I found this show on Netflix during the coldest part of January. It all started when my fiancé and I entered another dreaded Netflix show hole. We had finished Arrested Development and didn’t want to start The Office or Parks and Rec for the hundredth time. It also happened to be freezing and the ground was covered in 6″ of snow. Because it was so cold and snowy, the preview captured my attention right away.
Now this preview looked so warm. Like there was green plants in the preview and even a pool that looked so inviting. So I started the first episode. I was immediately drawn in.
So this is a reality show from Australia. There are ten couples who all rent their houses as Airbnb. They travel all around Australia to visit each other’s houses and they rate their experience. Some of the houses are near the beach, one is in the Australian wine country, and a couple of other houses were inland but had cool experiences.
The ten couples are broken into two groups. The first group of 5 couples travel to each others house and vote on the best house. The second group also consists of 5 couples who vote on the best house in their group. The two winners then compete in a grand finale which consists of two other couples from each group. So the couples who been to the house before can see if they made any changes to improve, which is balanced out with two couple (+ the other winner) who is seeing the house for the first time.
Each episode focus on a house. Each couple also leaves a welcome pack that contains activities in the area. Some of these activities include going to the beach, a crocodile watching trip, wine tasting, and a visit to a sewer treatment plant. Obviously, some activities are more appealing than others.
One of the coolest aspects of the show is that they are actual vacation rentals. Some of the houses have their own websites, others are on Airbnb or Bookings.com. This Distracify post
My favorite couple was the couple whose house was the focus of the first episode. I like how the outdoor area of their house was set up with an awesome pool and seemed very relaxing. My fiancé and I felt like we had the most in common with them and they were fairly kind to the other contestants. Like they would have been a great couple to go on a wine tasting adventure with. You can find their rental here.
There were two houses that really stood out for me. The first was the home in Barossa Valley. It was in the heart of wine country and was decorated in 1950s Americana decor. The second home was a houseboat. A brother and sister own and operate this houseboat. What is really cool is you can request wakeboarding lessons during your stay from the sister. She is a professional wakeboarder. You can also take the houseboat up and down the river during your stay.
Unfortunately, since this is a reality show some of the contestants are a kind of mean toward each other. Some of the couples are more villain like then a friendly travel companion. But this isn’t a huge deal breaker for me since it was so cool seeing a place I have never visited.
I noticed that they are currently working on a second season according to the Australian press. Hopefully, we will be seeing more episodes in the future!