However, due to pet schedules, I would say this set-up isn’t ideal for an active traveler who wants to discover a destination with a full itinerary, moving from place to place, as you are expected to live in the pet’s home as you would if you were its owner.

How long do house/pet sits last?

You’ll see that people search for sitters anywhere from one night up to several months! The shortest pet sit I’ve done is three nights and the longest is two months.

My Experience Using TrustedHousesitters.com

Let’s recap the sits I have done so far, thanks to TrustedHousesitters!

First, I used TrustedHousesitters as a traveling pet sitter, and later, I used TrustedHousesitters as a homeowner needing a sitter to care for our travel cat, Yoda.

We’ve landed unforgettable stays in Vancouver (Canada); Bend (Oregon); San Francisco (California); Seattle (Washington); Asheville (North Carolina); and Tokyo and Hiroshima (Japan)—all popular cities where the average hotel cost is upward of $150-200/night.

As a homeowner (read: long-term apartment renter), I have used TrustedHousesitters three times for month-long Mexico sits (as my partner and I were slow-traveling nomads in Mexico). Upon publishing the listing each time, we received dozens of requests, flooding our inboxes.

That means, as a pet sitter, the best opportunities (for example, my two-month sit in the heart of Tokyo, Japan) go FAST.

I have a few tips below for snagging your dream housesit.

Pet-sitting Abroad 101: How TrustedHousesitters Works

If you are new to TrustedHousesitters and/or international pet-sitting in general, this is basically how it works:

1. Sign up for a free account to search for pet-sitting homestays
2. Once you find a sit you wish to apply for, sign up for a membership (get 25% off here)
3. Send out applications!
4. Finalize and confirm travel plans
5. Happy housesitting 🙂

What I like about TrustedHousesitters is you can search for opportunities with a free account (sign up with your Gmail, email, or Facebook).

One of the site’s perks is its searchable world map. It shows which destinations have open spaces and how many.

Perhaps the best feature is the ability to save a popular search to “favorites” and receive push notifications on your phone with new sits.

For example, I signed up to receive notifications for any new housesits listings located in Japan—which is exactly how I was among the first five applicants to send my message for my two sits in Tokyo and one sit in Hiroshima.

Tip: After a homeowner receives its first five applicants, the site pauses the listing to give owners time to sift through available sitters. This is why the timeliness of your application as a sitter is so important!

Tips to Increase Your Chances of Getting Chosen as the Sitter

This is where flexibility comes into play.

As mentioned, competition can be fierce, so if you are looking to sit in beautiful and highly-sought after destinations, you’ll need to make sure you:

• Create a thorough profile with details of you, photos, and 5-star reviews (enlist family to help if you need a jumpstart or take on small sits near you before going international). Use my link for 25% off your membership!
• Apply to “last-minute sits” to narrow the choices between you and the competition!
• Personalize every application; it is obvious when your message is copied/pasted.
• Offer a video chat right from the start to show your personality and trustworthiness.
• Strongly communicate your travel plans so you don’t feel unpredictable.

Offering to go the extra mile pays off in an application.

For example, you can offer to send the pet owner daily photos/videos (or as frequently as they wish), water their plants/garden, pick up their mail, clean the house, and whatever else.

In essence, be transparent, generous, and genuine.

In many cases, sitters are flaky; if you are not, you will quickly build a solid pet-sitting profile.

I can’t tell you the number of applications I received as a pet owner from people who just wanted my house for free and didn’t care about caring for Yoda.

Tip: Create the profile and be the applicant you wish to receive and care for YOUR home and pet. Consider your profile from a pet owner’s point of view. What would you look for in a sitter?

Landing your dream housesit—like mine in Tokyo—is about luck, yes, but also about being decisive.

I knew I wanted to be in Tokyo and was extremely open to any opportunity that came my way.

My first homestay in Tokyo, which lasted five nights, became another chance to stay for two months later in the year. Once the family and I were familiar from that first stay, it was effortless for us both to say “Yes!” again to another sit.

If you haven’t considered international house and pet-sitting as a way to travel somewhat cheaply (but more than that, deeply!), then do!

If I missed anything in this post, and you have lingering questions about TrustedHousesitters or the practicalities of house/pet-sitting abroad, please let me know in the comments below, and I’ll get back to you!