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Home › Articles › Before You Go/Vacation Planning › Volunteer Vacations

Volunteer Vacations

Trips That Feed the Soul

By Teri Brown

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Expectations

Just what can your family expect out of a volunteer vacation? Blue Magruder, director of public affairs for the Earthwatch Institute, believes that bonding is one of the most important aspects of volunteering. Though Earthwatch has an age limit of 16, Magruder says there are a number of family pairs that go on ventures together every year.

"An Earthwatch project can be a wonderful bonding experience for a family," says Magruder. "A father-son pair is united in their team's important mission to learn more about an endangered creature – sea turtles, dolphins, cheetah, pumas – or to uncover the mysteries of a lost culture, excavating a Roman fortress in England or ruins of the ancient Maya or to help understand some of the critical issues facing our planet today, such as global warming."

Magruder is quick to point out that family members don't have to spend all their time together either. There are many tasks on a project and often teams are split into smaller pairs – surveying different areas, observing different aspects of a creature's daily life. "So for a mother whose teen always walks six paces ahead in the mall or who wouldn't be caught dead visiting a cathedral with her, Earthwatch can be a magical chance to be drawn together to work on a common mission," says Magruder.

Families serving together on a team often gain a greater appreciation of each other, as well as an understanding of one another on a deeper level. There is nothing like the feeling of truly helping other people or making a difference in our world as a family. If those are attributes you would like your family to have, perhaps a volunteer vacation is just what your family needs!

Setting up Your Vacation

If you want to have the benefits of a volunteer vacation without the expense or are looking to have more freedom and autonomy then you would have through an organization, you can always put together your own volunteer experience. For instance, if you're going to spend your vacation camping, call ahead of time to see if there are volunteer opportunities available at the site where you are staying.

Most national and state parks are overjoyed to have extra helping hands. A state's Fish and Wildlife Service often has volunteer opportunities available, such as fish or wildlife counting, that can be done while visiting that area. If your family is into hiking, the American Hiking Society also has volunteer opportunities on trails all over the United States.

The following tips will help you set up your own life-changing family-oriented volunteer vacation:

  • Have clear goals in mind before you make any arrangements. What do you want your family to get out of the experience?
  • Keep the age of your children in mind when looking at the opportunities available.
  • Give your family a little leeway when traveling to your destination. Logistics can complicate things especially if you are staying and working at several parks. Always give yourself an extra day to get there.
  • Be courteous to the organizations that have gone out of their way to give you this opportunity. Yes, you are helping them, but they are counting on you to be there on time and do the work you said you would do.
  • Prepare your children ahead of time by letting them know exactly what is expected of them.

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