Matthew & Ruth

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***PROFILE UPDATE: August 2026***
We're currently in the UK completing house/ pet-sits until the end of 2026, via the TrustedHousesitters scheme, where we have over 50 5-star reviews from the homeowners.

Next year, we will reach early retirement age, which will provide us with the opportunity to travel again via Workaways throughout Europe and hopefully beyond. As you’ll see from our feedback, we previously completed some very enjoyable and successful assignments, where we met many nice people and visited amazing places along the way. We’ve always felt it to be a brilliant exchange scheme, and can’t wait to resume our adventures!
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Hello! We’re Matthew and Ruth, and we’re a happy and life-loving married couple. We're fit, healthy and active and like to stay that way! We’re from Wales originally, where our family still live, and up until January 2018 we lived and worked in Edinburgh for 7 years.

Prior to this, in 2009, we did some extensive globe-trotting for a year, which changed our lives and our outlook forever. It also shaped our dreams and ambitions and gave us our love of adventure, travelling to new places and embracing new cultures (and food!) It also made us realise how important it is to take (or make) every opportunity for happiness and fulfilment that comes along, and that simple pleasures are most often the best!

We are both hard working, trustworthy and flexible, and can readily work to specific instructions and requirements without supervision.

The main skills that we would like to offer our hosts in their absence are:
Guardianship/caretaking/security and groundwork
Animal care and house sitting whilst homeowners are absent
Opening / closing of holiday homes at the beginning and end of a holiday or visit including laundry, cleaning and fully resetting the property
Basic DIY, gardening, swimming pool maintenance ready for the homeowners use
Dealing with trade/ contractors
We’re keen to assist in any way required, so just ask!

We have a lot of experience in the above areas, gained through working together as a ‘Domestic Guardian/Caretaker/House-Keeper/Pet Sitter Couple’ in roles throughout the UK, France and beyond. We’ve done this both as paid work and as volunteers over the past 8 years.

We very much enjoy working on tasks together whenever we can, it’s all part of the lifestyle!

We’re a confident and self-reliant couple, and are also discreet and independent - equally at ease in the company of others or just with each other. We do like to socialise and enjoy sharing a meal with others on occasion, but prefer to be able to prepare our own meals independently. For this reason, we will always ask wherever possible that our accommodation is private and includes kitchen and dining facilities (however small!)

So that’s us!

We look forward to meeting you!

Matt and Ruth
Idiomas hablados

Inglés: Fluido
Habilidades y conocimientos que queremos compartir o aprender

Ciertos conocimientos de:

Mantenimiento básico

Jardinería básica

Proyectos creativos DIY «hazlo tú mismo»

Cuidado de animales

Ayuda doméstica

Cuidado de casas y mascotas
Que habilidades tienes?

Our main skills that we would like to offer our hosts are: house-sitting, basic DIY, gardening, physical labour, housekeeping, animal care, IT and computing, friendly social and customer service skills. We’re keen to assist in any way required, so just ask!
Edad

54 & 54
Algo más...

We have our own car (essential for our explorations of the countries we visit!) full clean driving licences, and no criminal records or convictions.
Más información
- Fumador
- Permiso de conducir
- Alergia
- Dieta especial

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Comentarios

1 nov 2019

Dejado por el anfitrión (Learn about the animals in ...) para el workawayer ()

We have been inviting couples to help us for 4 years now. We can honestly say Matt and Ruth are up there with the best we have experienced. They are both very hard workers, and happy, yes, really happy, to do anything we asked of them. They did every single day with a massive smile on their faces, just a totally joyous couple to have around. They … read more

(Excelente )

1 nov 2019

Dejado por el workawayer () para el anfitrión (Learn about the animals in ...)

We spent an amazing 2 months with Di and Bungie at their stunning Quinta in hot and sunny Portugal. As hosts they are so welcoming, generous, helpful and kind....they quickly introduced us to their friends, the nearby town of Guia with it's bars and restaurants - we soon felt like locals ourselves.We had full use of a car which really made it for … read more

(Excelente )

12 may 2019

Dejado por el workawayer () para el anfitrión (Join a family run, beautiful ...)

We stayed with Hajar and Jan at their beautiful holiday villa resort in Langkawi between January and March 2019, and had a truly amazing experience there. The location is stunning, and the villas too - each unique and in traditional Malaysian style on the edge of the jungle in the heart of nature. The gardens and infinity swimming pool area are … read more

(Excelente )

12 may 2019

Dejado por el anfitrión para el workawayer ()

Matthew and Ruth have been excellent volunteers. They are very energetic, helpful and have been taking good care of our guests. They do the cleaning at the cafe area, some gardening job and helping us with the guests like check in, check out, buying the stock for store supplies, showing the guests around the Island and tourist attraction … read more

(Excelente )

1 feb 2019

Dejado por el anfitrión (Help us on an exciting ...) para el workawayer ()

Matt and Ruth were great helpers. They were organised and efficient, got on with the daily tasks without a problem and were always cheerful and good company.
We were able to go away on holiday during their visit and leave them to manage the day to day running of things as well as looking after our dogs. This was done without a question and we were … read more

(Excelente )

19 dic 2018

Dejado por el workawayer () para el anfitrión (Help us on an exciting ...)

We spent a very enjoyable 2 months with Tina, Norman and their family from October to December this year in stunning Perthshire. We were made to feel welcome and at home right away by our kind and generous hosts.
Throughout our time with them, we were given clear and straightforward instructions, and picked up the required duties and tasks quickly … read more

(Excelente )

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Comunicación:
(5.0)

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(5.0)

Respeto a las normas de la casa:
(5.0)

1 nov 2019

Dejado por el anfitrión (Learn about the animals in ...) para el workawayer

(Excelente)

1 nov 2019

Dejado por el workawayer para el anfitrión (Learn about the animals in ...)

(Excelente)

12 may 2019

Dejado por el workawayer para el anfitrión (Join a family run, beautiful ...)

(Excelente)

12 may 2019

Dejado por el anfitrión para el workawayer

(Excelente)

1 feb 2019

Dejado por el anfitrión (Help us on an exciting ...) para el workawayer

(Excelente)

19 dic 2018

Dejado por el workawayer para el anfitrión (Help us on an exciting ...)

(Excelente)

3 oct 2018

Dejado por el anfitrión (Help a Swedish couple with ...) para el workawayer

Matt & Ruth spent 6 months with us which is the longest stretch we have hosted workawayers so far. And what a jackpot it was! We couldn’t have hoped for better people. They arrived during a chilly, wet spell but were just as chirpy and happy then as during the brilliant spring months and the long hot summer. They truly enjoyed the property, the … read more surroundings and did interesting excursions several times a week. They total independence was a great benefit as it is so much more enjoyable hosting workawayers that enjoy themselves and appreciate the experience. All their excursions were documented for the benefit of future workawayers.
Matt & Ruth are extremely discreet and never intruded. Not that we would have minded. Ours is not a huge property but still days could go by without hardly seeing them. But when we met up for cocktails, dinner or joint excursions it was a huge pleasure.
Hanging out with Matt & Ruth is always lots of fun. They are very relaxed, fun and interesting. Conversations were fascinating and we always learned something new. We also had the pleasure of getting to know some of there friends and family that came to visit them. The help Matt & Ruth provided us was invaluable. They are completely independent and once a task was explained it was carried out like clockwork and a smile. We could depend on Matt & Ruth 100% and the fact that they seemed to enjoy the tasks so much made it all so great. We left the property in their good hands on many occasions as we could take of on trips fully confident that the property and all its animas were in just as good hands as when we were home. This made our trips and vacations so much more enjoyable. Matt & Ruth truly love all animals and that to is such a benefit when hosting workawayers. the fact that the pets enjoy spending time with the just as much as with us makes a pet owner completely relax. We often had to retrieve our 2 golden retrievers , Lisa and Babe, at the farmhouse in the evenings as they wandered down there to hang out with Matt and Ruth instead of with us. And our goat Ingrid followed Ruth around the property as the most well trained dog. We think Ingrid underwent a slight depression after Ruth left her.
Matt & Ruth, thank you so much for choosing to spend 6 months with us! Any hosts that you choose to spend time with should feel themselves very very lucky. And we look forward to seeing you again in the future!

(Excelente)

1 oct 2018

Dejado por el workawayer para el anfitrión (Help a Swedish couple with ...)

We spent an amazing 6 months with Richard and Camilla at their fairytale Chateau in Northern France. It was a long hot summer and the experience was one we'll remember forever.
Our hosts immediately welcomed us into their family circle, introducing us to their neighbours and friends and we enjoyed many social occasions with them all, mostly … read more centered around excellent food and drink, all locally sourced and delicious!
Richard and Camilla are truly the warmest, most kind, generous, interesting, genuine people who are great company and have a great sense of fun - we had a lot of laughs and good times together.

The accommodation is in a very private converted cottage in the grounds of the chateau. It's cosy in the winter with the wood burner and a cool oasis in the summer. It's right in the middle of nature, with amazing views of the stunning French countryside in all directions. There is as much outside space as you want, perfect for relaxing in the sun and alfresco dining!

The tasks were varied and fulfilling and soon became part of our everyday lives. Mainly gardening, groundwork and caring for the wonderful animals on a daily basis. We did some occasional house sitting, kept the prized swimming pool clean, chopped wood in the cooler months and tackled other tasks as they arose. It's a horse lovers paradise! We got to know all the horses with their different personalities, and whilst we're not experienced with horses, we learned so much about them and gained in confidence with caring for them - they are beautiful creatures.

We had close contact with Camilla, who gave clear guidance on the different projects that arose around the properties and grounds. A great communicator and a very special person - always smiling, full of energy and always happy to share her knowledge and skills with us throughout. She was truly an inspiration to us and is amazingly resourceful. Great tractor skills too!

Richard is a busy man, who loves to work hard and play hard! He travels frequently on business and takes it all in his stride. He's a great all-rounder when it comes to country living, and an accomplished and experienced horse man. He also shared his wealth of experience and helped us get to grips with tasks, as well helping us integrate into local French life - visits to local villages and markets. We really appreciated this, and once we began exploring the area, we couldn't stop.

The local area and the nearby towns of Laval and Chateau Gontier offer everything you could need during your stay. One of our favourite pastimes was walking or cycling along stretches of the stunning Mayenne river, along the towpath cycle track with its lovely locks and occasional cafes and restaurants. A quick check of the map showed us that a great many wonderful places lay within an hour's drive of the Chateau, and we loved exploring the region as much as possible. It's just stunning!

After such a wonderful summer there, we found it very difficult to leave not only our fabulous hosts, but their beloved animals also - Babe and Lisa (2 darling dogs, what a pair of characters!) and of course the latest addition to the family - Ingrid the goat. She's a bundle of fun, energy and mischief!

Richard and Camilla - thank you so very much for everything - we miss everyone and would love to see you all again in the future!

(Excelente)

24 mar 2018

Dejado por el anfitrión para el workawayer

What a great couple Matthew & Ruthie are! They bravely took on our pack of dogs and various other ducks, chickens etc for 2 weeks whilst we were away without having even met us first! It was their first WorkAway experience, and they did a brilliant job of looking after everything in our absence. They are a capable, responsible and practical couple … read more

(Excelente)

7 mar 2018

Dejado por el workawayer para el anfitrión (Help with housesitting and ...)

We house sat and looked after the dogs, ducks and chickens for 2 weeks in February whilst Debs and Keith took a well deserved holiday.
We loved being in the middle of nature, walking in vineyards each day and falling in love with the dogs, each with their individual characters and personalities. We explored the local area and enjoyed sampling … read more

(Excelente)