Help & FAQ

Swap connects travelers with local guides for a cultural exchange — not for money. A local shows you around their city, and in return you offer something non-monetary: language practice, friendship, covering small shared costs, or simply good company and a new perspective.

Open Explore, filter by country, city, language, or the kind of exchange you're after, and browse guides. Open a profile to see their bio, languages, what they'd like in exchange, and their available dates.

Pick an open date on a guide's profile and send a request with what you can offer. The guide reviews it and approves or declines. Once approved, you both get a confirmation email with each other's contact details so you can arrange the meet-up.

Register as a guide (or switch from a traveler account using "Become a Guide"), then complete your profile: country, city, languages, what you'd like in exchange, a short bio, and a photo. Your profile goes live in Explore only once all of those are filled in.

Yes. If you join as a traveler and later want to host, use "Become a Guide" — you keep your traveler account and can do both.

Most swaps are warm and rewarding, but you're meeting new people, so a few habits matter: meet in public and in daylight, tell a friend your plans, and trust your instincts. See our Safety page for the full guidance.

A gold ✓ Verified badge means that person confirmed a real, working email address when they signed up. It's a basic authenticity signal — every member verifies their email before they can log in.

After a confirmed swap, both people can leave a review. Ratings appear on guide profiles and Explore cards, so the community builds a reputation over time.

Open My Trips and use "Report a user." Reports are private and reviewed by our team, and we can block anyone who breaks the rules — a blocked person can no longer log in.

You need to verify your email first. Check your inbox (and spam) for the verification link, click it, then log in. Until you verify, login stays blocked.

Give it a minute and check your spam folder. Make sure you typed your email correctly — if it's wrong, the link can never arrive, and you'd need to register again with the correct address.

Go to your Account page to update your name or change your password. Guides can also change their password from the guide dashboard.

Tap "Log out" in the bottom menu — it signs you out and returns you to the homepage.

Yes. Swap is built around non-monetary exchange — no booking fees, no charges to join or use the platform.

No. Guides aren't paid through Swap. The "exchange" is non-monetary — language practice, friendship, cultural exchange, or covering small shared costs you both agree on (like your own coffee or entry tickets).

No. Nobody should pressure you to pay them. If that happens, decline and report the user from My Trips. Swap is not a paid-tour service.