All in Alternative Lodging

Why We do House Sitting Jobs for Free

Why We do House Sitting Jobs for Free

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Lifestyle, Travel

House sitting is an amazing way to travel on a budget! We’ve house sat full time for over four years and have had amazing adventures all around the world. At this point, with so much house sitting experience and over 70 five-star reviews we could likely make a bit of money by charging for our services, but we choose not to. Read on to understand not only why we don’t charge but also how we started house sitting and why we love it. Plus, find a wealth of links to resources with tips and tricks to help you be successful house sitting.

Hyatt Mattress Run: Part 2 | How We Earned Hyatt Globalist Elite Status for Two Years

Hyatt Mattress Run: Part 2 | How We Earned Hyatt Globalist Elite Status for Two Years

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Lifestyle, Travel

At the end of 2020, we wrote about the possibility of doing a Hyatt mattress run. The allure of earning Hyatt Globalist status for two years (through February 2023) and earning points in a hotel program we hadn’t participated in yet had us contemplating all of the possibilities! With a stacking of a few promotions, like a 50% reduction in elite qualifying nights required, the doubling of elite night credits for each stay, and the improved World of Hyatt Chase credit card offer, we could easily earn our way to Hyatt Globalist faster than ever before.

Ultimately, the path to Hyatt’s top elite status for two years and a healthy amount of Hyatt reward points was simply too enticing for us to pass up!

Hyatt Mattress Run: Part 1 | Getting Globalist Status for Two Years During Covid-19

Hyatt Mattress Run: Part 1 | Getting Globalist Status for Two Years During Covid-19

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Lifestyle, Travel

The world of travel came to a stop in early 2020 and the industry as a whole is pushing to keep their customers loyal, both through COVID-19 safety precautions and lucrative promotions. Hyatt’s current stackable promotions and 50% reduction in nights needed to earn elite status (until 2023!) have made a mattress run for points and top tier Globalist status extremely tempting!

The Ultimate House Sitting Guide: Part 6 | Stories, Funny Moments, and the Not So Glamorous

The Ultimate House Sitting Guide: Part 6 | Stories, Funny Moments, and the Not So Glamorous

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Travel

There was a time when we thought getting a house sitting job would consist a lot on luck. So, it’s incredible to think that we’ve been house sitting for three years and have completed nearly 60 house sits! But, if you’ve read parts one through six of our Ultimate House Sitting Guide series, then you know that it actually does take effort and work to not only get a house sit but also fulfill the responsibilities and complete the house sitting job.

Now that we’ve shared our tips and tricks for everything house sitting, we thought there’d be no better way to complete this guide than with a few of our favorite house sitting experiences, challenges, and lessons learned/takeaways.

The Ultimate Guide to House Sitting Jobs: Part 5 | Finishing Up, Helpful Reviews, and Lessons Learned

The Ultimate Guide to House Sitting Jobs: Part 5 | Finishing Up, Helpful Reviews, and Lessons Learned

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Travel

House Sitting: It’s not done until it’s done. In other words, you’ve completed a house sitting job and taken great care of the home and pets, but there’s still a bit more to do. Turning the home and pets back over to the homeowner, submitting reviews, and saying goodbye are still ahead of you. Read on for our tips on wrapping everything up, including leaving a great last impression and receiving and submitting helpful house sitting reviews.

The Ultimate Guide to House Sitting Jobs: Part 4 | How to Plan & Have a Great House Sitting Experience

The Ultimate Guide to House Sitting Jobs: Part 4 | How to Plan & Have a Great House Sitting Experience

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Travel

After more than 40 house sitting jobs we’ve picked up several tips and tricks on how to make the house sitting experience a great one, for both us and the homeowner. It starts with a great profile, a well written application, good communication, and continues through the actual house sitting job. Read on to see step by step what we do to try and make every house sit a good one!

The Ultimate Guide to House Sitting Jobs: Part 3 | Searching, Applying, & Getting a Great One!

The Ultimate Guide to House Sitting Jobs: Part 3 | Searching, Applying, & Getting a Great One!

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Travel

If you’re looking to house sit full time, occasionally, or just want to try it out for the first time, being able to find a great house sitting job is important. Having completed 40 house sitting jobs we’ve perfected our methods through many ‘lessons learned’ and are sharing our tips and tricks to find a great house sit, apply for it, and get it!

The Ultimate Mattress Run | Hacking Hotel Rewards for Free Rooms with Hilton!

The Ultimate Mattress Run | Hacking Hotel Rewards for Free Rooms with Hilton!

Screw The Average
Alternative Lodging, Lifestyle, Travel

Learn how we took travel award hacking to the extreme and got 41 hotel room nights free with Hilton using hotel rewards and promotions. And, we’re not just talking zero cash out of pocket, we used less than 65 reward points per night on a normally 5,000 point room. Not only did we essentially stay free, we also extended our Hilton Honors Diamond Status for another year!