Every year, we release a list of the best hosts to volunteer with at Worldpackers. In this 8th edition of our Best Places to Collaborate award, we selected the best 60 hosts for your volunteering all around the world.
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The best hosts of 2022 were praised by volunteers in their reviews, and also fulfilled various criteria, such as environmental consciousness. We considered all of our open positions in more than 170 countries, including diverse exchanges at hostels, ecovillages, farms, schools, NGOs, and more.
Winning hosts all display one or more of these 3 fundamental pillars:
- Community development: social impact and consciousness;
- Cultural exchange: local cultural immersion, language practice, connection between international travelers and locals;
- Environmental restoration: environmental consciousness, sustainability, and connection with nature.
Besides offering great experiences and a welcoming atmosphere, the best hosts are also expected to provide good facilities with organized and clean spaces, defined schedules for volunteer tasks, and all benefits they list on our website – as well as responding to messages in a timely manner.
In 2022, Worldpackers reached more than 3 million users, a diverse group of people from every corner of the world. The mission of our hosts is to successfully welcome all volunteers, so that they feel respected regardless of their age, gender, nationality, or ability.
As for our community volunteers, they help hosts out for a limited number of hours each week, and in exchange receive lodging and other benefits like meals, trips, discounts, and more.
Winners:
Check out more details about some of them below:
Backpacking in South America is a great option if you’re starting out traveling on a budget and want to experience the region. One or two languages will take you very far, and it’s cheaper than traveling in Europe or North America, for example.
Nazaré Uniluz is a holistic center in the state of São Paulo that focuses on continuous learning, experiences like meditation practice and courses that promote self-awareness and consciousness awakening.
With more than 40 years of experience, they’ve received excellent reviews from Worldpackers members, especially for people who like ecological volunteering and yoga.
NGO Desengarrafando Mentes (literally: Unbottling Minds) is located in São Sebastião, on the northern coast of São Paulo. Besides having some of the most beautiful landscapes in Brazil, you can meaningfully contribute to restoring our planet.
Volunteers come from all over, and the hosts provide an environment free of judgement and discrimination. Volunteers praised this host’s organization and transformative energy.
Romã Ashram is in the state of São Paulo, part of touristic town Águas de São Pedro which is famous for its hot springs and peaceful atmosphere among nature.
They’re a holistic center that hosts people of all genders and origins, leading things such as encounters with the sacred feminine.
Volunteers praised the beauty of their place in the middle of the mountains, as well as the delicious vegan food.
Refúgio Barro Branco is a host that works towards a more conscious world with less rushing and more deep relationships. Following permaculture principles, they host volunteers who help with agroforestry, gardening, and maintaining their space.
Beside learning about permaculture, volunteers can also experience the Chapada Diamantina, an unmissable region full of waterfalls, caves, and trails in the Brazilian state of Bahia.
The perfect place for people who miss childhood on the farm, picking fruits and enjoying the countryside. Sítio da Família Catarina offers a familial feel and earned praise from volunteers for their enriching experiences and various day trips around the area.
Volunteers can enjoy nature in the town of Urubici in Santa Catarina, near mountains and waterfalls. The area is great for people who like cool weather and hot chocolate!
Volunteering at Nova Floresta offers learning about permaculture and bioconstruction, contributing to planet restoration and part of the reason why this host is among our best of the year.
Aside from their incredible location in the middle of a forest, this host also includes three meals a day, camping areas, and even permaculture courses.
Anyone who travels to Immersion Travel Oxapampa gets a unique experience in the middle of a tropical rainforest, along with the chance to practice Spanish and English.
Volunteers praised host Bresly for her dedication and deep knowledge of plants, insects, and local animals. She studied environmental management in Germany and came back to her home country to achieve her dream of creating an ecological community.
Ovejaus or Oveja Verde is a diverse space that’s continuously being constructed by local volunteers, migrants, environmentalists, and backpackers. It’s an ideal space for people who want to have enriching experiences that contribute to planet restoration.
At Ovejaus, volunteers learn about growing their own food, nurturing nature in their daily lives, recycling, restoring furniture and decorations, and circular economies.
Hosts at Las Montañas del Edén got praise for respecting volunteers’ schedules and the amazing meals included with their exchanges.
If you like hiking, exploring nature, and learning how to take care of a property sustainably, this is the place for you. Their focus on planet restoration and local community development earned them a place on our best hosts list this year.
How about getting to know North America differently, staying away from the big cities? The best hosts for volunteers in the USA, Canada, and Mexico offer ecological and holistic experiences, except one country isn’t represented!
At the Finca Florida in Mexico, volunteers can learn about cultivating cacao or coconuts depending on the time they visit – beside practicing their Spanish.
There’s plenty of inner learning too, because you need to respect nature’s rhythms and disconnect from the rush of big cities. In addition to learning about permaculture and organic farming, volunteers can enjoy nearby beaches on the Pacific coast.
One of the most relaxing places on our list, the Dharmakaya Center for Wellbeing is a huge property that lets volunteers hike safely and enjoy the local nature, even when it’s a colder climate.
Volunteers can learn English, as well as conservation processes and trail maintenance, camping techniques like making safe fires, and much more.
The rural location of Finca Ganadito is complemented by beautiful beaches, surrounded by native forests, mangroves, and waterfalls. The closest tourist town, Agujitas, is only an hour away, and volunteers can even visit Corcovado National Park and the marine reverse on the Island of Caño.
Volunteers learned a lot here this year, and complimented hosts for their patience in teaching, openness to suggestions, good organization, and host Rebe’s excellent cooking.
Backpacking in Europe is on a ton of travelers’ bucket lists. You can take a train ride through Europe to reduce your carbon footprint, or enjoy low-cost flights if you’re in a hurry.
The Mahakaruna Buddhist Center was one of our best places of the year for travelers looking to learn Spanish and make a positive social impact, impactfully helping the world.
Volunteers praised their excellent vegetarian food, flexible schedules for tasks like gardening, cooking, and maintenance, and access to free yoga classes.
At this family farm in Sweden, volunteers learn everything there is to know about a dairy farm with cows, goats, and other animals. The host is a university professor in Upsalla, and teaches long-term volunteers super specific skills like tractor driving!
Exchanges here meet all of our criteria for best volunteer hosts: nature stewardship, cultural exchange, and community development.
Romania isn’t a very well-known destination, but it should be! The Finding Hope team is here to show that it’s worth getting to know Romania, and help contribute to a cause there.
Host Maurivan got compliments for great food, organization, and allowing volunteers to help out and learn from the children they care for at this home.
Meditation center Manjushri Kadampa gives volunteers the chance to learn about Buddhism. Hosts won compliments for the variety of tasks assigned to volunteers, including creative work, cooking, and landscaping.
This center hosts both guests and volunteers, and has a café where volunteers can improve their barista skills or learn from scratch. Also, they can learn about gastronomy and managing a kitchen that serves hundreds of people.
The hosts at Bergsmansgård are a couple of 59 and 63 years who decided to open a guesthouse and restaurant 12 years ago. The property is huge, and they need volunteers’ help with gardening, cooking, cleaning, guest service, and other tasks.
These hosts were praised for their familial atmosphere and the opportunity for volunteers to learn English. They fulfilled all three criteria of Best Places to Collaborate: planet restoration, cultural exchange, and community development.
The Opus Gothique is a medieval building that’s being restored by its team and their volunteers, who learn various skills – as well as working on their French.
According to volunteers’ reviews, the hosts are great teachers who are patient while sharing about all of the restoration processes.
Like to drink wine while watching the sunset? The Ostello Bello is an ancient medieval building that has been a market and even a school, located in a region famous for its delicious wines.
Volunteers can enjoy the location: right in the center of Italy, only two hours from Rome. Hosts Duilio and Erica got compliments for their good atmosphere, cleanliness, and punctuality.
Finca La Artezuela is in a small, mountainous village in Spain. The arid Mediterranean climate meets the ancient village walls, transporting travelers to a medieval era.
Volunteers can learn about sustainability, like planting their own food in the garden and olive plantation, beside living alongside farm animals such as goats and horses. Hosts primarily won praise from first-time volunteers, who felt very welcomed.
If you like caring for nature, Le Chant des Pierres offers an ecological volunteer experience at an old farm that’s being restored.
Volunteers share a house with the host family, living together with their children and learning French, permaculture, and building restoration in their daily lives.
The Albagnano Healing Meditation Centre, or Kunpen Lama Gangchen, is a meditation center on the border of Italy and Switzerland, in the middle of the Alps. The views will take your breath away.
It’s in the town of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, which is near Milan in the north of the country. Volunteers praised the relaxing atmosphere hosts offer and the excellent cuisine of the region.
Cascina degli Orologi is located one hour from Milan and Turin, in North Italy. It was created by host Alessandro, who’s worked as a chef in the past. So we already know that volunteers loved the cuisine!
Aside from the culinary experience, this host also met our criteria for cultural exchange and planet restoration.
The Vegan House and Garden is less than three hours from Paris and won our cultural exchange award, offering a welcoming atmosphere to volunteers from all over the world.
Volunteers praised the vegan meals included with this exchange, host Debbie’s welcoming manner, and the quiet town’s beauty.
Little Paradise is a spiritual retreat that offers an experience of profound contact with your inner self. Volunteers liked meditation classes, the zen atmosphere, and the lush nature around.
La Donaira is a huge farm with sustainable agriculture and livestock, where volunteers can learn Spanish and permaculture while helping with maintenance and animal care.
With an area of more than 700 hectares, this host needs help with various tasks from volunteers excited to keep everyone well-fed and warm, especially in the winter.
The last three hosts on our list deserve a special mention because they were the only ones chosen in their regions. Make sure to check out these volunteer opportunities in South Korea, Nepal, and Tanzania.
At Cloud Berry Farm, volunteers get the chance to stay with a Korean family. At the same time, they learn about agriculture, because the family grows strawberries, tomatoes, and sweet potatoes, and they also speak English!
They treat all volunteers with respect and honor the benefits they offer on our website, with weekly schedules so volunteers can plan their free time in advance.
The second winning host in our Asia category is located in a dream country for many backpackers. Known as the home of the high Himalayas and Mount Everest, Nepal lies between India and Tibet in southern Asia.
The Biloba Organic farm is in a region surrounded by forests and nature that allows volunteers to hike, meditate, practice yoga, and even visit Hindu and Buddhist sanctuaries nearby.
The hosts’ job at Savvy Brain Academy is to help local kids to develop their skills and have a brighter future. Volunteers get the chance to meet host William’s family, who runs the school with his team.
Volunteers can offer their skills to help change the lives of everyone in the community by teaching languages, art, sports, and more. This host won praise for the authenticity of their experiences, with many travelers saying they got to know “the real Tanzania”.
This list of our best hosts for volunteering included hostels, NGOs, holistic centers, farms, and eco projects, all of which offer free lodging, food, and other benefits in exchange for volunteer work to our more than 3 million travelers in 170 countries.
Comment below, who do you think will win next year?
Write here your questions and greetings to the author
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Mulindwa
Feb 17, 2023
Greetings from Uganda especially from Mmanze Centre For Rural Development And Training.Thanks so much for sharing with us the list of the best hosts for the year 2022.I have realized one aspect that of all the hosts recognised only one host is from Africa/Asia. In that respect,what can we do to be one the winning hosts.Regards,
Mulindwa William
Director
Ganesh
Jun 25, 2023
I want come in your country to travelling exploring