Many cities and countries have started the process of slowly opening up, and we’re all adjusting to the new normal of life with COVID-19.
We’ve been enjoying the unique and welcoming homes that our members have posted recently. Many of them have something in common; they are homes with built-in social distancing.
These homes are ideal for writing, focusing on a research project or just enjoying the countryside if you are able to work from home for an extended time. If you aren’t able to travel yet, enjoy this virtual tour and dream a little about a future trip. We are doing the same!
If you are able to travel safely and interested in any of these homes, please contact the hosts privately on our site. We always recommend background and reference checks between members prior to confirming a contract.
Before making housing arrangements with another member, please be sure to check local health and travel guidelines in that area. For international updates, please refer to the WHO website below.
Related: World Health Organization COVID-19 Information
Dream Home #1: Fern Cottage Mountain Retreat in Virginia
This sanctuary high above the Jackson River Valley in Monterey, Virginia is surrounded by views of the mountain and forest. It’s the perfect writing retreat, with privacy and all the beauty of nature right outside your door when you need a break from your work.
Available May to November 2020
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Dream Home #2: Peaceful Dordogne Home in the French Countryside
This bright and welcoming home in Valeuil, France is the perfect place for peace and quiet. Full of natural light and with large gardens, you can revel in the French countryside. It’s the best of both worlds, with the shops and restaurants of Brantome less than a 10-minute drive away. The owner is looking for a home exchange with another member in London.
Available for exchange with a home in London, starting July 2020
View Listing
Dream Home #3: Timber Frame Home in North Carolina
This timber frame home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina shares 5 acres of fenced garden with the owner’s home. Its unique design and access to the woods makes it a wonderful place to stay. World-class universities, shopping and restaurants are nearby.
Available August 2020 to December 2021
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Dream Home #4: La Maison Laurentienne in Quebec
This beautiful country house overlooks the St. Lawrence River and the Laurentians mountain range. With its high ceilings and many windows, the home is full of natural light, and the downstairs has ample space for a family to enjoy spending time together.
Available starting June 2020
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Dream Home #5: The Red House in Mendocino, California
This charming home is full of history, having originally been two laborers shacks built over 100 years ago. It is no longer a shack, with comfortable furnishings and a wood stove and propane heat to keep you warm when the northern California coastal fog rolls in. 3 hours north of San Francisco, you can explore the Mendocino coastline and artsy community.
Available September 2020 to July 2021
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Dream Home #6: Private Cottage on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia
Enjoy this spacious and inviting cottage on Salt Spring Island. Read, write, practice yoga, walk to the beach or through the woods, all with easy access to Victoria and Vancouver. This is a wonderful spot for a writing retreat or an extended vacation.
Available starting in September 2020
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Dream Home #7: Contemporary Lake House with a Dock in New York
Enjoy views of Cayuga Lake at sunrise, sunset and all day long in this beautiful and unique family home. With its cathedral ceilings, walls of windows and expansive decks, this home will let you feel one with nature while working, relaxing or playing!
Available July 2020 to June 2021
View Listing
If we missed your home and it would make a great dream home or writing retreat, please add a comment to our blog with the link to your listing. Let us know what you think! Connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook.
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DREAMING SPIRES of OXFORD?
Our idyllic Garden Studio is the ideal place to write, or simply find solace and inspiration. It’s on the river yet in the very heart of Oxford, close to Magdalen College (where CS Lewis and Oscar Wilde were) and walking distance to the colleges. The Deer park lies just opposite. The roses in your garden have just started to bloom. Why not come and pick them? (Sleeps 2. Available now.)
Love these homes!
We love them too, Laurie. There are many more. We just couldn’t fit them all in this article 🙂
If you’re looking for a little country charm in the Washington, DC area, this quiet farmhouse on a quarter acre lot is just the ticket; close in and yet secluded:
https://www.sabbaticalhomes.com/129103
Enjoy living in romantic southern France where everything you need is steps away, You can live in the historic center of beautiful Avignon and buy your baguette and groceries at the end of the block—doing so safely thanks to France’s strict social-distancing measures. Work in an arty, quiet 16th century apartment with modern amenities and a sunlight-drenched office.. 2 bed, 1 bath, suited to 1-3 people. Available Sept 2020 to June 2021. https://www.sabbaticalhomes.com/133730
Hi Myriam, Thank you for pointing out your Beautiful apartment in the heart of Avignon. I added it to my own bucket list.
Another style of social distancing can be living within a small historic town in England with all the conveniences in short walking distance. There are several walking/biking paths, and gardens and a riverwalk along the Avon passing the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (currently closed. The Cotswolds designated an area of natural beauty https://landscapesforlife.org.uk/about-aonbs/aonbs/cotswolds is a short drive away for isolated country walks. Currently very few tourists.
Do consider my second home in Stratford-upon-Avon, UK..
Check out SabbaticalHomes listing 133275 – A fully furnished two-story semi-detached 1930’s house in Old Town Stratford-upon-Avon
The researchers and scholars who’ve stayed in the 1 bdrm apartment in my Berlin townhouse say it is a dream to live there! I’ve had some wonderful people staying in the 7 years since I joined Sabbatical Homes. It becomes available again from July 1st 2020 – and I’m wondering when it will be that academics can resume their travel? It’s a lovely quiet place with a holiday feel – fully furnished with all essentials included – yet with easy access to the glories of Berlin. Rent is negotiable.
My 24 year old daughter could be interested in renting or exchanging your apartment as from January 2021 for 3-6 months (or maybe longer). She is returning to Berlin after 16 years mainly in Granada, Spain. But where is your house located? She will be doing a make-up artist course in Halensee and would best like to live in Charlottenburg or Wilmersdorf, but Mitte could also be of interest. Thanks for further information, Alice Doeldissen
Check out Ron’s place in Point Roberts, Washington USA. https://www.sabbaticalhomes.com/89532 is perfect for working from home – a writers retreat in relaxed atmospherics.
Desert Writing Retreat in Southern New Mexico – This is the real West
Available: Sep 23, 2020 – Jun 26, 2021. Listing # 124281
Totally renovated classic 1950s casita in the village of Tularosa, New Mexico between the Sacramento and the San Andreas Mountain Ranges. This charming and rural village retreat comes with internet, central heat and cooling and all utilities. A acequia runs in the front and the back is a stunning view of mountain sunrises. Check it out at: http://www.sabbaticalhomes.com/OfferedDetails.aspx?id=124281
Thanks for sharing, I wouldn’t mind swapping with Dulcie Smartn when us Europeans are allowed to travel in July. I’ve also been a member for years and appreciate the academics that have stayed and returned to my 1920s duplex in Montparnasse…
https://www.sabbaticalhomes.com/137340 Take a breath of fresh air while sequestering in our home in the Colorado Rocky Mountains! This is a perfect place to delve into a research project, write or create a work of art. Outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy exploring the mountains on foot or by bicycle within the vast network of local trails.
Wishing everyone good health and hope to see you this fall!
Your home looks wonderful, thank you for adding it to the list!
You’re welcome! Have a happy summer!