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Homestay Río Grande, Puerto Rico

3.5
6 reviews6

Extra hand for outdoor/backyard tasks in beautiful Puerto Rico!

Higher chance of approval
This host has recently approved volunteers and is looking for more applications.
Connect with international travelers
3 travelers recommend this host to meet travelers from all around the world
Connect with nature
2 travelers recommend this experience for reconnecting with nature
Accepts couples and pairs of volunteers
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What you offer

25h

Hours per week
Help out and collaborate with your host only a few hours per week.
Animal Care
Help look after and take care of animals.
Handyman
Help with a wide range of repairs or building.
Farming
Plant crops, sow seeds and help in outside tasks.
Gardening
Help grow plants and cultivate gardens
Additional Fee
This host charges a fee in addition to the cost of the Worldpackers annual plan.
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What you get

2

Days off per week
Have some time off for yourself, go explore the city or rest for a while.
Private Room
You will have a bed in a private room. In other words, a room just for you.
Shared Dorm
You will have a bed in a shared room, which means you will share the same room with other travelers.
Team Dorm
You will have a bed in a shared room, which means you will share the same room with other people.
Tent
You will sleep in a tent at a camping site.
Discounts on Restaurants
Get discounts at nearby restaurants.
Discounts on Drinks
Get discounts for drinks and beverages from our bar.
Free Laundry
You can use our laundry room freely.
Free Hiking Tours
We’ll take you on excursions and hikes around town. For free!
Free Parties
Get free entrance for the best parties in town.
Free Events
Get free entrance for the best events in town.
Pub Crawls
Be a part of our pub crawls at local bars!
Bikes at your disposal
You can use our bikes any time you want.
Pick Up
We will pick you up when you arrive, and take you to our property.
Surf lessons
Take free surf classes at the local beaches.
Language lessons
Take free language classes at our place.
Use our equipped kitchen
Feel free to use our kitchen and make your own delicious food.
Certificate
Get a certificate of completion after you finish your experience.
Support
Get help from the Worldpackers support team in case you need it, at any point of your trip.
Verified Host
This host has been verified by our team before joining the community.
Worldpackers Insurance
Did something not go as planned? Contact our team.
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The Experience

There's many other things to do!! But here are some... + Need help cutting trees. + Building or creating campgrounds. + Dig holes to install fence posts + Setting cyclone fences on posts + Plant/replant some banana trees and other plant or trees. + Need to clean the chicken coop + car wash + house cleaning + Laundry + Power wash and coat the roof with sealant(painting) + Move pile of dirt out of garage

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Additional Fee Required

For now, i think $5-$10 weekly definitely helps with getting groceries(there's a food bank 3 times a week for $5 dollars they give you a decent amount of things to eat Worth $40+ easy) and other important things like napkins, toilet paper, laundry detergents etc etc. But we can talk about that if you decide to come, and messege me.

Requirements

  • Fluent Spanish or Fluent English
  • Accepts solo applications and also couples and pairs

What's not included

Flights, Travel Insurance, Internal Transportation and Visa

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Availability

Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Stay at least
1 week

Talk to those who have lived the experience

In our community, you can talk to worldpackers who have already collaborated with this host and get your questions answered directly.

You can ask things like:

  • a) How was your experience with this host?
  • b) How was your day-to-day routine?
  • c) How much did you spend on this trip?

5 Reviews

3.5

Host & Team

4.0

Hours & Tasks

4.5

Homestay

4.0

Learning & Fun

3.5

How this experience will transform you

3 Meeting international travelers

2 Get in touch with nature

2 Practicing English

2 Meeting locals

2 Creating true social impact

1 Developing environmental awareness

United States

5

I loved the experience & meeting a lot of people! :D

4 days ago

Germany

2

"I wouldn't recommend to stay at Josh's place. We had a good time, nice experiences and met cool people. However, working and living with Josh was difficult at times because you cannot communicate well with him and he won't take criticism. At some points I felt uncomfortable with the host's behavior. If you have a car the area is awesome with lost to do especially in nature. Otherwise it's difficult to get around.

5 days ago


joshua replied

You feedback is based on retaliation and it makes no sense since is not true. I mean, Of course we cannot communicate well, specially when i texted you but got no reply. Also you didn't follow MANY of the house rules, to the point that i had to talk to you about it twice, and at the end, i asked you to leave. Lucky for you, you were leaving in 2 days. According to the people staying here with you(facts) you made them feel uncomfortable most of the time. Also you guys were barely working and doing whatever hours we agreed to do fully. You Guys have no work ethic, no respect for the house rules and when told, you pretended that listened and care To later repeat the same stuff. When i left my review, i wasn't focusing on the negative things, but you and Kimmon only deserve a 1 star. The experience was so bad that people still talked about it long after you were gone. Oh, amd another thing, STOP the hugging and sitting on top of each other etc etc
Public display of affection or PDA is sooooooo uncomfortable and nobody wanted to see that. Specially when you are supposed to be working. You guys were super lazy, and were always taking breaks to not do the work.

The disrespect was so bad, that while working, he was actually taking a college class to the point that you asked me, on work hours, in my house, to lower the radio because of it!!!!! Think about that for a Second...

Important to also mention that you were not living with me. You have a whole house for you. I was on the other side. That's why i barely saw what you did wrong until it was already done. And the mess you Created in the room was unbelievable.

Again, house rules broken left and right.

Also, i never took criticism because you never said anything. Just like my "behavior"??? You. Just saying things because i had tell you to leave my house because YOU DON'T FOLLOWED THE HOUSE RULES.
Remember this, i got the text msgs to prove that i talked to you about not doing things right.
The 1st thing. I did when u came was to read you both the house rules. And sent them to you and everyone else over whatsapp. So what's your excuse to do whatever, how ever you did it? That i had to talk to you multiple times about it? Be responsible and take responsibility for your Own actions. Remember that you took constant breaks and then said Your hours where done? How are you working the hours if all you did was take breaks. I wonder what you actually did when i wasn't at the house.

Also, u saying is difficult to get around? No is not. You either walk, get taxi, uber, bikes. Speaking of bikes, i was gonna buy bramd new bikes so you Guys can go places. But your behavior at the house was so bad and the work ethic was even worse that i refrained from doing so. The audacity you guys had to actually ask me to buy the bikes was the thing that got me because you did not deserve that. Also, stoo complaining about going around when most of the time, i drove you To the store to get your groceries.

Your Review was modified cause i assume they told you to fix it since it won't follow the page guidelines. But you still accusing me with lies. Again, your review is not truthful and is based on retaliation and vengeance. If it was so bad for you here, why did you never said anything to me? I asked many times a week, specially when having group meetings if everyone was Ok etc etc. I know im a great host and that i go above and beyond for the volunteers. But experiences like this, all they do is ruin it for the rest.

Even tho we from different cultures, countries etc, the cultural experience was 0. That's how bad it was. Like. I shared som stuff, but all you Shared was PDA, and segregation cause you where always apart from the rest.
Im done, and i hope the next host reads this and if they want, contact me too. People habe to watch out for this red flags.

United States

4

I had a really fun experience staying with Josh - the location was really beautiful and peaceful and I met some super awesome people, and I'm really glad I went. I also found the work generally enjoyable (as long as you're willing to do some physical labor, like shoveling and stuff). Josh is also generous with his willingness to get stuff for the volunteers like food & supplies and offering rides. The reason I have 4 stars rather than 5 is because sometimes there is unclear communication about the expectations for work versus free time, and there wasn't always a ton of work to be done.

14 days ago

United States

4

Personally my stay was great, the host respected me and we got along well for the most part. I get along with 99% of people so I was not surprised I was able to get along with Josh. However, I could see how someone with a different personality may have a hard time getting along with Josh, not because he is rude, but because he has a big personality and it may be hard for some people. Overall I did really enjoy my stay Josh is a good guy overall, and allows the guests to have a good amount of freedom and gives many great suggestions of things we can do in the area.

15 days ago

United States

1

I would not recommend this experience to any female traveler because I didn't feel comfortable with some comments made about other female volunteers, and did not feel sympathy or willingness to help when I had an accident out of the homestay, I was asked if I was hungry but I was not offered any substantial food, there was no bed ready for me but had to wait until two volunteers were due to leave that night, and I felt what the host wanted to kick me out when I told him I was too hurt to work right away.

about 2 months ago


joshua replied

Manipulating information to make me look bad is just not right. Lucky for me, i got evidence. Actually most of my travelers have been females and they love the place. You didn't even spent and hour in the house after u got there.

Now... Straight facts. I picked her up from the airport( since i think that's what a good cool host should do if possible of course)
We get home. Offered her some of the food we had. She said no. She was going to get something more local etc. Left the house. For some reason, somebody's dog was loose and bit her. But she kept walking to eat. Then says she wants to leave for a hostel or Airbnb cause that bite was like a "signal" or something. I offered her to go to the river with the rest to purify or whatever those bad "energies/vibes" that you came home with( personal issues...)but
She said no, cause she's going to the beach. I told her that if she was leaving, she needed to get her stuff. So I took the stuff to her. I mean, she said she was not going to stay. What was i supposed to do? I was nice enough to bring tbem to you instead of walking.
If anybody got a question about this feedback, please write me. Writing a review is one thing, but having proof is what really makes the difference. And i got all tbe msgs in whatsapp. Have a great time wherever you are and take responsibility for your own actions. I'm still aiming to be the best host!!

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About the host

  • • Recently Online

Hosted by joshua

Response Rate
This host usually answers to 100% of the messages
Response Time
This host usually writes back in 1 day
1 published videos
This host has 1 published videos showing a little bit about their place

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