My Best Travel Hack? Other People´s Pets
How pet sitting dropped me into a hamlet with 67 residents, zero English, and a clown-horn produce truck — and why you should absolutely do it too.
After seven years, you probably know that pet sitting has become my personal travel cheat code. It lets me wander the world for less, get my fix of furry serotonin, and explore places that don’t even have a hotel — because apparently that’s now my brand. And these last three weeks? No different.
Immigration Lockdown: The Staycation Nobody Asked For
The interior of Portugal has been calling my name for ages — the real countryside, untouched, authentic old school culture, and blissfully unbothered by the English language. And since I’m currently on “immigration lockdown” (Portugal’s backlog of residency renewals means if I leave, I might not get back in), this seemed like the perfect time to explore. Nothing says adventure like being legally trapped.
So when a pet sit in a tiny hamlet called Sergudo (Sir-goo-doo) popped up on Trusted Housesitters, I applied and booked my eight-hour-plus bus ride up the Atlantic coast, then inland. My hostess was American (small world), and the village population? Sixty-seven. Down from seventy-seven in 2011. Will this dot on a map join the ranks of other deserted Portugal villages in the future? Time will tell.
Zero grocery, public transportation, post office, Uber, or gas station. Zero café. One road. Impressive home gardens. One tribe of cats, including a newbie still deciding whether he was predator, prey, or prince. And while it was already sounding like a Netflix docuseries waiting to happen, I was excited to just clear my head, hike, and relax.
Where Even Google Maps Says “Good Luck”
The nearest coffee source was a 30-minute walk along a one-lane road to the village of São João-something-that-sounded-like-a-sneeze. I’d park myself outside with a meia de leite or mini-beer, a good book, and enough peace to make a monk uncomfortable.
Their village grocery store was the size of an American walk-in closet and yet somehow carried frozen food, laundry detergent, tampons, cat food, cereal, and hope.
On my walks, I found hillsides dotted with locals harvesting olives, tree sap being tapped to make glue, chestnuts soon to be roasting on an open fire, and Eucalyptus trees sharing their sinus-clearing scent. One afternoon, I stopped dead in my tracks because I realized I heard nothing. No cars. No dogs. No people. No buzzing power lines. Nothing. Come on, how often does that happen?
Experiences You Can´t Make Up (Thanks, Pet Sitting)
Let’s be clear: none of this would’ve happened if I were staying in a hotel. Mostly because there are no hotels.
Milking a goat in a rainstorm, something I haven´t done since childhood, laughing the entire time, then enjoying impossibly fresh milk.
Sharing said milk with the cats, because why not?
Frequenting an English pub (can you believe it?) out in the middle of no man´s land, where I could speak English, enjoy lunch, wine, and catch up on the local gossip, all while getting in my 10,000 steps a day.
Meet fascinating people and listen to their stories through the DeepL translator. On one occasion, I swear this poor little app started sweating from overuse.
Picking oranges right off the tree.
Attending a Portuguese mass: I understood exactly zero words. The chapel holds 21 people. Nineteen showed up. A solid turnout, statistically speaking.
Daily simple life in Sergudo, Portugal Hopping into cars with strangers who somehow felt safer than Josef, the Uber driver I once tolerated in Croatia.
Purchasing fresh produce on Tuesdays straight off the truck. Bread and seafood on days only locals can predict. Each truck announced itself using a horn that sounded like it escaped from a clown college. Locals would gather around the truck, point, pay, then catch up on more local gossip for the next 10 minutes before the driver rambled over cobblestones to the next hamlet.
Warming up with a pork sandwich and beer served out of a food truck on a damp, cold night… the only food truck.
Exploring nearby Coja (circa pre-1260 A.D.) with a new friend (thank you, L!).
Experiencing complete silence without panicking.
Waving to the sweet nonnas who had a lot to share in Portuguese and kept a watchful eye on me, as if I were a daughter.
Pet sitting didn’t just make all this possible — it made it financially sane. Travel in exchange for dog walking and snuggling with three cats? Twist my arm.
Holiday Season = Peak Pet-Sitting Season
Now is the time when people with pets are frantically looking for someone to watch their fur babies while they attempt to endure/escape the holidays. Pet sitting can completely transform your holiday travels.
I’ve spent Christmases pet-sitting in Greece, Washington, D.C., England, and West Virginia. Nothing says holiday spirit like combining travel and pets that don’t judge your cookie consumption.
This holiday season, one friend is joyfully visiting family for Christmas but is pet-sitting nearby, so she doesn’t have to sleep on an inflatable “guest bed” (aka torture device). She even gets a car from the host and a great excuse to ensure her alone time. Win-win.
Another friend is heading to a U.S. city that would typically cost an entire paycheck per night. She’s staying with a dog and cat in a cozy home and saving enough money to buy herself something nice — like a European holiday in 2026.
So… What Are You Doing This Holiday Season?
If you’re itching to travel but your wallet says “choose again,” pet sitting might be the move. Trusted Housesitters currently has over 3,500 sits available for the holidays — everything from city lofts to countryside cottages to homes with views worth drooling over.
They’re also offering a generous discount right now for new annual members, which means you could be in a new city by Christmas. Hosts are rigorously vetted, the platform is seamless, and you’ll save yourself mucho moola.
Go Have an Adventure — The World Is Waiting (and So Are Its Pets)
If you’re ready to explore somewhere new, skip the boring hotels, and get your paws on the best travel hack out there, this is your sign. Pet sitting opens doors — sometimes literally, when a cat figures out how to use one.
There is much more I look forward to sharing about Portugal. But for now, I hope you grab your discount, pack your sense of adventure, and go make a story worth telling. Where will you travel to this holiday season and beyond?