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Home » Work and Travel » Volunteering » Workaway Alternatives: 6 Best Work Exchange Websites Like Workaway (2024)

Workaway Alternatives: 6 Best Work Exchange Websites Like Workaway (2024)

Broke backpackers go nuts for a great work exchange opportunity – and you should too!

Volunteer exchanges and Workaway programs have become super popular as more and more empty-handed backpackers are looking for ways to stay on the road for a little while longer. Getting the chance to work and live for free? MIND-BLOWING.

The absolute ace thing about work exchanges is that they usually don’t require you to have any specific skills, so they’re open to anyone with a Bob the Builder attitude. (“Yes, we can!”) They’re also catered to travellers so that you have time to explore, not just grind.

How to find a work exchange job, though, that’s the pickle. Many sites have popped up to help connect you, the traveller, to a work host (and maybe your future BFF). While this platform might be the most popular site, there are tons of other Workaway alternatives that are just as great – but don’t get quite as much air time.

So, here it is: a round-up of the best work exchange sites that are like Workaway but are NOT Workaway (because we believe in equal opportunity).

The Broke Backpacker is supported by you . Clicking through our links may earn us a small affiliate commission, and that's what allows us to keep producing free content 🙂 Learn more .

A Crash Course to Work Exchanges

Best workaway alternatives, now go and spread your volunteering wings.

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What is a Work Exchange, Anyway?

Work exchange (also see: voluntourism) means that you get free accommodation in exchange for work. Placements usually cover accommodation and at least one meal, meaning your daily costs will drop (like it’s hot). A simple yet epic way into budget backpacking .

The amount of work varies depending on the place and type of work. On average, hosts ask for about 5 hours of work 5 days a week, and the rest of the time you’re as free as a birdie. 

Work exchanges are normally not paid. Sometimes you get extra lucky and find a real travel job that wants to swipe you a few extra dollars under the desk out of the goodness of their hearts. (EU travellers – check out in-EU hosts for more chances to find legally but minimally paying work.) I’d say 90% of these gigs are true and tried volunteer work, though.

Tons of help exchanges involve some sort of agriculture but there are also heaps of other options like hostel work, sailboat jobs, babysitting, or just work around the house. The length also depends a whole lot. Sometimes your host asks for a week or two of your time, sometimes a month. My longest volunteer gig so far was five months.

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How to Find an Awesome Workaway Alternative

With so many work exchange sites to choose from, the choice to hunt out cheap work abroad programmes is certainly tough, especially when you’re looking for an alternative to Workaway.

First of all – most work exchange sites have an annual fee. You can browse the listings for free but when it comes time to shooting a message to your potential host, you gotta sign up for real. I get that this is annoying -after all, you are trying to see how far a penny goes – but I promise it’s for a good reason!

Your money goes to pay the employees of the company and keep the site running. And it pays itself back in just DAYS at best.

Worldpackers, for example, costs $49 ($39 with our Worldpackers promo code! ) per year. This is about the same as you pay for a dorm bed in a hostel in Israel, Australia or Spain for two nights. Worth it, eh?

There’s a benefit to using the larger and more well-known platforms. Obviously, you have better access to a huge range of options and also reviews from previous working travellers. 

By using a well-vetted site, you can be more sure that the hosts listed are acting ethically and responsibly, especially if you’re doing anything with people or animals – exploitative animal tourism is just wrong. 

It’s also not unheard of that the work exchange host would take advantage of the free work and turn your awesome work exchange experience into a labour camp. It’s always a good idea to pick a reputable site with lotsa happy users.

But First, Though – Travel Insurance

Free labour does mean that you won’t be put on any sort of employment contract. If you have an accident, your host can usually not offer anything more than pity and prayers to fix you up.

Never travel without comprehensive travel insurance.

ALWAYS sort out your backpacker insurance before your trip. There’s plenty to choose from in that department, but a good place to start is Safety Wing .

They offer month-to-month payments, no lock-in contracts, and require absolutely no itineraries: that’s the exact kind of insurance long-term travellers and digital nomads need.

SafetyWing is cheap, easy, and admin-free: just sign up lickety-split so you can get back to it!

Click the button below to learn more about SafetyWing’s setup or read our insider review for the full tasty scoop.

There are many sites like Workaway when it comes to finding cool-ass work exchanges abroad. Even in the End of Times, these organisations persist and keep the flame of voluntourism lit .

Here are some of the top contenders.

1. Worldpackers – The Broke Backpacker Favourite!

Worldpackers is probably the dopest Workaway alternative out there. It has a ton of cool minimum-skill jobs available for wanderers, including hostel work, agriculture, teaching English , au pairing, construction… You get the gist. Opportunities are available all over the planet.

The site is all about connections, and not only between hosts and penniless backpackers. Through their blog, volunteers can share their stories (and hone their writer’s quills), and you can find an answer to almost every little question you might have about volunteering in a certain country or position. And they have “training” videos for future volunteers made by community members!

The website is really easy and intuitive to use. You can filter by job, country, or region, or even pick if you’d rather do a normal help exchange worldwide or participate in an educational programme to maximise the learning experience. We even sent a resident broke backpacker on a volunteering mission to Vietnam and look how happy he was…

And they’re serious about the safety of their members. Hosts advertising on the platform go through an approval process, and if anything should go awry, their “WP Insurance” promises to pay for three nights in a hostel dorm if you need to get outta dodge quickly.

Readers of The Broke Backpacker can get a Worldpackers discount (because we just love you like that!). Click the link below to get $10 off a one-year subscription with our Worldpackers promo code BROKEBACKPACKER.

• Pros: Good offerings, great support, and awesome community
• Cons: More pricey than many other options
• Price: Normally $49 per year – $39 if you sign up through us right below!

Worldpackers: connecting travellers with  meaningful travel experiences.

2. Global Work and Travel

Although not as well known as Workaway, Global Work and Travel offers amazing travel programs in 60+ countries. What sets GWT apart, though, is you hardly have to plan anything. Global Work and Travel offers fully guided volunteering trips as well as a 24/7 support line. You’ll get help with sorting visas, airport pick up transfers and finding accommodation. They even offer flexible payment plans making it easier to get on that plane ASAP!

• Pros: Absolutely stellar customer support making everything as easy for you as possible and great website.
• Cons: They don’t have as many volunteer opportunities as other networks (but they are still growing and expanding their reach)
• Cost: No membership fee. Trip costs vary (somewhere between £800 – £4,000) AND you can get a discount by clicking below and using the code!

3. WWOOF – Best Way to Find Farmwork

WWOOFing is not about volunteer opportunities for dogs (that would be CUTE), but it’s one of the OG work exchange sites out there. Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms is a pretty self-explanatory title – they offer a narrower lens of volunteer opportunities, but it’s a fantastic way to get in touch with the countryside and see more of the rural side of the country you’re travelling in.

Every country has its own WWOOFing network, so you have to pay a membership fee for each country’s own network. There’s also WWOOF Independents for countries without their own national networks in case you prefer trail-building in Armenia to bison-farming in Canada.

The membership fees stack up quickly, so WWOOF is not the most ideal option for serial country-hoppers. It’s bloody fantastic while backpacking Australia , New Zealand or the US, though. Pretty much any country that is expensive as hell but has huge rural areas teeming with farm work opportunities.

• Pros: Wide network, well-established, brings you close to local life
• Cons: Only farm work offered, membership fees can stack up
• Price: Country-specific: 20-30$ per year, WWOOF Independents $20 per year

4. HelpX – The Cheapest Work Exchange Site

HelpX is one of the oldest work exchange sites, making it another great Workaway alternative. Since it’s one of the OGs in the game, its network of hosts is pretty big, and that gives you a whole platter of options to choose from. (Even though the layout of the website makes me mildly disoriented.)

A neat thing about HelpX is the community page where solo working travellers can find buddies for their next volunteering/travel adventure.

HelpX has two levels of membership, Free and Premium. You will need to sign up for the Premium to be able to contact hosts, but at least it’s cheap: just 20 bucks for two years.

• Pros: Lots of opportunities offered, cheap
• Cons: Clunky website
• Price: $ 20 for two years

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5. Helpstay – A Lesser-Known Alternative to Workaway

Helpstay works much the same as all the other Workaway-like sites. It lists your potential hosts, you can filter by region or by the job you want, all the good the stuff. Helpstay is a bit more obscure than many of the other options, but they do offer a ton of options in over 100 different countries.

However, I found the website a little unintuitive, especially when looking for info about the company itself. 

On top of that, I’d recommend you check out the job listings carefully before applying. Helpstay seems to have more listings that are subject to a fee when compared to similar work exchange sites.

Now this in itself is not necessarily alarming – sometimes volunteering programmes ask volunteers for small contributions, and they usually go for a good cause. But if you’re being asked to pay almost $400/week to teach kids and plan your own lessons… that’s doesn’t sound too legit.

Luckily, you can also filter by hosts that offer free exchanges, so this shouldn’t be a problem.

• Pros: Lots of opportunities
• Cons: Less known than other work exchange sites, offers a lot of jobs with a separate fee.
• Price: $35.5 for one volunteer and $47 for a couple per year.

6. Hippohelp – Map-Based Work Exchange Site

Hippohelp has something that sets it apart from other work exchange platforms and pleases my visually learning brain: a map with pins that shows you exactly where the volunteering opportunities are located. Instead of browsing through endless lists, you can surf around the world map and find hosts that are closest to you super duper easily.

Unlike most of the others, you do have to register before you can see what’s available. This is quick and free, though. I signed up with Facebook in just about 10 seconds.

Previously famed as one of the only free work exchange platforms, Hippohelp has now started to ask for subscription payments from working travellers. (The above-mentioned nifty map feature turned out to be their Achilles heel as the surge in map prices caused the new yearly fee.) 

This is where my beef with Hippohelp comes out. Most of the website still states that the platform is completely free to use, and the payment notification only comes up when you try to send a message to a host. You can’t really advertise your site as a free platform if doing the most essential thing on it isn’t free. I have no problem with paying the fee – it’s still very cheap compared to many other sites! But I wish the info on the website was more truthful.

• Pros: The map feature, cheap
• Cons: Misleading information on the site
• Price: $ 14 per year

Want to save money on accommodation?

We got you. For reals.

7. Volunteersbase – A FREE Work Exchange Site

Volunteersbase is the only real free-of-charge alternative that I’ve found for Workaway. (They do request donations, though, which is fair enough.)

The website is pretty basic. You can search for hosts by country but there aren’t any other filters. Volunteersbase also doesn’t seem to have much support available in case anything goes awry with the work exchange. This leaves a lot of responsibility to you as the voluntourist but a savvy voyager shouldn’t have much trouble with this.

All in all, Volunteerbase seems to offer the least of all the other Workaway alternatives, but if you’re really trying to travel for free , having a free platform for volunteer travel is definitely a good thing.

• Pros: Free!
• Cons: Basic website, level of support is what you pay for

No Websites Needed – Just Talk to People

While all these sites offer fantastic opportunities to travellers, especially pre-trip, don’t get too hung up on the world of technology. Let travellers be travellers – talk to people.

You always have a good chance of becoming a hostel volunteer . Have a chat with the hostel gods, uh, I mean management, and see if you could score a small job that can cover the costs of your stay. This might include working the bar, cleaning rooms, or even leading the bar crawl.

Hostel staff is not your only hope, either. Talk to other travellers about the cool places they’ve been and don’t be afraid to jump at a chance to deviate from your plans to do something epic.

One of the absolute highlights of my South American trip was spending a couple of days on a one-man operated coffee farm in the mountains of Bolivia, where in exchange for picking coffee beans every other day I stayed and ate for free and could explore the national park around me. This is a national park that usually runs one-day tours for a hundred bucks… And none of this would have happened if I hadn’t got the lead from a German backpacker at the hostel.

So there you have it, the best work exchange websites like Workaway. If you do decide to go with Workaway in the end, make sure to check out our Workaway review and find a special discount! But one question still remains…

You’re probably travelling to get away from the everyday, which, I’m guessing, involves real-life work. So why would you want to work while on your holiday?

Obviously, work in exchange for housing is a fantastic way to save money while travelling. Smaller costs also translate into being able to keep travelling for longer. Backpacking on the cheapo also makes travelling more accessible if you’re a lil’ strapped for cash.

Work exchanges translate into extremely unique travel stories. It’s cool that you’ve seen the sunrise at Angkor Wat or climbed to the top of the Eiffel Tower, but the stuff that’s going to earn you a real Cool Cat badge is a volunteering experience. Did you muster cattle on horseback or learn how to shear sheep? Now that’s a story.

(Not that you should be doing anything for external validation but still – you’ll be cool.)

The best part is not money, but the people you meet. Whether you’re a hostel volunteer meeting tons of people from all over the world or weeding gardens at a faraway rural farmhouse, the connections you make while volunteering are golden.

By volunteering your time, you become more ingrained in the local ecosystem and get to experience what life there is really like. Volunteers are, in the best case, treated like family members and friends. You’re not only exchanging time and work – you’re also exchanging cultures, ideas and friendships.

Not to mention that in many work exchange spots you have a REAL chance to help local communities and influence them in a positive way. (But do consider some of the ethics of voluntourism , too.)

Still sitting there reading? Make it real and start planning your epic work exchange adventure!

Buy Us a Coffee !

A couple of you lovely readers suggested we set up a tip jar for direct support as an alternative to booking through our links. So we created one!

You can now buy The Broke Backpacker a coffee . If you like and use our content to plan your trips, it’s a much appreciated way to show appreciation 🙂

Elina Mattila

Share or save this post

Awesome! Loved this post. I have, just now, at my almost 40 been introduced to the idea of exchanging work for lodge. I am amazed at the opportunities. Even though I am a long term traveler I can’t figure out why I didn’t bump into this before. Anyways, I was looking up for what the best website would be to start with, because I still need to pay a fee. Even though I dig your article, I still can’t seem to distinguish which the best alternative would be. What do you think? Which is you favorite? Disregarding price, honestly $50 is not much for what I am going to get. Thanks, Raz

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How it works, book up work with hosts needing your skills, work till experience leads to paid placements, get a job with wt references back home, work and travel the world using your skills to gain valuable work experience & references for a good job when you go back home.

Travellers – learn to earn your way around the world

Working Traveller specialises in helping you gain work references in your chosen skills as you work and travel around the world. If you are a seasoned pro or just starting out, add  Skills to your profile that you have or want to learn.  Become a full member – it’s €10.00 a year and contact 100s of hosts directly that need your skills at the time you will be travelling to their country. Have work booked up before you leave and save on hostels by  becoming a Working Traveller .

Build references through work placements

You have heard it many times. Employers want to hire people with work experience. All those years of getting your degree seem to suddenly count for nothing. How do you get the work experience if no one will give you a job?  References from your Working Traveller work placements will show future employers you have the work ethic, or even better, the skills they need. Your references show how you use your skills: how punctual you are: if you have a good work ethic and if you can make decisions. If you take a picture with your host doing the WT hand sign, it 100% proves you were there.  To find work placements from hosts that need your skills, check the work search section.

Be smarter than the herd – plan ahead

I hear you say ” I have no idea where I will be travelling to next – so how can I book work 3 months in advance?” That’s fine, you can apply for last-minute cleaning and harvest work and some times hosts will need even skilled people at short notice. If getting references on your profile for your chosen skills is more important than getting that selfy at Machu Picchu – then it pays to have your availability literally mapped out on your profile. Hosts who are organised plan ahead searching the WT database months in advance to see when the skills they need are coming to their country. Be organised, be a Working Traveller and make your trip a meaningful experience.

Hosts – looking for motivated volunteers and professionals?

Need experienced hospitality professionals for the up and coming high season? Help with your social media, solar power or surfing school?  Thought of having a mural painted on that ugly wall?  Working Traveller is not about finding you just people to help with the harvest or cleaning. Look at the 100s of skills travellers have added to their profiles that you can invite to come and work for you once you have set up your profile.

The skills you need – when you need them

Working Traveller matches the skills you need with the travellers who have them and are on their way to your country when you need them. It’s 100% free to post your work needs and always will be if you are a host. All we ask in return is you leave a reference for every traveller that comes to stay with you. To find out more, see the hosts section. Start posting your work needs today and within 24 hours they will be seen by potentiality 100,000+ travellers. It’s free to advertise and to build up your references. Sign up now   and start to fill your skilled volunteer and paid needs today.

Agree what they will do/what you provide – before they arrive

Working Traveller is not like other volunteer sites that offer one package fits all – 5 hours a day for 3 meals and a bed. A skilled carpenter working 10 hours a day will not work for the same as someone who does a few hours of apple collecting a day. With every work placement you arrange on the Working Traveller site, you agree whatever you want with each traveller on the site so you have a record, before they arrive.  You then have them all sitting around your table for dinner in the evening, all happy with their individual agreement made with you.

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Visit the ‘Work and Travel Country Guides’ to find out about work and volunteer visas and what kind of work you will find in the places you want to travel to. We have a long way to go with the wiki, but there are 100s of updates from travellers and hosts from all corners of the world. So do your bit and add in what you know once you have signed up and logged in.

Whats the visa situation for volunteer work in America? Is it easy? Can you you get paid for short term work?

What time of the year is best for work and travel in Greenland? What industries need extra help? Fishing and tourism? Can you volunteer on a tourist visa in Greenland?

What the deal with the Australian volunteer visa going from two years down to one ? What other kinds of work other than sheep farming can I find in Australia?

Bolivia wages - are the really low? It's one of the most traveled South American countries for backpackers so - is Hostel the thing here?

What the season for backpacker jobs in Vietnam? Is their volunteering opportunities? Visas? Whats the deal? And are they OK with Westerners working there?

Is there yoga opportunities in Goa? Can I get work with the camel herders in Rajastain? Does the Indian six month business visa let you work and travel there?

You wont get work as a vampire stand in - but what about helping out with the harvest or working in a hostel? Do they need foreigners? Or do they have it all covered?

Can you get work if you don't speak Russian? Do they need English speaking reps for tourist work? Whats the season in Russia for backpacker work?

Is the tourist industry back up and running in Egypt? Do they need foreigner helpers there? What about archaeological digs and NGO work?

Volunteer work in Thailand - is it easy to find? The one month visa laws have changed. How will that affect me getting work in Thailand?

Volunteering in the Congo - great idea or... need my head testing? Is it possible? Is it safe? Does any one do it? Visas - is it in the too hard to do basket?

How easy is it to find work in the vineyards in Georgia? Do they have a tourism season there? Are they used to using foreigner volunteers?

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Out of Your Comfort Zone

The art of backpacking & adventures to get out of your comfort zone – tips and advice, 5 best websites for free volunteer/work exchanges around the world.

Last Updated on July 17, 2024 by Lohanna Reis

Have you ever wanted to volunteer while traveling the world? What about getting free accommodation & food in exchange for your help? If so, then you’ll love these volunteer/work exchange websites below! 

Many people who want to volunteer overseas get put off by the high fees that “voluntourism” agencies charge to place them. 

But the truth is, you can volunteer (almost) for free. I n fact, you can even get free accommodation and food as you travel by volunteering as part of work exchange! 

I’ll show you how as well as list out and compare the 5 best websites to help you find your own volunteer/work exchange position. 

Table of Contents

• 1 What is a work exchange and how does it work? 
• 2 What types of places can you volunteer for a work exchange around the world? 
• 3 How long should your work exchange overseas be? 
• 4 What are the best work exchange websites to volunteer for free around the world?   
• 5 In conclusion… 
• 6 Planning your next trip?

What is a work exchange and how does it work? 

A work or volunteer exchange is where you “exchange” your time or skills for accommodation , food , and other benefits.

In other words, you only need to pay for your flight because a place to stay and most of your food will be covered! Many hosts even offer a free transfer from the airport/station to your destination.  

And at least in my experience, with most work exchanges around the world, you can expect to work about 4 hours per day 5 days a week. 

In exchange for your time, you’ll receive accommodation and meals. And the remaining time is yours to do what you like with…including working online/remotely as a digital nomad ! 

Types of volunteer/work exchanges around the world

Every volunteer position will have a list of the activities you’ll need to help out with and the average time you’ll be expected to work per day or week. 

Generally, the work is fairly simple (it is volunteer work, after all) and, as I said above, normally doesn’t take more than 4 or 5 hours of your day. 

Here are a few examples of the type of work you might perform as a volunteer: 

• Teach languages/ be a language conversation partner    
• Provide childcare
• Take care of animals 
• Work at the reception of a hotel, hostel, or B&B 
• Help out in a kitchen 
• Make small repairs or paint 
• Help with harvesting, planting, or other farm work  
• General work in hostels and hotels around the world 

Beyond these options, you might also end up working with digital marketing, social media, article writing & translation, photography, video editing, and much more! 

What types of places can you volunteer for a work exchange around the world? 

One of the greatest things about work exchanges is that you can volunteer just about anywhere in the world. 

To give you an idea…you could work at a ski resort in France, teach English to children in South America, repair a school in Kenya, or help with the olive harvest in the Portuguese countryside. 

Here are some more examples of places you may be able to work as a volunteer: 

• Farms and ecovillages 
• Restaurants and bars

Of course, this list is just the starting point! When you take a look at the websites below, you’ll find plenty of other options and filters to search through. 

How long should your work exchange overseas be? 

Ultimately, this is up to you and your host! 

But generally, each position will note how long they’d like to have a volunteer ( it’s usually a 1-week minimum ). Some hosts may want someone for 1-3 weeks, other hosts may only want someone who can commit to 4+ weeks. 

So make sure you’re reading through each position carefully to find this info out before you apply. 

And of course, the length of your stay also depends on how much time you have available. But if you like, you could hypothetically apply to multiple positions and travel this way for months (or even years!). 

How to apply to a volunteer work exchange position  

It’s quite simple. First, make sure you’ve filled in your profile entirely with a friendly photo (or two), and a bit of info about you. 

From there, just find a position that you’re interested in…and then send the host a personalized message (hint: make sure you read their entire description first!) letting them know why you’re why and how you’d like to help them.  

Our personal experience with volunteer work exchanges

Both Nikki and I have done a handful of these work exchanges together or separately – such as on a farm in Mongolia , at a B&B in Portugal , and as an English conversation instructor in the Polish mountains (see company #5 below for how Nikki found this one!). 

As with anything in life, some of our experiences here were great, others we didn’t enjoy as much. But all were interesting and allowed us to see new sights and meet interesting people. 

But the best piece of advice we can give you after our experiences? Make sure you read the reviews of the host left by former volunteers VERY carefully before you commit to anything 🙂 

Comparison table of the 5 best websites for free volunteer/work exchanges around the world 

You can find more details about each of these websites below (including their plans and how to sign up), but here’s a table to get you started! 

What are the best work exchange websites to volunteer for free around the world?   

Hopefully, the table above has given you an overall idea of what these companies are like. But now let’s get to the details! 

The Brazilian company Worldpackers is a collaborative community that does far more than simply connect hosts with volunteers in more than 140 countries around the world.

Without signing up, you’re still able to see what positions are available (including details like how many hours of work are expected per week, what type of help they need, where you’ll be staying, minimum stay duration, etc…). 

But as I said, Worldpackers is more than this. Beyond scoping out volunteer positions, you can also take a look at their Academy, an online course platform with topics ranging from sustainable volunteering to earning money while traveling . 

Another benefit of Worldpackers is that they offer support in finding a new volunteer position (and even guarantee up to 3 nights of hostel accommodation) if you have a problem with your host.

One thing I do want to mention: Worldpackers Insurance is NOT health insurance a nd it only covers this problem I mentioned with hosts above . So travel/health insurance will have to be something that you buy separately.

Worldpackers Plans 

The Worldpackers “Solo Trips” plan is for anyone who is traveling on their own, and costs $49 with a validity of 1 year and 3 months. If you’re traveling as a couple or with a friend, you can get a $59 “Couples / Friends” plan for the two of you. 

The third available plan is the “Pack” plan, which has all the same benefits of the Solo Trips plan but also gives you access to a few of the Academy courses. 

   2. HelpStay

HelpStay was established in 2014 as a platform that connects individuals who want to offer volunteer work to hosts and social projects in over 100 countries worldwide, such as farms, artistic retreat centers, hostels, ranches, and schools.

On the platform, helpers can exchange work for accommodation, based on their personal skills. They can view information about the type of service offered and directly contact the job advertiser.

To sign up as a volunteer, it is necessary to become a member of the site, which allows connection with over 1500 projects or families willing to offer accommodation in exchange for volunteer work. It is important to highlight that travel opportunities are unlimited for platform members.

HelpStay membership plans 

HelpStay offers two types of plans. One for single individuals, which costs €42.99 per year, and another for couples or friends who wish to travel and volunteer together, costing €51.99 per year.

The second volunteer website on our list here today is Workaway. Workaway and Worldpackers are generally the two most popular platforms out there for work exchanges.

Workaway has positions in more than 170 countries…and they have lots of filters that can help you find exactly what type of volunteer work you’d like to do and where. 

As these platforms heavily rely on reviews and comments, Workaway gives out “medals” to certain top-rated hosts and volunteers, which you can use to help you in your search. 

There are a few other things that make Workaway stand out from the others on the list. The first is that part of their website is dedicated to those in search of language exchange partners. For example, you could find someone to teach you French in exchange for English. 

The second is the community itself. This includes not only their blog that’s full of useful travel tips, but also your ability to get in contact with Workaway Ambassadors who are experienced travelers and can help you with your trip.

Workaway membership plans 

With Workaway, you can find plans for single travelers, couples, groups, or even a family (children under 18 are free). 

The individual plan costs €39 while the double/couple plan costs €49. These plans are valid for one year.   

HelpX is a more “traditional” volunteer exchange site that’s been around for more than 20 years.

Their website is very easy to use, and you can even filter by hosts that already have reviews or those that are accepting volunteers new to the platform. 

With HelpX, you can find positions all across the world…and it’s definitely worth checking out alongside the others on our list! 

HelpX membership plans 

Without a doubt, the one thing that makes HelpX different from the other choices is its plans: in other words, they have one that’s free! 

Of course, the free plan does have some limitations because you’re not able to contact hosts directly. All you can do is set up your profile and hope that a host is interested enough to reach out to you instead. 

But if you want to give one of these platforms a shot without spending money on a membership, HelpX’s free plan may be a good place to start. And if you like it, you can simply upgrade to a Premier plan (which costs €20 and is valid for 2 years). 

The fourth option on our list today is a bit more specific.

WWOOF, or Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms, is an organization that connects volunteers with organic farms to incentivize environmental education and offer a unique voluntourism experience . 

Because of this, by “WWOOFing” you’ll generally have the opportunity to travel to more rural areas, partake in a sustainable lifestyle, and help with community farming activities. 

They have more than 12,000 hosts in more than 130 countries registered! 

You’ll find the host profiles on WWOOF are a little different than the others on our list. Generally, the host will describe the size of the property, what they produce, how they produce it, and what animals they have. 

Finally, WWOOF is the only option on this list that offers Personal Accident Insurance. It’s not true health insurance , but it does give you coverage if there are any accidents during your volunteer stay.  

WWOOF membership plans 

WWOOF has both single and double membership plans that are valid for 2 years. The single membership costs €20 and the double costs €30. 

Bonus: Angloville

If you’re interested in volunteering while teaching English and traveling, then take a look at Angloville!

In the countries where Angloville operates (unfortunately, there are not many and they are just in Europe ), they have various programs that help the locals develop their English abilities.

You don’t need to have any teaching experience because the idea isn’t for you to teach…but just to speak and help participants practice! That said, if you’re not a native English speaker, you need to have a score of at least 7 on the IELTS. 

The length of their programs range from 1 to 8 weeks, and your accommodation will be covered by Angloville.

And as a final note…Nikki spent a week volunteering with Angloville at a lovely “mountain resort” in the Polish countryside, and she had a really great experience that she’d highly recommend! 

Angloville membership plans 

All of Angloville’s programs are free for volunteers . In other words, you don’t need to sign up as you do for other websites since there aren’t individual hosts for you to contact. Instead, you simply apply for the program of your choice. 

In sum…

Here are the 6 best websites for free volunteer work exchanges around the world: 

• Worldpackers
• WWOOF International
• Angloville 

In conclusion… 

Volunteering overseas is a great way to explore a new place and have the opportunity for a unique experience totally different from your average tourist. 

Not to mention, work exchanges are a very cheap way to travel (hello free accommodation !) , meet new people , and perhaps even try some types of work that you’ve never considered before! 🙂 

And so, if you’re in search of volunteer positions as you travel the world, I’m sure the 5 websites above will help!  

And if you have any questions about our experience volunteering overseas or about these companies listed above, just let us know and in the comments area below and I’ll get back to you! 

Planning your next trip?

 Already reserved your hotel or hostel? If not, our article with The 6 Best and Cheapest Websites to Find & Reserve Accommodation can help you out. You’ll also find some promotions and discount codes .

 Still haven’t booked your plane ticket and want to save big? Take a look at our page with 16 Tips to Save on Flights where you’ll also find the 4 best websites to buy your plane tickets. 

And finally, will you need to rent a car during your trip? Then surely our page with The 5 Best and Cheapest Websites to Compare and Rent Cars Around the World will help you choose the best rental car and find a good deal.

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[…] looking to work abroad. And for those looking for life experience rather than economic prosperity, volunteer tourism, widely known as “voluntourism,” can be a great stepping stone towards an overseas […]

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Reviews , Travel Tips , Volunteering , Work Exchange

The best work exchange websites compared plus $10 worldpackers discount.

Work exchange programs are a fantastic way to travel for free by volunteering abroad.  There are several different work exchange websites that help to connect potential volunteers with work exchange and volunteer placements all over the world.  The one you may have already heard of is Workaway, but there are other sites like Workaway which work in a similar way, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.  I’ve brought together the six best work exchange sites to compare so you can choose the best one for you. 

This website contains sponsored and affiliate links. If you click through the links on this page and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you for your support. [Learn more]

We’ll cover Workaway , Worldpackers , HelpX, WWOOF, Hippohelp & Volunteers Base, and you’ll also find a $10 discount code to use on Worldpackers saving you 20% on a year’s membership if you decide to try them out.

The Two Best Work Exchange Websites

Here’s a quick reference of the two top work exchange websites if you don’t have time to read the whole article.  If you want more information about these and the alternatives then keep on reading for more details or use the contents to skip to the section you want and compare all of the best work exchange programs.

Worldpackers

My favourite work exchange site. 

+ Easy to get responses from hosts

+ Excellent customer service

+ Worldpackers insurance if something goes wrong

+ Opportunities to earn money while travelling with Worldpackers Programs

– Not as many placements but the site is growing quickly

$39 USD for a year’s membership with this discount code

Save up to 20% on Worldpackers Membership

Save $10 on a year's membership with Worldpackers with the discount code TALESOFABACKPACKER   (that's up to 20% off a Solo Membership).

PLUS register with Worldpackers before 30 September 2024 and get access to travel mentorship to make your dream trips come true with the help of experts from the Worldpackers team!

CLAIM YOUR DISCOUNT

The biggest exchange site. 

+ Easy to use site

+ Most amount of placements around the world

– Can be hard to get responses from hosts

– Negative reviews are hidden so you don’t get the full picture

$49 USD for a year’s membership 

What is a Work Exchange?

Before we get into all the details, let’s start with the basics.  What is a work exchange and how does it work?

A work exchange means that people offer their time and skills to do volunteer work in exchange for free accommodation and food or other benefits. 

It is also known as a kind of work and travel programme, a work stay, work trade or voluntourism, although the volunteer placements are often ‘normal’ businesses looking for an extra pair of hands, not necessarily doing charity work as you may imagine in the traditional sense of ‘volunteering’.

As well as trading your work for accommodation, these kinds of placements are also fantastic opportunities for cultural exchange .  As you and your host get to know each other you will learn about each other’s culture, helping you both to understand more about the world we all live in. 

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: How to Travel for Free by Volunteering Abroad

Work exchange sites like Workaway, Worldpackers and others offer a platform for individuals, families, businesses and organisations to advertise for help they need.  Potential volunteers sign up to the websites to search for suitable hosts for volunteer placements in countries all over the world. 

Usually, this kind of work in exchange for room and board is great for travellers and backpackers who look for international placements, but there is no reason why you can’t do it in your own country (although you won’t be paid for it).  So even if you can’t travel abroad right now, you could start exploring your own country then go abroad when travel restrictions are lifted.

Wherever you decide to go, getting free accommodation in exchange for work is a great way to spend less money so you can travel for longer.

What Kind of Work is Available on Work Exchange Sites?

The kind of work exchange opportunities advertised on these sites varies according to the needs of the host.  Some hostels advertise for help on reception or organising events.  Families may advertise for volunteers to help with childcare or language teaching, or a farm may be looking for helpers to plant and harvest crops.

In exchange for working part-time for their hosts, volunteers get free accommodation (sometimes in dorms, private rooms or tents), and usually some meals too.  Volunteers may also get other benefits like free tours or language lessons, as well as a cultural exchange by spending time helping local people with their projects.

The length of time placements last varies from a couple of weeks to several months, depending on the placement, and how long the volunteer wants to stay.  Some have minimum stay requirements, so they don’t have to continually train up new volunteers, others are more flexible, but don’t expect to find many placements for a week or less.

Volunteering for work exchange programmes is actually my preferred way to travel and stay for ‘free’, especially when travelling for a long period of time.  I volunteered with several work exchange programmes when I was backpacking in South America and Mexico, and enjoyed spending time really getting to know the place where I was.

I worked on a hostel reception, helped a travel company with English translations and set up a website for another host.  It really is a win-win situation where you give something tangible back to your hosts, help them in their business, and get some great experience for your CV when you return home, while still saving money – perfect!

If you have more questions about work exchanges and how they work, check out our FAQ section below.

The Top Work Exchange Websites in Depth

• Workaway Review

Workaway is the largest and best-known work exchange site.  They have more than 50,000 placements all over the world with hosts who advertise volunteer exchange positions in hostels, on farms, in private homes – pretty much everywhere you can imagine – that travellers can search and apply for.

There is a registration fee, but then every work exchange is free of charge. You can also set up a joint account if you are travelling as a couple, or link two individual accounts if you are travelling together for a limited time.  If you’re travelling with kids you can now also add children under 18 to your single or joint account so you can volunteer as a family.

Membership costs $49 USD per year for an individual account or $59 per year for a joint account for two people travelling together.  If you use this link to sign up, you will also get 3 months extra free .  

The site is easy to use, and you can search for potential work exchange opportunities by location, keyword and by type of placement, such as farmstay, NGO placements or with families.  The hosts will provide accommodation and usually some meals, but check each individual listing for details.  As with all work exchange websites, each listing will provide something different in return for your work.

Reviews are provided for hosts and travellers so you can see what other people thought about their experience.  A lot of Workaway reviews are positive, however, when you come across a negative (1 star) review on Workaway you will find that the details of the review have been removed so you can’t read what the Workawayer (or host) said.

Apparently, Workaway does this to stop “revenge” reviews, where a host who gets a bad review might then leave a bad review for the volunteer in revenge, but I really don’t like how you can’t see the details so you can’t make an informed decision about whether you want to volunteer with that host or not. 

One way that other work exchange sites like Worldpackers get around this is to have a time limit on reviews, and not publish the review until the time limit has passed or until both parties have left a review without seeing what the other said (like Airbnb does).  I think this is a much better option than just hiding the information.

In my personal experience, I have had some good Workaway placements and really enjoyed the experiences but I also had a not-so-good one, where the host was rude to the volunteers and the atmosphere wasn’t great so it really does depend on the placement and whether it is a good match for you.  Of course, I wouldn’t expect everything to be perfect all the time but try to read between the lines of the reviews you can see as people tend to be nicer than they perhaps should be!

One issue I have had myself is not getting a response from potential Workaway hosts who never reply to messages.  I always send personal messages, with details of past experience (which is quite substantial for hostel placements), but when hosts don’t even bother to say “thanks but no thanks” it is very frustrating!  I think perhaps because Workaway is so big and has so many members, some of the more popular hosts may get bombarded with requests from volunteers.

Although the site is very professional and there are a lot of placements, I’ve also heard that people had trouble getting to speak to their support team if something goes wrong despite the website saying that paid members get access to 24/7 support.  I haven’t needed to contact support myself so I’m not sure how the experience is lately.

Cost: $49 USD per year – PLUS 3 months extra free when you use this link to sign up

Pros: Well established, with the most hosts to choose from all over the world.  Good for families.

Cons:  Negative reviews are hidden.  Can be hard to get a response from hosts, not great support.  While it is a popular site, there are other Workaway alternatives that could be better for you.

READ MORE: Worldpackers vs Workaway – Which is the best Work Exchange Site?

Sites Like Workaway:

As I said, there are various other websites like Workaway which work in a very similar way.  They all have their own pros and cons, so take a look and see which is the best work exchange website for you.

• Worldpackers Review

Worldpackers is my personal favourite work exchange website.  I used to use Workaway but have now switched and always go to Worldpackers when I’m looking for work in exchange for room and board while I’m travelling.  

Similar to Workaway, Worldpackers is free to join so you can browse for potential placements before you sign up to become a paid member.  Worldpackers started in South America, so they have a lot of opportunities there and have rapidly expanded the number of placements available in the rest of the world, with a network of over 1.5 million hosts and volunteers worldwide. 

There is a wide range of volunteer opportunities available with hostels, campsites, NGOs, social projects, farms, ecovillages, restaurants, and small businesses, families, again – you name it, they’ve got it.  To contact hosts and apply for placements you need to pay the membership fee and become a verified member.

Worldpackers membership fees are the same as Workaway at $49 USD for a year’s solo membership, ( GET A $10 DISCOUNT HERE ), they have an easy to use website and app and provide high-level customer support.  Worldpackers is very focused on safety and security, verifying each host before they are accepted on the platform. 

Worldpackers offer 24/7 support to volunteers and hosts, and there is a phone number and email address on the website to get in touch, as well as through their app.  They also offer their “ Worldpackers Insurance ” which covers the cost of a hostel for 3 nights if you need to leave your placement due to problems with the host. 

With this and the screening process, Worldpackers are proud of the fact that a lot of their volunteers are solo female travellers – 59% apparently – so that is good peace of mind for us ladies!

All Tales of a Backpacker readers can get a $10 discount saving you 20% , which means you only need to pay $39 USD for a full year’s verified membership.  Once you are a verified member you can apply to and message all the hosts on Worldpackers and volunteer all over the world without paying for accommodation.

As well as saving you money, Worldpackers also offer the chance to earn money as you travel through their Worldpackers Programs .  Once you’ve taken part in some exchanges, you can refer other travellers or new hosts to join and earn a commission, or get paid to produce blog or video content for Worldpackers.  I haven’t seen any other work exchange program be this generous!

If you’d like more information about how Worldpackers works, read my personal Worldpackers review here :

Cost: $49 USD for 1 year or $39 USD with this discount code 

          $59 USD for 1 year for a couple/joint membership or $49 USD with this discount code 

Pros: Good range of opportunities.  Excellent support for volunteers.  Chance to earn money while you travel with Worldpackers Programs

Cons: Not as many placements as Workaway but the site is growing quickly

ACTIVATE YOUR DISCOUNT CODE

Workaway vs Worldpackers  

Workaway and Worldpackers are in my opinion the two best work exchange sites, but for me, Worldpackers just tips the scales for the excellent value of membership (with the discount), their level of support and added extras in their community like the Worldpacker Programs and Worldpacker Academy.

I also prefer how Worldpackers deals with reviews, without hiding any negative reviews and making sure all reviews are genuine, whereas on Workaway you could potentially leave a review for anyone, even if you haven’t met or volunteered with them.

I go into more detail about which I think is the best work exchange website in this article comparing Worldpackers and Workaway  if you would like more information.

However, If you are still struggling to decide between Workaway or Worldpackers, the deal-breaker really depends on what work exchange placements are available where you want to go.  I have had several successful work exchanges through Workaway, but because of the sheer size of the network, hosts in popular destinations are often bombarded with requests for exchanges and you might be less likely to get a reply from them. 

I’ve spoken to several people who have had trouble getting responses from prospective hosts on Workaway, and there is nothing more frustrating than paying for a service where hosts don’t respond.  However, if there aren’t any listings on Worldpackers for the destination you want, then you will have better luck with Workaway . 

WWOOF Review

WWOOF or World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms has been around for a whopping 50 years.  It is the original work exchange site, and works in a similar way to the above sites but solely for placements on organic farms where you do farm work in exchange for room and board.

Most countries have their own WWOOF network, and you have to pay for registration for each country network which tends to be $20 – $30.  If there isn’t a WWOOF organisation in the country you’re looking for, there are also WWOOF Independents which are clubbed together on their own website.

The farms offer excellent opportunities to experience rural areas of your chosen countries, but by their nature tend to be more isolated from city centres and offer more basic accommodations than you expect to find in hostels where tourists are.

Cost: $20-$30 per country.

Pros: Solely on organic farns, so great for people wanting to learn more about permaculture and farming

Cons: Payment is per country, so if you are travelling around several countries it can be expensive.

Worldpackers & Workaway vs WWOOF

The two sites are quite hard to compare directly as they are really two different things.  If you want to learn about organic farming and permaculture in one specific country, then WWOOF is definitely the right option for you.  I don’t know of any other volunteering websites like WWOOF which just focus on farm work in exchange for room and board, and WWOOF has a great reputation.  

However, if you want to visit several countries that each have their own WWOOF network you will have to pay for registration on each network, so in that case, looking for volunteering opportunities on farms or smallholdings on other work exchange websites like Workaway or Worldpackers (my preferred choice).

Also, if you want to volunteer with different kinds of projects that aren’t related to farming then other work exchange platforms have more variety to choose from.  

HelpX Review

Help Exchange, or HelpX for short was originally set up in 2001 by a traveller who wanted a better system of finding work exchange placements while backpacking in Australia and New Zealand.  The website used to look quite dated compared to the others, but after a revamp is looking better but still not as slick. 

The basic principle of work exchange is the same – you have to register to use the site, you can register for free to browse and search for listings, but to contact hosts and to read the full reviews of placements you have to upgrade to the premier membership.

Membership is cheap though, at €20 (about $24 USD) for 2 years.  This site seems to focus primarily on Australia, New Zealand, Canada & Europe, although there are listings in other parts of the world too.

Once you have searched for a location you see when the profile was last updated – some seem quite out of date (as the website has been going for a long time) but it is always worth contacting them.  In search results, the profiles which have been updated most recently show up first.

Cost: $24 for 2 years

Pros: Cheap.  A wide range of opportunities in Europe, Australia, Canada.

Cons: Not many international placements outside their focus areas.

Helpx vs Workaway & Worldpackers

For me, the best work exchange programs are Worldpackers and Workaway as I’ve explained above.  Helpx is a good budget option, but the level of support offered seems way below the other top websites. 

If you’re used to travelling and volunteering abroad and you’re a confident solo traveller then it can be a good choice, I personally prefer to choose a work exchange platform with a better verification process for hosts and more support should something go wrong like the Worldpackers insurance policy .  

Trusted Housesitters Review

Housesitting and petsitting are a bit different from a typical work exchange in that you don’t spend time “working” for someone else, rather you will be living in someone’s home and looking after the house and their pets while they travel. 

Trusted Housesitters can be a great option for flexible travellers who have experience looking after animals or for more mature travellers and digital nomads who want free accommodation while they explore the world.  

Housesitting doesn’t have some of the same benefits of traditional work exchanges as you will be on your own in the host’s home, not interacting with them, so you do lose the social and cultural exchange part to a certain extent – but you will be able to feel at home in the destination and for long stays in particular, you can really feel part of the local community if you get out and meet people while you’re there.

The main benefit of house sitting is that it isn’t really working at all – you just need to keep the house clean and tidy and care for any animals.  This doesn’t mean you get free reign to do whatever you want though – it is a big responsibility to look after someone’s pets. 

Some animals will need feeding or exercising at specific times of day and you need to make sure they are safe and well in your care, and know what to do if they get sick or injured.  

Housesitting can be competitive, with hosts usually preferring to take experienced sitters over beginners with no reviews.  It is more expensive than the other work exchange sites, so might not work for budget backpackers.  I have done some housesitting and cat-sitting for friends in addition to TrustedHousesitters and I love it (read my full review of TrustedHousesitters here )!  

>>>Learn more about Trusted Housesitters here & save 25% on membership with the code TALES25

Cost: from $129 for a basic membership 

Pros: not real “work” so more free time, stay in someone’s home so it can be very nice accommodation

Cons: more expensive than traditional work exchanges, can be competitive.  Need to know about animal care and be responsible for someone’s pets.

Trusted Housesitters Discount Code

SAVE 25% on Trusted Housesitters Membership with the code TALES25 

Other Work Exchange Websites

Those five work exchange websites are by far the most popular and well-known.  There are other work exchange websites out there, but I haven’t had any experience with these, or spoken personally to anyone who has so I can’t vouch for them. 

For me, it’s worth choosing a better-known website so I have more peace of mind as a solo female traveller, but I wanted to include these just so you have all the details.  

HelpStay  

I found another work-exchange site called HelpStay which works in a similar way to Workaway.  However, I couldn’t find any HelpStay reviews from people who had used the site outside of HelpStay itself. 

Even they say themselves that the majority of hosts on HelpStay don’t have reviews (yet?), which could mean that there aren’t many volunteers on the site or if someone has volunteered with that host then they haven’t bothered to leave a review.

It seems like the site is still fairly small, after launching in 2014, currently with just over 1000 hosts registered.  Membership costs €29.99 ($36 USD) for one year for a single membership, and €39.99 ($48 USD) for a joint membership. 

If you have done a work exchange with HelpStay, let me know how you got on, I’d love more information about it!

Helpstay vs Workaway & Worldpackers

Without experiencing it myself or knowing anyone who has used Helpstay it’s hard to give a balanced view between which site is best – and as much as I love to support small businesses I would choose to register with Worldpackers or Workaway to have a wider choice of placements around the world.

Working Traveller

Working Traveller is another work exchange website I came across online but haven’t used myself, or spoken to any people who have used it. Working Traveller is free for Travellers to use on standard membership if you only want to contact 3 hosts a week, or you can upgrade to full membership which costs just $10 per year to contact unlimited hosts.

Free Work Exchange Websites

Hippohelp review: a genuinely free work exchange site.

If you are on an even tighter budget, then Hippohelp  is completely free to join, for both hosts and volunteers and is the only free work exchange site I have found.  I had previously suggested Volunteers Base as another free Workaway alternative , however, due to the lack of transparency on their website I now don’t recommend them at all (see below). 

Hippohelp as a genuinely free work exchange site emphasises social and cultural exchanges as the key to their work exchange programmes and could be a good way to ‘test’ out volunteering before you sign up and pay for sites like Workaway and Worldpackers. 

There is no fee to sign up, and no hidden fee to get verified.  However, as with any free site, there is more of an element of risk involved as there is no screening process, and if something goes wrong there isn’t a support team to help you. 

Having browsed a few of the placements on Hippohelp in the UK for example, I found that they were often individuals looking for help around the house, and most didn’t have any previous reviews.  As a solo female traveller that would be a big no-no for me, but there may be more suitable options I haven’t found.

It’s certainly worth checking out if you really do have zero cash to spend on travel.

Pros: Good to get a taster if you are a confident traveller and don’t expect to have problems

Cons: Not as much screening of hosts or support if you do need help 

Volunteers Base Review

Due to the lack of transparency on their website, this is my least favourite work exchange platform but I still wanted to include it so you have the most up-to-date and correct information. 

The homepage looks professional and claims that the website is free for volunteers and for hosts, stating that “Volunteers Base is a not-for-profit free alternative” to traditional volunteering networks. 

However, when you try to send a message to a host it forces you to make a donation to the site in order to verify your identity. 

I don’t have a problem making a donation or paying for a membership if I know the company is legitimate and open about its business, but I really don’t like how Volunteers Base doesn’t make it clear that you have to pay to get verified – why not just be upfront about it instead of wait until you’ve completed your profile, found a host to contact and then spring a compulsory donation on you? 

I suppose you could just pay 1 penny or something just to get verified, but it isn’t the money, it is the principle of it and personally, I’d rather just sign up to one of the other websites with better customer service and more support.

However, if you want to give it a try then you can browse placements for free, just be prepared to pay a fee to get verified and be able to contact hosts.

* ADDITION * It turns out that my account got verified without making a donation so apparently I can now message hosts if I want to, and I didn’t pay any money.  After all that I don’t think I will be using the site anyway.

Cost: Compulsory “donation” of your choice

Cons: Cost is not clear or upfront so it feels underhand.  Not as much screening of hosts or support if you do need help 

Which Work Exchange Site is Better – Workaway, HelpX, WWOOF or Worldpackers?  Or Free Sites like Hippohelp?

The best work exchange site overall: worldpackers.

For me, Worldpackers is the best work exchange site, thanks to their level of support and Worldpackers insurance, and how you can earn money with them through Worldpackers Programs as well as saving all that money on accommodation.

EXPLORE WORLDPACKERS

The Best for Most Choice: Workaway

Workaway is the biggest work exchange website, with the largest network of hosts and volunteers so wherever you go in the world you are likely to find work exchange placements.  However, the biggest is not always the best as I said in my full Workaway review above. 

Due to hiding the details of negative reviews and some difficulties in getting responses from hosts, in my opinion, Worldpackers is the best work exchange program and my top choice when looking for volunteer placements.

The Best for Farm Work & Permaculture in One Country: WWOOF

The name includes Organic Farms, so if that’s what you’re into then WWOOF is probably the best option for you unless you plan to travel to several different countries, in which case you might be better searching for eco-friendly and farming volunteer opportunities on Worldpackers .

The Best for Zero Budget: Hippohelp

As it is the only completely free work exchange website, then if you have literally no money to spend then Hippohelp could be a great way to travel for free.  However, be mindful of the lack of screening and support should something go wrong.  As a solo female traveller, I would rather pay the $39 membership fee for Worldpackers and have that extra peace of mind.

Considering Travel Insurance For Your Trip?

• Unfortunately, things can and do go wrong when you travel.  I always buy travel insurance for my trips and was very glad I had insurance when I had my laptop and passport stolen in Ecuador! 
• I chose World Nomads Travel Insurance for my recent backpacking trip to Australia and New Zealand.   World Nomads offers travel insurance for independent travellers and intrepid families and offers cover for more than 150 adventure sports and activities as well as emergency medical, lost luggage, trip cancellation and more.  Get a quote , make a claim, or buy or extend your policy while on the road.

GET A NO-OBLIGATION QUOTE

As an affiliate, I receive a fee when you get a quote from  World Nomads  using this link. I do not represent  World Nomads . This is information only and not a recommendation to buy travel insurance. 

• I have also used SafetyWing which is available for purchase online in 180 countries and you can also buy it while you are already travelling. SafetyWing travel medical insurance i s charged on a month-by-month basis so a great flexible choice for digital nomads or if you're not sure of your future plans.  

LEARN MORE ABOUT SAFETYWING

• Alternatively, check out True Traveller if you're based in the UK, or use a comparison site like Travel Insurance Master to find the best cover for you.

What do you think?  Have you had any experience volunteering with work exchange sites like Workaway, Worldpackers or HelpX?  Would you do volunteer work in exchange for free accommodation?  I’d love to hear what you think, please leave your comments below.

Work Exchange FAQ

How do you do a work exchange.

The easiest way to find work exchanges is through a work exchange website like Workaway , Worldpackers , or WWOOF.  They list available opportunities from hosts around the world, and members can apply for as many exchanges as they like during the year of membership.

What is Workaway?

Workaway is the biggest work exchange website, with thousands of listings from hosts around the world looking for volunteers to help them with their business or project.

What is Worldpackers?

Worldpackers is the best work exchange website, with thousands of listings from hosts around the world looking for volunteers to help them with their business or project, and a very high level of support for members.  As well as unpaid volunteer opportunities, they also offer the chance to earn money while you travel through Worldpackers Programs .

Is Workaway free?  

No.  Although you can browse volunteer opportunities for free, there is a membership fee of $44 per year ( get 3 months extra free with this link ) which then allows you to contact hosts and apply for as many work exchanges as you like within the year of your membership.  

Is Workaway a Good Idea?

While the principle behind Workaway is a great idea, I prefer to use Worldpackers thanks to the extra support they offer, and their Worldpackers Programs which means you can actually earn money as you travel.  In my experience, it is becoming harder to get a response from Workaway hosts as they get swamped with applications, and Worldpackers hosts are more responsive.

Which is better Workaway or Worldpackers?

For me, Worldpackers is better thanks to the extra support they offer, and their Worldpackers Programs which means you can actually earn money as you travel.  Workaway has more hosts and more volunteer positions available, but in my experience, it is becoming harder to get a response from Workaway hosts as they get swamped with applications, and Worldpackers hosts are more responsive.

Do you need a Visa for Work Exchange?

If you don’t need a visa to actually travel to the country where you want to do a work exchange, you shouldn’t need a work visa to do a work exchange, as really it is a cultural exchange and you won’t be doing paid for your work. 

However, some countries do require a specific visa for volunteering, so check the host listing to see if they mention needing specific paperwork, and check iVisa to see if you do need a travel visa .  Remember, it is your responsibility to make sure you have all of the required paperwork to travel.

How Long do Work Exchanges Last For?

Usually, work exchanges are for a minimum of two weeks and can last anywhere up to several months.  Hosts will specify how long they like volunteers to stay, as they don’t want to have to spend time training up new volunteers every few days!

Want More Work Exchange Travel Tips?

• How to Volunteer Abroad for Free
• The Best Work Exchange Sites Compared
• Workaway Alternatives
• Should you Work for Accommodation?
• Work Exchange Programs - Are They For You?
• Workaway vs Worldpackers
• TrustedHousesitters Review
• What is a Cultural Exchange?

Like this post?  Pin it to read later:

Hi! I'm Claire Sturzaker, a 30-something foodie traveller who loves to enjoy the best of a destination without breaking the bank. I'm here to help you and all women backpackers to plan their best budget travel adventure. I am an avid supporter of female solo travel, and took my first solo trip 20 years ago! I love to write about travel, hostels, backpacking and van life.

13 thoughts on “ The Best Work Exchange Websites Compared PLUS $10 Worldpackers Discount ”

Thanks for the informative post. I traveled through France and Germany for a few months, and used CouchSurfing and WWOOF’ing. It was an amazing experience!

Thank You. Great Help.

We have been a host in workaway and find that does not protect hosts from exploiting workawayers who looks for free stay but laze about work. Because the workawayers pay, the admin censors negative comments left by hosts (it should be an effective measure to alarm other hosts). The admin even peeps into personal messages. As host we feel unprotected and have to leave.

You’re welcome, I’m happy to help. I hope you enjoy your travels & experience with them, please let me know how it goes! 🙂

Thank you so much for the worldpackers discount code! I was about to sign up for it when I decided to search if there were better options and you just solidified the choice for me!

Great! So glad to hear you’re enjoying your experience with work exchanges so far – enjoy Alaska and Ireland! Thanks for reading & commenting 🙂 Happy travels!

I am in my late 50s and heard about this idea while traveling in Portugal. I came home and check out all these sites, reviews and prices. Then I decided to signed up on Hippohelp just to try it before I join a paid site. Frankly I thought this might be more geared towards the younger generation and being in my 50s might be an issue but I was wrong. I got invited to many locations around the world and chose couple of them for this year which matched my schedule. I am already signed up to go to Alaska and Ireland this year.

One of my colleagues tried this work-exchange arrangement. She ended up in Nigeria and had a really fun time. She loved the land so much that she actually married a Nigerian guy. 🙂

I would love to try this, but considering the financial situation here in the Philippines (you really need a job and a stable source of income), this will have to be shelved for a time.

If I could go back to the days when I was in school or before I entered the working world I would definitely have been interested in this. Heck – I’m still interested in it now, I just don’t have the time off to be able to do it. Very informative post and tips to help with travel costs.

What a fantastic idea and some fantastic sites. I love that it is a win-win for everyone, as you said. You get to have room and board for free and add to your resume, and the host gets a skill set for “free” that they might not have access to where they are or can’t afford. Great idea!

This is a very informative post. It seems that you covered a good range of organizations that hire volunteers in exchange for accommodation and one day off per week.

Thank you for sharing these! I hadn’t heard of this as a way to help with travel costs, it sound like a great way to meet people too!

Neat Claire. I knew a blogger who WOOFED their way around the world for many months. Pretty cool.

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12 BEST WORK EXCHANGE WEBSITES TO HELP YOU TRAVEL THE WORLD AND LIVE RENT FREE

If you are looking to travel the world affordably, for longer, and also gain new skills then work exchange opportunities may be the answer you have been looking for. Volunteers will work for free for a fixed amount of hours per week in exchange for free accomodation and other benefits (language lessons, free meals, yoga lessons, etc) provided by the host.

Here are 12 websites to look for these types of opportunities:

Table of Contents

WORLDPACKERS – TOP RECOMMENDED

for those looking to volunteer for purposeful travel through work exchange opportunities

An easy platform to nativage that offers potential placements in a wide range of volunteer opportunities available with hostels, campsites, NGOs, social projects, holistic centers, farms, ecovillages, surf camps, restaurants, and small businesses, families, through a network of over 1.5 million hosts and volunteers worldwide . With opportunities offering the ability to: experience cultural immersion, learn languages, develop new skills, make a positive impact in the world through sustainability, connect with locals. Most of the experiences offer free accomodation and meals, some even offer surfing, yoga, permaculture, or even dance lessons! 

Worldpackers definitely wins in safety and responsiveness; they provide support throughout your Worldpacker Experience journey and have insurance so if you arrive at your destination and conditions are not as advertised by the host, Worldpackers will find you a new host in the area to stay with. If they’re not able to find you a new host, Worldpackers will pay for your stay in a dorm at a nearby hostel for up to three nights. They also background checks hosts, allows you to message the people directly before going, making sure that they are active and able to provide collaborative, mutually beneficial volunteering experience.

A solo membership fee is $49 for a year (you can also link you & a friends profile so you can apply to work opportunities together);  Worldpackers is very focused on safety and security, verifying each host before they are accepted on the platform and provide high-level customer support. They even have a “Worldpackers Academy” that teaches travels to make a living while traveling as a lifestyle.

Get $10 off your membership through this link or with code “MONICAROAMS”

for those looking for work exchanges to gain valuable life experiences and support thousands of local projects

Another well known work exchange website with more than 50,000+ opportunities all over the world with hosts who advertise volunteer exchange positions in hostels, on farms, NGO’s, sustainable projects, animal welfare, boats, in private homes that travellers can search and apply for (some are even paid positions). They even have an option to plan meet ups and other workawayers nearby so you can find more travel buddies. 

There is a membership fee, it costs $44 per year for an individual account or $56 per year for a joint account. You can apply as a solo traveler. pair /couple, or even a group / family.

for those who want to experience sustainable living on organic farms & family homes

Another popular site is World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF), the original work exchange site, that links those interested in a cultural and educational exchanges to organic farmers and families that are conscious of ecological farming and sustainability practices. Browsing on the site for potential opportunities is free!

In order to apply to the 142 available opportunities a membership is needed, you can get a 2 year membership for $32 (single account) or $50 (for a joint account).

for those looking for longer work exchanges while gaining practical experiences

An online listing for those who would like the opportunity during their travels abroad, to stay with local people and gain practical experience at host organic farms, farmstays, hobby farms, lifestyle blocks, homestays, ranches, lodges, backpackers hostels and even sailing boats who invite volunteer helpers to stay with them short-term in exchange for food and accommodation. This website also has offers travelers the opportunity to connect with fellow travelers from all over the world. You have to register to apply to opportunities, you can register for free to browse and search for listings, but to contact hosts and to read the full reviews of placements you have to upgrade to  the premier membership ($24USD for 2 years) .

for those looking for low cost/free volunteer opportunities abroad that exchange work (less popular than WorkAway)

A contact platform between hosts and helpers with over 1000+ volunteer stays in 100+ countries that have been screened and approved. There are opportunities with free stay and food and some that are $30 a day depending on which opportunities you choose. Volunteer opportunity categories: Animals & Environments, Backpacker Hostels & Hospitality, Building & Restoration Projects, Farming & Homesteads, Community Betterment, Teaching & Language, and Internships Abroad. Membership costs $36 USD for one year for a single membership and $47 for a couple.

Trusted House Sitters

for pet lovers that like having free places to stay while traveling around the world

An online platform that connects sitters and those in need of sitters by allowing users to search for locations and showcase dates that are available that sitters can apply too. This a great opportunity for pet lovers to have an animal companion and a nice accomodation somewhere new!

Browsing is free but a membership is needed to apply to opportunities. Basic Sitter plans starting at $129/year , the Standard Sitter plan at $169/yea r and the Premium Sitter membership plans that go for $259/year. That’s literally $13USD every month (for the standard sitter plan)!

Volunteer Base

for those who want to travel and give back without having to pay a membership fee

A moneyless help exchange network, it’s free and always will be! Hosts in need of helping hands list their Projects and Volunteers interested in joining can get in touch. Projects can be almost anything: farming, building, hostels, language teaching, house sitting, community work, arts and crafts, housekeeping, etc.

Au Pair World

for those who like kids/ have experience babysitting

The #1 au pair agency on the internet that many of my friends have used! It offers au pairs and host families the possibility to search for each other using simple, specially designed web-based tools that ensure safety and a large range of opportunities. It is a free search engine that keeps up to date with profiles and uses a matching algorithm to match users through their search criteria.

OCCUPATION WILD

for those who want jobs in the outdoor industry

An easy to navigate platform\job board for the outdoor, adventure, and travel industry for some of the best companies in the outdoor industry- trip leading & guiding jobs, jobs with housing, conservation corp jobs, national park jobs, year- round jobs, seasonal jobs, etc. 

for those looking for paid jobs in hospitality to work in National Parks

A customer service business across food, facilities and uniforms services to millions of people, in 19 countries around the world for those looking for jobs in culinary, food service, administration, retail and customer service, transportation, custodial, etc. in stadiums/arenas or National Parks.

for those looking for free accomodation in Central Europe, Ireland, England and Malta + a free TFFL certificate

A website that offers a unique experience for cultural & language exchange in beautiful venues across Europe. Each experience offers 3 free meals per day, free city tours, and you can even become a qualified TEFL teacher in weeks using an AngloTEFL Scholarship!

DEL SOL INTERNSHIP

for those looking for free accomodation in the US in exchange for sales experience

A competitive sales internship program that allows you to live in any of their locations for free, they fly you out to whatever location you are working at, supply you with a car and also offer a chance for you to get commission. This is more for people wanting sales experience in retail and counts as school internship credit if needed. This is also how I was able to live in Hawaii rent free.

*only open to US residents- no children or pets allowed, must be between 18-30*

These websites are here to provide us resources so we can travel the world more- for less. If you have ever dreamed about living in a different country or anywhere around the world these websites can help you do so affordably while also teaching you new skills and languages.

Check out my blogpost “ Best Travel Credit Cards for Budget Travelers ” to really see how you can make the money you spend on everyday purchases allow you to travel more!

Happy traveling my friends! xxx

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1 thought on “ 12 BEST WORK EXCHANGE WEBSITES TO HELP YOU TRAVEL THE WORLD AND LIVE RENT FREE ”

Whoa! This blog looks exactly like my old one! It’s on a totally different subject but it has pretty much the same layout and design. Great choice of colors!

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Work from anywhere, explore everywhere

A travel club for global remote workers.

We make it easy for you to see the world while you work

Join professionals across 20+ destinations while you work, travel, and build a global community. Remote Year handles accommodations, workspaces, and experiences, so you can focus on your job. Choose flexible monthly trips or a transformative 12-month journey. Embrace remote work without sacrificing community.

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RY = 10 years of adventure and personal growth. What I learned has fundamentally reshaped my world view. By highlighting my own and other diverse perspectives, I hope more people see themselves as capable of international travel.

No Typical 9-5 Here

RY took my entire life and turned it upside-down in the best way. There’s no such thing as a “typical 9-to-5” here. Every day, I learned more about the world and people. If I could rewind and relive it again, I’d do it in a heartbeat.

Wouldn’t Change A Thing

5 continents, 14 countries, 38 cities & 24 planes later, I'm still giving thanks to the man above! I've met amazing people, tried countless foods, and learned so much about myself. Nothing quite describes what this year meant. I wouldn't change a thing and would spend every dime the same.

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Remote Year is an amazing work travel company with a wonderful community. Having done multiple RY programs I'm continually impressed by the care and helpfulness of the staff that I interact with on a daily basis. The Remote Year community of people make every bit of the experience.

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I've done 3 RY Trips. Each one has gifted me memories, friendships, family, culture lessons, and confidence. You start as a solo traveler, but leave as part of a family. Challenge yourself and experience what you don’t know. RY has given me those chances & it’s been incredible.

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Remote Year’s magic lies in its ability to simplify travel. Precise planning and thoughtful curation let me immerse myself, free from logistical stress. Whether you’re a thrill seeker, nature lover, history buff, foodie, or adventurer, they cater to all.

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15 Best Remote Work and Travel Programs (And Highlights of Each)

Written by Becca

Updated on July 11th, 2024

How do you choose the best work and travel program for your preferences and job? In this guide, I compare the top retreats and experiences to help find the right one.

This article may contain affiliate links. We earn a small commissions when you purchase via those links — and it's free for you. It's only us (Becca & Dan) working on this website, so we value your support! Read our privacy policy and learn more about us .

Table of contents

• Remote Year
• Hacker Paradise
• Noma Collective
• Venture with Impact
• Nomad Train
• Coworkations (Warning: not a remote work and travel program)
• Behere: not a work and travel program
• Selina: not a work and travel program (but some people think it is)
• Nomadize (red flag)
• JoinMyTrip “Coworking Trips” (red flag, but only for remote work trips)
• WiFi Artists
• Figuring out which remote work and travel program is right for you

I’ll just be frank: I did Remote Year on the four-month program, and Dan did Remote Year twice: the first time on the year-long 12-month program, and the second time on the four-month program with me.

There are other remote work and travel programs out there, though, and some are best for certain types of people.

In this guide, I’ll outline what to know about a lot of the group programs that let you work remotely and see the world. We have friends who have done a whole slew of them, and have given us feedback and told us about their experiences first-hand.

I’ll clear up common misconceptions about each, and you can do the math on which ones you want to apply to.

I’m also going to clarify some things about companies that seem like remote work and travel programs (but aren’t), as well as some to avoid!

Remote Year

Remote Year , founded in 2016, was probably the first groundbreaking “remote work and travel program” everyone heard about. That was a while ago, and working remotely (and traveling) is SO much more commonplace now.

When Dan joined Remote Year, we had to explain the concept of working remotely around the world and traveling with a group of people, and people couldn’t wrap their heads around it. Nowadays, it’s almost as if everyone knows someone who has done one of these programs.

Main summary of what to know

Remote Year operates with lots of opportunities for travel programs to join, ranging from one week to one year. The company offers destinations at every corner of the world, with staff to help you and guide you along the way in order to have the best time.

For me, the main benefits of Remote Year was the community , as well as the vetted coworking spaces, group activities, connections to local culture, awesome staff and for sure, the alumni community that I’ve been connected to ever since we ended our program in Mexico City.

Why are coworking spaces such a huge part of remote work and travel programs? See all the benefits of coworking spaces that a Remote Year trip taught me about.

Who it’s for

Honestly, as someone who thought that remote work and travel programs were only for engineers and web developers, Remote Year was great for me . I worked part-time for my employer in NYC in business operations, and the other part of my time was spent on content creation for this website, as well as some media that Remote Year eventually used on their website.

Our Remote Year cohort was full of people of diverse backgrounds. Our fellow participants worked as salespeople, writers, filmmakers, entrepreneurs, real estate professionals, jewelry designers, consultants and more. Many became my friends, and all in all, I learned how to work remotely and travel in a way that let me excel.

I can’t possibly describe my entire Remote Year experience here, so I would urge you to check out my guide called, What is Remote Year? to learn more. Remote Year totally changed my life (for the better!) and I’m so glad I took that one day to convince my boss to let me work remotely and travel .

An alternative to Remote Year, WiFi Tribe has been described by friends of ours as being more basic, but with the details I’m going to share here. The info below is from a friend who has done multiple WiFi Tribe trips.

Here are a few main points about WiFi Tribe, and what sets this remote work group trip program apart.

Main summary

• WiFi Tribe offers the three key elements to working remotely and traveling with a program: a place to work, accommodation and a community of friends (participants).
• Less “structure:” While Remote Year offers LOTS of programming and “experiences” to add to your week, WiFi Tribe does not. The key idea is that the group plans what it wants, organically.
• Community is STRONG: the group functions wholesomely, which is a big positive for a lot of people who choose WT exactly for this reason. For someone worried about the pros and cons of being a digital nomad , WT solves the fear of isolation.
• Autonomy: there are no hard feelings if someone wants to dip in and out, and “do their own thing;” in the same way, anyone is welcome to plan something for the group.
• Participant curation: While it has been pretty clear that Remote Year accepts basically anyone who can prove that they work remotely, want to travel and want to do the program for the right reasons (in my experience), WiFi Tribe is known to reject 80% or so of applicants, thereby creating groups of people who are vetted for a personality fit — a lot like getting a job!
• Group sizes: Groups in WT are intimate, between 10 and 30 participants in total.

WiFi Tribe’s website currently says, “Our current experiences are designed for people between the ages of 21 and 45. This helps us keep lifestyle expectations aligned. We’re hoping to build out experiences for all ages in the future.” Keep this in mind for if you don’t fall within these limits, or, if you are seeking a program that does not have age restrictions.

WiFi Tribe is, based on the above parameters, for people who are “really community-oriented” and who want to meet and connect with other professionals while seeing the world.

WT participants have hailed from more than 60 nationalities in the curated communities. There is a big emphasis on sharing values, getting the right “fit” of incredible people in each group and “togetherness.”

I think the WiFi Tribe website , even in its main page, does a great job of spelling out the community’s aims right from the get-go.

Another friend of ours was rejected from joining WiFi Tribe because they did not work enough hours per week, while owning their own business, when they quoted their work schedule in an application. WT rejected this person on the grounds of this person potentially not fitting in with the schedule that the majority of community members have. You can see how the curation works in this way.

Hacker Paradise

Use our exclusive discount code HALFHALFTRAVEL200 to get $200 off your Hacker Paradise program.

Hacker Paradise, or HP, was also one of the original work and travel community-based programs that debuted in the mid 2010s with the rise of remote work. This “work from anywhere” attitude is present in the company’s mantra of “Work Hard, Travel Far.”

We also have a friend who did Hacker Paradise several times as a community participant, and I want to share this person’s findings on what makes HP different from WT and RY.

Key summary of the program

• Structure: Two program leaders plan events during every month and each destination.
• What your program fee gets you: accommodations in each city, a coworking space with WiFi, a SIM or eSIM for cell signal, the “community” and repeating events like Monday lunches (included in the fee), Tuesday potluck dinners, Wednesday Skill Share events, Thursday “meaningful conversation” get-togethers and Thursday “nights out.”
• Weekends: on a HP trip, weekends are free time, when people in the community might plan something like an activity, or group leaders may plan something. Every weekend is different. If the group does something held by an external vendor, there are no up-charges (which are common on RY experiences).

Who it’s best for

Hacker Paradise is actually not just for computer hackers, as the name sounds. As I looked on the website under their People tab, HP is for people of all professions, like writers, entrepreneurs, developers, artists researches, designers and more.

HP is best for people who are seeking the structure offered, and personally, I think this is really great because I crave structure. I also crave structure when I’m away from my regular routine of home, and looking for exactly that: structure.

A gift from us: Check out Hacker Paradise and use code HALFHALFTRAVEL200 to get $200 discounted on your Hacker Paradise program when you enroll.

Recap and comparison of the top 3 work and travel programs

Let’s summarize the top 3 “work from anywhere” travel programs for remote professionals in the most boiled-down way possible. Hopefully this could help you choose which one is right for you if you’re interested in these top 3.

• Remote Year : Lots of events, participants can be as group-oriented OR as autonomous as they want, lots of staff and support, lots of expectation.
• WiFi Tribe : Highly curated community, focus on values, fewer structural elements like fewer formal events on the calendar
• Hacker Paradise : A mix of both of the above, and falls in the middle, with mildly-curated groups, a mix of group events, autonomy is welcomed and a focus on community.

Now it’s time to see more work and travel programs and compare their benefits and styles.

What is Outsite ? My friend Jena “did” an Outsite house in Puerto Rico . Outsite is a formalized coliving type of environment, or “program,” you could call it.

Outsite calls itself, “Beautiful places to stay, designed for remote workers.” This means it is a coliving program, designed for people who want to come live at a house with a community. It was born from a desire to work in beautiful locations around the world.

The company has more than 50 locations worldwide and has more than 5000 members who have participated in the Outsite houses.

The “houses” have local experiences, shared spaces for working, and community initiatives like events with nonprofits in the region.

The “community” is what you get when you become a “ Member .” By becoming a member, it doesn’t mean you’re automatically going to live immediately at one of the houses for a period of time; it means you get access to choosing which you’ll go to first, and encourages you to visit and stay at more and more Outsite locations.

In short, Outsite is for if you want to latch on immediately to a close community in a gorgeous destination far from home. Showing up at an Outsite house, maybe even only for two weeks, is a good amount of time to try traveling and working remotely.

What to know about Outsite is that unlike RY, HP and WT, pepole go in and out of the location you’re in. This can potentially create a feeling of transience: someone is always leaving, and someone else is always showing up.

This isn’t a group that travels together; rather, it’s you who’s doing the traveling, and meeting different (transient) communities around the world who share Outsite values.

Noma Collective

I engaged a bunch with Noma Collective over the years, and spoke to the founders and leaders of the company over a video call once to learn about their Belize retreat. From what I see, NOMA focuses more on “wellness” than other programs, and escaping the walls of a traditional 9-to-5.

Noma Collective’s tagline is, “Bring your job, we’ll bring the world.” The company brings participants the full digital nomad experience by offering accommodations (usually apartments or hotels), coworking environments, daily events and “wellness.”

Included in the fees are things like logistics planning, excursions and events, as well as the community itself.

While I was most interested in joining NOMA’s coworking program in Belize, the company also offers places like Kenya, Guatemala, Portugal, Argentina, Morocco, Spain and Panama under the current offerings.

Venture with Impact

VWI’s founder (Ann) reached out to me a while ago to ask to make sure to include the company in lists of ours like this one.

Venture with Impact is a special organization, and the way Ann phrased the company to me was, “Each of our participants is partnered with a local non-profit to engage in a pro-bono project.”

So what VWI is, in essence, is a “coworking retreat” where participants can work remotely AND at the same time, work on a volunteer project that fosters professional development. The three tenets are LIVE - WORK - IMPACT and the retreats are 30 days long.

The current location offerings are Mexico City and Lisbon, Portugal (two of my favorite cities on Earth). There are also special one-week retreats and “custom retreats” for five people or more.

SOJRN is popularizing the idea of “studying abroad as an adult,” which is exactly how I once described Remote Year. SOJRN calls their experiences “chapters,” and mostly focuses on destinations like Italy, Colombia and Bali.

A lot of the SOJRN trips have a theme, like “Spanish in Medellin” or “wine in Tuscany.” Participatns will work remotely while staying in a place with a group, and create an unforgettable journey for everyone.

What I like about SOJRN are the missions and values: SOJRN emphasizes “slow travel,” to respectfully engage with new cultures, and positive impact, which means giving back to the communities that the group visits.

I’ve heard about Unsettled for a few years, and I wanted to know what made this program different. While it’s a younger program than the others, there does seem to be a focus on entrepreneurship and creativity from the get-go, with the company’s intro as, “Unsettled is a global travel community for entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, and creatives who are on a mission to live and work differently.”

Here are some things to know about Unsettled:

• Programs are anywhere from 1 to 4 weeks in places like Greece, Italy, Croatia, Bali and Peru.
• Unsettled has deep and though-provoking values like fueling inspiration, discovering the world around us, seeking purpose and pushing boundaries.
• Unsettled participants like to ADVENTURE, whether by doing adrenaline-inducing activities or pushing their limits together.
• Participants are mostly in their 30s to 50s, so you can expect a more “mature” crew in any cohort.

Nomad Train

Nomad Train held the first-ever “longest coworking journey by train” in 2017 when the program began. I think you have to love trains to try out Nomad Train as your work and travel retreat, which makes this type of experience pretty niche.

Nomad Train has (according to the website) had around 100 participants since the company’s maiden voyage. And there are really “out there” locations that these trips explore, like Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

I think in summary, Nomad Train is an extreme type of remote work and travel program, and I mean “extreme” in a good way! Most people think of Bali, or Western Europe, for their coworking adventure, but Nomad Train has brought remote workers to Russia and the Trans-Siberian Railroad as a way of taking groups of professionals on big trips.

Coworkations (Warning: not a remote work and travel program)

I learned about Coworkations from a blog called Career Addict , listing the best programs for working remotely and traveling. I believe it incorrectly lists Coworkations, which is not a program in itself, but rather, a database of “work anywhere” programs around the world.

While “Coworkations” is not a brand of a certain program, what it does let you do on the website is filter by location or “theme” (like “fitness” or “foodie trips”). In your results, you will get trips from companies I mention above, like Hacker Paradise and Noma Collective.

I wanted to make this crystal clear because sites are listing Coworkations as “one of the best programs,” but it is not a program at all: it’s a website.

Behere : not a work and travel program

Behere is like an “Airbnb for digital nomads.” That’s right: if you read this piece from Fast Company about Behere , you can learn about how this “program” of sorts lets professionals safely find accommodation (as well as coworking spaces and fitness studios) in new cities where they want to be digital nomads.

Unlike the other remote work and travel programs that have you traveling with the community, Behere allows you to be part of the local community by living in a place where you can work remotely and enjoy your surroundings.

If you want to consider the digital nomad lifestyle without the strings attached of a constant stream of events or structure, Behere creates a way to “just go live somewhere else” but not deal with the overwhelm of finding a place to live from scratch.

There are some membership fees, and I’d suggest reading the FAQ to see how Behere works in practice.

Selina : not a work and travel program (but some people think it is)

I want to make this clear: I’ve seen sites like OwlLabs and Freaking Nomads list Selina as a work and travel program for remote professionals. It is not.

What Selina is

I’ve done Selina stays, and I’ve coworked as well at Selina locations without staying there. Selina is a hostel company that caters to digital nomads and the digital nomad travel lifestyle. Each hostel (located in many parts of the world, but mostly Latin America and Europe) has fun events, social mixers, tour excursion opportunities, cool “vibes” and trendy decor.

There are also coworking spaces at most Selina locations where you can buy anything from a day pass membership to a month of membership in order to work remotely with WiFi in a professional environment (where people will probably be wearing flip flops and hoodies).

I’ve stayed at Selina locations (hostels/hotels) in:

• Cartagena, Colombia
• Chicago, IL, USA
• Cancun, Mexico
• Mexico City, Mexico

And I’ve been a CoWork member at Selina in:

• Medellin, Colombia

The best job I’ve done of explaining how Selina works is at our Selina Mexico City Downtown review , where I talk about our accommodation, the coworking space and things like the shared kitchen for longer-term stays, like ours.

Selina is good for someone who wants to travel and work remotely, maybe on their own or with a buddy, and potentially meet new people who are also traveling solo and lapto-ping.

What Selina is not

Selina is not a work-and-travel program for remote professionals. In my Selina experiences, there was not much done to group together the people who were there to work remotely, versus those who were 18 years old and on a college holiday vacation.

In staying at Selina, you have to know that the locations are all hostels first (as I see it), and have coworking spaces second . This means everyone is staying at Selina, but not everyone is working. If this is an environment that speaks to you, the benefit is that you can drop in and out of working and feel like you are on vacation.

So, Selina is best for being on vacation and having access to a place to also do work, or, traveling on your own, having the ability to meet other travelers and doing whatever you want on your own schedule.

Nomadize (red flag)

I saw Nomadize publicizing remote work and travel programs, but just using my best judgement by finding my way around the website, I’m not going to recommend this company.

All of the programs say “almost available” (what does that mean?), or “coming soon,” meaning they have nothing available right now. The company’s social media also doesn’t show any real participants or testimonials.

JoinMyTrip “Coworking Trips” (red flag, but only for remote work trips)

I came across JoinMyTrip from another website, and had to look into it. The website claimed to offer “300 trips,” which is really a lot, and uses the motto, “Experience Relaxing Group Trips.” This is all fine, as I perused the trips, which are anything from trekking Scotland to exploring Japan.

At the very bottom of the website, there is a button called “Remote Working.” I clicked it, and got a blank page. Plus, in the “How It Works” page, there are no mentions of remote work or coworking at all.

I’d avoid this one if I were you, but their regular trips seem fine based on 5000+ good reviews on TrustPilot.

WiFi Artists

WiFi Artists is one of the younger work-and-travel-remotely programs. It has a simple tag phrase of, “A community of remote workers, entrepreneurs and digital nomads building connections and exploring the world together.”

All programs include accommodation, coworking spaces, connecting with a group and cultural experiences.

According to the website currently, programs are geared toward participants of ages 24 to 45. There is an ‘extremely’ high emphasis on group participant selection.

See how WiFi Artists works .

Figuring out which remote work and travel program is right for you

There are a lot of factors that go into choosing a program, as you can see. I tend to think that what’s most important is the legitimacy of the program or company, and the types of people it attracts.

What I’ve learned by going on the Remote Year program is that it attracts literally all kinds of people, and I think that is true for a lot of these programs. A lot of them also seek diversity, and this is a great thing as you make friends as a digital nomad .

You’ll also want to take the locations into account. Deciding where to work remotely and travel is one of the most paralyzing concepts, and luckily these programs have pre-determined itineraries. That doesn’t mean one size fits all, though, especially if you need to remain in US time zones for your job.

Overall, I suggest asking in forums to hear experiences of people who’ve done the various programs that interest you, and also perusing what’s included, because as you can see above, the programs all differ slightly in terms of what is included among accommodation, travel between cities, coworking and activities or social events.

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How to Travel For Free: Master List of 100+ Resources

Travel as a way of life requires making some outside-the-box job decisions. I’ve been a traveling alternately as a seasonal worker, a volunteer, a vanlifer, and a tourist for over a decade without any sort of “normal” job. Here are the resources you’ll need to do the same.

A word of caution: there are many companies (GVI, Interexchange, GoAbroad, BUNAC, etc.) that position themselves as “gap year” programs or volunteer programs but require huge sums of money from anyone looking to work or volunteer. It’s completely unnecessary to pay for these middleman companies. While some of the sites listed below, like Workaway, may require a small membership fee, they all list jobs and volunteer positions for free. While $50 or less (or ideally zero) can be a normal rate to sign up for a job board website as a job seeker, paying $1,000 or more for a 2-week-long job placement is absolutely absurd. Proceed with caution on pay-to-work sites, especially when evaluating TEFL (teach english as a foreign language) opportunities. Many of them are scams.

That said, taking travel jobs has enriched my life in more ways than I could ever have predicted. I highly recommend searching for seasonal adventure jobs, beginning by heading over to the travel jobs section of this site!

Paid Travel Jobs With Housing

Adventure jobs worldwide.

• WanderJobs A wide variety of seasonal adventure jobs worldwide.
• Backdoor Jobs Outdoor adventure jobs & volunteer positions.
• Jobs Abroad Bulletin Wide range of jobs abroad.
• Season Workers A variety of worldwide seasonal jobs.
• Anywork Anywhere Full time work internationally.
• Coolworks Seasonal adventure jobs in the US.
• Adventure Job Board Handful of outdoor education jobs.
• Occupation Wild Outdoor adventure jobs in the US.
• Good Natured Jobs A handful of seasonal jobs worldwide.
• Adventure Jobs Small but interesting variety of seasonal jobs.
• QORF Adventure tour jobs in Australia.
• Good Work “Green” jobs in Canada. Some include housing.
• Job Trekker Adventure jobs across Canada.
• Overseas Job Center Seasonal jobs & pay-to-volunteer gigs worldwide.
• Hostel Travel Jobs Worldwide volunteer & paid positions in hostels.

Au Pair Jobs

• Au Pair World Worldwide matching service for au pairs & families.
• Au Pair Live-in nanny jobs worldwide.

Cruise Ship, Boat, & Yacht Jobs

• Find a Crew Ship & boat positions, commercial & private.
• All Cruise Jobs Hospitality, crew, etc., on cruise ships.
• Cruise Job Finder Positions on cruise ships & yachts.
• Blue Water Yachting Yacht crew & cook positions.
• YA Crew Jobs on yachts & super yachts.
• Crewseekers Yacht crew jobs for all experience levels.

Yoga & Spiritual Jobs

• Yoga Trade Work exchange and paid yoga instruction jobs worldwide.
• Yoga Travel Jobs Paid & volunteer positions in spiritual tourism.

Summer Camp & Education Jobs

• ACA Camp Summer & year-round camp jobs.
• Camp Channel US summer camp jobs.
• YMCA Nationwide jobs across the US, many with room & board.

Other Outdoor Adventure Jobs Worldwide

• Divers Jobs SCUBA jobs for certified instructors.
• Outdoor Ed Wilderness therapist, teaching, & camp jobs, etc.
• Alaska Tour Jobs Seasonal and year round tourism jobs in Alaska.
• Ranch Work Positions on US ranches.
• Snow Season Central A few worldwide ski jobs.

Work Exchange & Volunteer

• Workaway The leading site for worldwide work exchanges in beautiful destinations. Extensive host/volunteer rating system.
• WWOOF The leading site for organic farm work exchanges worldwide.
• The Shortlist WanderJobs-approved gigs that don’t pay.
• HelpX Farm, hospitality, & more work exchanges worldwide.
• All Hands Natural disaster relief.
• World Packers Extensive work exchange listings worldwide.
• Hippohelp Large number of exchange opportunities worldwide.
• Volunteers Base Smaller work exchange site.
• Help Stay Interesting volunteering worldwide.
• Hovos Worldwide work exchanges.
• Volunteer Latin America Most positions are no cost.
• The Poosh Sustainable building projects (straw bale, cob, earth ship, etc.) worldwide.
• Working Traveller Worldwide volunteer gigs & some paid.
• One World 365 Many paid jobs & pay-to-volunteer jobs booked through middleman companies. Be wary of pay-to-work options.

Wilderness Conservation

• Student Conservation Association US volunteer trail maintenance.
• American Conservation Experience US conservation for young people.

Social Activism Corps

• Americorps Intensive long-term volunteering in the US.
• Peace Corps Intensive long-term volunteering worldwide.
• Mercy Corps Intensive long-term volunteering in Guyana, South America.
• United Nations Volunteers Intensive long-term volunteering worldwide.
• Voluntary Service Overseas Volunteers fighting poverty worldwide.

TEFL (Teach English as a Foreign Language) Jobs

• Teach Away Placement service for jobs in China & Asia.
• JET Placement service for jobs in Japan.
• English Opens Doors Teaching positions in Chile.
• The International Educator Job board for worldwide TEFL positions.
• Maximo Nivel TELF certification (costs $$) and job placement.
• International TEFL Academy Earn certification (costs $$) and lifetime job search guidance.
• The Nation Foundation A few volunteer positions.

Kibbutz in Israel

A kibbutz is a sponsored cultural & Hebrew language volunteer exchange for young Jewish people.

• Kibbutz Ulpan 5 month language, work & culture exchange
• Kibbutz Volunteer Program Center Cultural volunteer placements.

Free Accommodation

Hospitality of strangers.

• Couchsurfing Leading site for overnight stays in host homes.
• Warm Showers Like couchsurfing, geared toward bikers.
• Be Welcome Free accommodation for kind travelers.
• Trustroots Overnight stays in people’s homes & meetups.
• TalkTalk Bnb Free accommodation in exchange for language lessons.
• Hospitality Club Socially oriented home stays.
• Global Freeloaders Free local accommodation with hosts.
• Culture Go Go Free home stays in return for English lessons.
• Staydu Choose between free stays, stay for work, or pay to stay.

Free Overnight Parking

• National Forests
• All Stays Camp & RV App
• Highway Rest Stops

House Sitting

• Trusted Housesitters
• Caretaker Gazette
• House Careers
• Mind My House
• House Sit Match
• Love Home Swap
• Home Exchange
• NightSwapping

Useful Travel for Free Lists

• Free Accommodation & Cheap Travel (by I Am Aileen)
• Ways to Sleep Free Traveling (by Gamin Traveler)
• Master List: Sites to Find Outdoor Adventure Jobs (WanderJobs)
• How to Get Paid to Travel (WanderJobs)
• 20+ Types of Jobs with Room & Board (WanderJobs)
• 347 Hostels Open to Work Exchanges (Working Traveller)
• Van Life- Top 10 Free Overnight Parking Spots (The Road Abode)
• 6 Amazing Places to Stay & Volunteer (The Guardian)

Blogs for Long-Term Budget Travel

• Nomadic Matt
• Matador Network
• Wandering Earl
• Expert Vagabond
• Big World Small Pockets
• Frugal Travel Guy

It is also worth searching the major job boards, like FlexJobs and Indeed, and through Facebook groups. While these sites aren’t specifically built for finding travel jobs, with the right keywords you can find plenty of them. The more specific you are with your search, the better. Check out these Tips for Finding Seasonal Adventure Jobs with Housing .

Reddit is another great source of information for nomadic travelers. There are a number of fantastic subreddits with active members giving away tons of insider information. Check Reddit when tackling confusing, scammy quagmires like TEFL placement programs and shady foreign schools. (Here is Reddit’s helpful TEFL blacklist .)

Know of another great resource? Send us an email so we can add it to the list! <3

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One of the biggest benefits of remote work is that it allows you to work from anywhere. For some remote workers, this can mean from the comfort of their own home or a local co-working space. But others take advantage of flexible work by working from -- and traveling to -- different locations around the world.

Work and Travel

Digital nomads — location-agnostic remote workers— work from anywhere, and they sometimes take full advantage of that by traveling around the world while still doing their job. And with the increase in workers who identify as digital nomads— 4.8 million Americans as of last year— numerous remote work travel programs have been built to meet the demand of remote workers who want to travel the world with a community of other like-minded people and seek assistance getting set up with housing, co-working spaces, and WiFi in other countries.

This way, digital nomads don't have to travel alone and can live and work with other remote workers, so even without an office, they can still network and build professional and friendly connections.

Remote Work Travel Programs

• Remote Year
• Hacker Paradise
• Coworkations
• Venture with Impact
• No Desk Project

Ready to join the Work From Anywhere Movement? Remote Year is one of the most popular programs for digital nomads, but there are other companies similar to Remote Year too. Take a look at these remote work travel programs and see which will work best for you.

1. Remote Year

Cost: $2,250 per month (varies), cost includes: housing and utilities, travel between itinerary locations, co-working space, professional and social programming.

Remote Year offers four-month and 12-month itineraries that let participants travel to different cities and countries each month of the program. Upcoming itineraries include travel to cities like Kuala Lumpur, Lisbon, Cape Town, and Mexico City, and the program sets up accommodations and co-working spaces for attendees in exciting neighborhoods in each city. For digital nomads who want to minimize hassle and see as much of the world as possible, Remote Year handles the planning, booking, and programming so you can make the most of your team in each city you visit while living and working with a community. Learn more about Remote Year here.

2. Hacker Paradise

Cost: $2,190 per month (varies), cost includes: housing and utilities, co-working space, professional and social programming.

Hacker Paradise is similar to Remote Year in many ways, but offers greater flexibility for participants in planning their travel and length of stay in each location. Participants can travel and work with Hacker Paradise for as little as two weeks, or they can travel with them for months at a time. Upcoming itineraries include trips to Tel Aviv, Medellin, Buenos Aires, and Marrakech. Learn more about Hacker Paradise here.

3. Coworkations

Cost: $2,000 per month, cost includes: housing and utilities, co-working space, travel from airports to accommodations, professional and social programming.

Coworkations offers monthly itineraries in a variety of different cities around the world, which is optimal for the remote worker with a limited amount of time to travel and work as a digital nomad who's looking for hassle-free adventure. Their upcoming itinerary is a trip to Thailand, where you'll work with other entrepreneurs while traveling through Ko Samui. Learn more about Coworkations here.

Cost: $1,400 - $1,900 per month (varies)

Cost includes: housing and utilities, co-working space and fitness studio membership, access to local city hosts.

Behere is a remote working community for women that helps them book housing, co-working spaces, and gym memberships in the city they're visiting. Booking through Behere requires a minimum of a 30-day stay at accommodations listed on its platform, which are always private, and its co-working spaces and fitness studio memberships are premium, too. Women can book in places like Barcelona, Bali, Lisbon, and Prague. This option might be best for women who are comfortable and happier traveling and working alone, versus the community-based options offered by other programs. Learn more about Behere here.

5. Venture with Impact

Cost: $2,100 - $2,500 per month (varies), cost includes: housing and utilities, co-working space, day trips, professional and language support, partnership a with local nonprofit or volunteer organization.

Venture with Impact is all about connecting digital nomads with local volunteer or advocacy opportunities in the cities they're visiting so they can immerse themselves and help others while they travel. Participants can stay in the city they're visiting for trips as short as a month, or they can extend their stays and receive a discounted fee for each additional month they book. Cities participants can visit include Medellin, Lisbon, and Chiang Mai. Learn more about Venture With Impact here.

6. No Desk Project

Cost: $2,900 - $3,499 per retreat.

No Desk Product is a travel booking platform that curates worldwide retreats attendees can purchase, along with discounted travel to those locations. For example, digital nomads can book trips to Bali for yoga and meditation, Buenos Aires and Medellin for dance, and Kolkata for volunteer work. Then, once they've selected a program, they can book travel through the No Desk Project app to the city they're visiting at a discount. This option might be best for digital nomads who want to learn or hone a talent or passion project while they're traveling and working remotely. Learn more about No Desk Project here.

7. WiFi Tribe

Cost: $900 - $2,000 per retreat, cost includes: housing and utilities, co-working space, weekend trips and activities.

WiFi Tribe was started by a group of remote nomads who weren't satisfied with traditional work experiences. This one central "Tribe" has continued to travel, bringing new members who feel the same way about working remotely and experiencing the world. You'll meet new people, network with other members, and gain life-changing experiences throughout the world.

The sessions are broken up into four-week "chapters" that are in a new city around the world. After every four weeks, the group packs up and heads to a new location to work and live. It makes it easy to stay for however many periods as you want, without being stuck in the same location for months on end. The price per chapter is cheaper the more you book, so you'll be incentivized to check out new places! Learn more about WiFi Tribe here.

8. Nomad Academy

Cost:€12,900, cost includes: accommodations, flights between cities, co-working spaces, a premium online course, weekly workshops.

Nomad Academy is much like the other programs, but tailored to include classroom learning experiences. You'll travel through two countries in 12 weeks while taking an online course focused on entrepreneurship. Personal mentoring, workshops, flights, and co-working spaces are all included to help you push yourself and achieve.

Nomad Academy is perfect for those looking to gain valuable entrepreneurial experience while being a digital nomad. It focuses on your own personal growth as well, with workshops and trainings on the practical of the business world and teachings on finding yourself. Their next session will be in Southeast Asia, so start applying! Learn more about Nomad Academy here.

Cost: Depends on location and length of stay

Cost includes: housing and utilities, co-working space.

If you'd like to travel and work but prefer to do it at your own pace, Selina is right for you! It's a platform where you can find separate lodging, co-working spaces, and activities to book all around the world. Pay as you go for lodging or co-working space, or rent surfboards for a fun day in the ocean. It was founded by two surfers, so most locations have great spots for waves as well.

Locations are chosen so that co-working space is included nearby for the benefit of digital nomads. Although they aren't in a combined package, you can choose daily, weekly, or monthly passes depending on the length of your stay. It's perfect for those who aren't sure about being in a dedicated program or work best on their own schedule. Volunteering is essential to Selina, with each member expected to do something during their stay that benefits the local community. Each location has community service programs, such as building local infrastructure, cleaning the environment, or teaching English to locals. Learn more about Selina here.

If you want to travel and work remotely but don't know where to start the process, one of these travel programs might be the right choice for you. To learn more, read about how to become a digital nomad next.

• Travel Updates

British woman issues warning for people travelling through outback Australia

The woman was forced to lock herself in her car in an Aussie outback town and is warning others to stay safe.

Aussie ‘bashed’ for naked act in historic town

‘Unsettling’ incident on Qantas flight

Tragic last message from sub crew revealed

A young British woman driving through Australia with her partner has warned travellers to be “cautious”, amid ongoing problems with youth crime in regional areas.

Ash has been driving through northern Western Australia, and mentioned Fitzroy Crossing, a small town in the Kimberley region, as being particularity troublesome.

While she wasn’t involved in any incidents herself, she said other travellers have reported major problems “from Derby, all the way down to Darwin”.

The area has struggled with rampant youth crime in recent years.

“You basically have to stop here (Fitzroy Crossing) for fuel,” she explained in a social media clip this week.

“You should stop at every station for fuel in the outback because it is so rural, but just travel safe and be cautious”.

She said she had heard “so many horror stories”.

Explaining one friend’s ordeal, she said a couple stopped for fuel, and with one person inside the car, a “kid came up to the window and tried to break in.”

“We’re being super cautious, and I have literally locked myself in the car,” she said.

“If you’re stopping anywhere, just be super careful”.

A major crime crackdown was announced in WA’s Kimberley region in 2022.

Operation regional Shield saw extra officers deployed to the region.

At the time, youth crime was up 54 per cent in the Kimberley, compared with the previous two years, the ABC reported.

Issue not isolated to WA: “Run of the town”

Country towns across NSW facing a youth crime crisis are being warned to act now and call for more to be done, before they end up the next Alice Springs.

Business owner Darren Clarke has been leading the push for awareness about the carnage unfolding in the Northern Territory city for many years, but particularly in the past 18 months as the problems have made national headlines.

Mr Clarke remembers a time when the city affectionately known just as “Alice” was bustling with tourists and there was no thought given to the possibility of your home or car being broken into.

That was only seven years ago.

Mr Clarke told The Daily Telegraph that as he watches countless Facebook groups of towns from Dubbo and Orange, to Moree and Kempsey, he worries about similarities to what he saw in Alice not long ago.

“I follow what’s going on in all these towns and what I notice is where these towns are at now and I know when we were like that, and now how bad it is,” he said.

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“It gets worse really quick and once the kids know they can get away with things, they’ve got the run of the town.

“Alice is like a ghost town now, but only seven, eight or nine years ago, at night it would’ve been full of people.“You think you know where the problem is at, and then before you know it it’s out of control.

“So my message, and I guess my warning, to people is, you have got to stand up and not stay silent, you’ve got to go and meet with your local members, write letters and hold them to account, because you don’t want to lose your town.”

An Australian man who was on his bucks party was reportedly bashed by a group of locals after he stripped naked in a historic town.

A Qantas flight was forced to make a sudden landing at a regional airport following a major safety issue.

The first picture of the Titan submersible on the ocean floor has been released, along with the crew’s tragic last message.

Thayer Ventures and Derive Ventures Form New Travel Tech Investment Platform

Sean O'Neill , Skift

September 16th, 2024 at 9:17 AM EDT

Thayer, the best-known VC firm that invests in travel startups, is essentially merging with a newer fund called Derive. The deal is being pitched as a way to "drive innovation in travel tech," which is VC-speak for "we want to make money off the next big thing in travel apps."

Sean O'Neill

• How does Thayer Investment Partners plan to support startups in the travel tech industry?
• Who are the managing partners of the newly formed Thayer Investment Partners?
• What are the main goals of the Thayer Investment Partners platform?

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• Thayer Ventures and Derive Ventures have created Thayer Investment Partners to drive innovation in travel technology.
• The new platform will focus on a full-service venture capital approach, covering various investment stages and types.
• Thayer Ventures has invested over $300 million in travel startups, while Derive Ventures manages over $45 million in assets.

Thayer Ventures and Derive Ventures have joined forces to create Thayer Investment Partners, a new investment platform aimed at fostering innovation in travel technology. The platform will adopt a comprehensive venture capital approach, supporting various types of investments and stages of funding. Thayer Ventures has previously invested over $300 million in travel startups, and Derive Ventures manages over $45 million in assets.

Thayer Ventures and Derive Ventures have tied up to create Thayer Investment Partners, an investment platform aimed at driving innovation in travel technology, Skift learned on Monday.

Why it matters : No other traditional U.S.-based venture capital firm has invested more capital in travel startups over the past decade than Thayer Ventures. The quasi-merger comes as the travel industry grapples with emerging opportunities in AI and the adoption of cloud-native technologies.

Key Details

• Chris Hemmeter from Thayer Ventures, along with Tyler Carrico and Mike Scott from Derive, will serve as managing partners.
• The merger aims to offer a full-service venture capital approach, covering both vertical and horizontal investments, business-to-business and consumer, and early to late-stage funding. The fund will consider startups nearly anywhere except in China, where it lacks expertise.

Between the lines : The effective merger with Derive will help sustain Thayer’s momentum for another generation.

“Tyler and Mike are young guys,” said Hemmeter, co-founder and managing partner at Thayer Ventures. “So there’s an element of building legacy into this business and clearly signaling to the marketplace in no uncertain terms that this is not an enterprise based on a personality, but is something that will endure.”

What to watch : The San Francisco-based platform is expected to launch a fresh investment fund in the coming weeks.

By the Numbers

• Thayer Ventures has deployed more than $300 million in capital across four active investment vehicles.
• Derive Ventures, founded in 2022, manages over $45 million in assets.
• The formation of TIP doesn’t affect the management of previous funds launched by Thayer Ventures and Derive Ventures separately. These funds have together invested in over 45 startups.

What They’re Saying

• “We offer more than just a venture fund and have the flexibility to support entrepreneuers across their journey,” Hemmeter said. “We do our work between the boarding meetings, not at the board meetings. An element of our alpha comes from the connections we can make, opening doors to help startups with business development, sales, and strategy.”
• “Access is just a huge part of the venture capital game, such as for sourcing deals and having the ability to invest in deals that you want,” Scott said. “By being a consolidated, larger platform, that just inherently benefits everyone and investment benefits our financial investors, our strategic partners looking for insights, and our entreprenuers looking for investors that are complementary.”
• “Across all deals we look for three things,” Carrico said. “First and foremost is the management team. Second is what is the TAM [total addressable market]? And third will the company have enough firepower and runway to hit its next milestone and next funding?”

The New World of Travel Startup Funding

Skift has covered hundreds of travel startup funding rounds over the past few years, and we’ve spoken with numerous founders and investors about the state of venture capital. They all tell a similar story: There’s money to be had, but the bar is much higher now.

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Tags: derive ventures , investments , startups , thayer , thayer ventures , the prompt , travel technology , venture capital

Photo credit: Chris Hemmeter, managing director of Thayer Ventures, speaking on-stage at the Skift Data and AI Summit in June 2024 in New York City. Skift

TSA Punts The REAL ID Deadline To 2027

Only 70% of state-issued identifications would be REAL ID-compliant by the May 2025 deadline, raising the prospect of turning away millions of travelers from airport security checkpoints.

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REALITY CHECK: A Homeland Security sign in Miami International Airport tells travelers to "be ready by May 7, 2025" with a REAL ID. But enforcement may not happen until 2027.

N ineteen years after Congress enacted the REAL ID Act of 2005, America is still not ready to enforce the law.

As of January 2024, only 56% of all state-issued IDs were REAL ID-compliant . More important, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) expects to only reach 70% compliance by May 7, 2025, the deadline by which air travelers would need a REAL ID-compliant identification to board a flight in the United States.

Consequently, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) proposed a rule last week that would hold off full enforcement of the REAL ID deadline until May 5, 2027—giving states and the agency another two years to get their ducks in a row.

The TSA’s proposed rule would give the agency “appropriate flexibility” by “explicitly permitting agencies to implement card-based enforcement in phases” and would kick back full enforcement until May 5, 2027.

This would be the fourth time since the COVID-19 pandemic that the U.S. has delayed the REAL ID deadline. The last time , in 2022, the deadline was pushed back to May 7, 2025.

“TSA is engaging with the public, licensing jurisdictions and states to facilitate a smooth transition to REAL ID enforcement beginning May 7, 2025,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske in a statement last Thursday. “REAL ID provides an important security enhancement, and this rule allows us to plan for a range of scenarios to help minimize the potential impact to travelers, industry stakeholders and states during implementation.”

The slow uptake of REAL IDs can be blamed on a lack of urgency by states in issuing compliant IDs, despite receiving more than $263 million in grants from the Department of Homeland Security, according to Congressman Carlos A. Giménez (R-Fla.).

“Only four states require REAL ID, which leaves 46 states and five American territories that provide non-REAL IDs as an option,” wrote Giménez last December following a Homeland Security Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security hearing.

Now authorities have run out of runway. “Suffice to say, on May 7, 2025, we are going to encounter utter mayhem at our airports,” Giménez wrote.

Apparently, the TSA agrees. In its proposal, the agency points out that it screens approximately 2.5 million passengers per day. If just one percent of those passengers were to present non-REAL ID compliant driver’s licenses at a checkpoint, it would mean turning away 25,000 passengers in just a single day. It would mean 175,000 passengers refused from flying per week, 750,000 per month and 2.25 million in three months.

Turning significant numbers of passengers away from security checkpoints would cause delays and long queues, the TSA says, and “may result in canceling, postponing, or adjusting travel plans and incurring associated costs. This may include making alternative travel arrangements whose substitution may include less efficient modes of transportation (e.g., travelers deciding to drive rather than fly).”

Under the TSA’s proposed rule, it appears that the agency would issue warnings to travelers who arrive at airport security checkpoints without a valid REAL ID after the May 7 deadline. Such warnings would “serve to incentivize the public to obtain a REAL ID without, or reduced, negative consequences,” according to the proposal.

The REAL ID law, passed in response to 9/11, established stronger national security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards. Since then, the TSA has made significant improvements in checkpoint screening, particularly in the areas of identity management, on-person screening, accessible property screening and alarm resolution. The agency also ramped up its vetting capability through Secure Flight, a passenger prescreening program that identifies low and high-risk passengers before they arrive at the airport by matching their names against trusted traveler lists and watchlists.

Don’t have a REAL ID? Here’s how to get one .

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