Tag: Voluntourism
Interview With Andrew Potter: Travel and the Search for Authenticity
by Michael Yessis | 05.13.10 | 12:28 PM ET
Michael Yessis asks the author of "The Authenticity Hoax" if authentic travel experiences exist -- and about the cost of our search for them
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Yahoo! BuzzDo Not Demolish
by Kevin Fay | 08.26.09 | 10:26 AM ET
Photo by Allison Chipak Kevin Fay recently joined voluntourists still helping to rebuild New Orleans-area homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Judy's house was waiting for him.
Give Some Time, Get Some Free Travel
by Alicia Imbody | 07.09.09 | 11:46 AM ET
A new promotion from Sage Hospitality encourages travelers to “give a day” of service and “get a night” back, via a free hotel stay or 50 percent off the rate at 52 hotels across the U.S.
Programs like these show potential to encourage public service in exchange for travel perks, especially among folks with more spare time right now than spare change. There’s no obligation to stay additional nights. Just complete eight documented hours with a registered 501(c)3 non profit organization. Extra (karma) points if you work for a green cause to help offset the environmental impact of your trip.
Civil War Parks Need You
by Sophia Dembling | 03.31.09 | 10:47 AM ET
Continuing on a theme, this Saturday, April 4, is the 13th annual Park Day, an event sponsored by the Civil War Preservation Trust and the History Channel that invites volunteers to help clean and tidy Civil War sites from Florida to Illinois and numerous points between.
Last year’s Park Day attracted a couple of thousand volunteers. Talk history with like-minded folks while you help preserve it. Check the CWPT website for locations, times, activities.
A Tourist With a Shovel and a Hoe
by Daniela Petrova | 08.27.08 | 2:30 PM ET
Photo by Daniela Petrova. When she arrived in Kenya to volunteer with the Maasai, Daniela Petrova looked down her nose at tourists there to have a good time. But was her own motivation much different?
Should I Quit Law School so I can Travel the World?
by Rolf Potts | 05.06.08 | 11:00 AM ET
Vagabonding traveler Rolf Potts answers your questions about travel
My Family and I Want to Volunteer in a Safe Latin American Country. Any Tips?
by Rolf Potts | 09.18.07 | 11:33 AM ET
Vagabonding traveler Rolf Potts answers your questions about travel
Counting Caribbean Fish, Debating Voluntourism
by Jim Benning | 08.08.07 | 12:25 PM ET
Elisabeth Eaves recently visited the Caribbean island of St. Vincent to voluntour with the Reef Environmental Education Foundation. The scuba diver spent her underwater time identifying and cataloging glassy sweepers, barracuda and other assorted fish, all for the benefit of ecology and science. “These days, lots of organizations send travelers on ‘voluntours,’ wherein you pay for the privilege of doing a short stint of conservation work—on turtle hatcheries in Central America, bear-tracking missions in the high Andes, or wildlife parks in East Africa, to name a few projects,” she wrote in a series of stories for Slate. “What do-gooderism I possess is tied to Jacques Cousteau fantasies. Maybe, just maybe, I can contribute a tiny little bit to marine biology.” So what does she think about voluntourism now? I asked her a few questions via e-mail.
Voluntourism, like all trends, is being scrutinized. Some suggest it’s not all it’s cracked up to be—that many outfits put profit ahead of doing good work, that all the money people spend on costly voluntourism vacations could be put to much better use. Any thoughts on that?
The World Hum Travel Zeitgeist: From Cinque Terre to the Great Barrier Reef
by Michael Yessis | 08.03.07 | 2:05 PM ET
Iconic destinations in Italy, Australia, California and the Pacific Ocean are at the top of travelers’ minds this week, as well as a topic that’s more controversial than Hillary Clinton. Here’s the Zeitgeist.
Most E-Mailed Travel Story
New York Times (current)
36 Hours in the Cinque Terre, Italy
Most Read Feature
World Hum (posted this week)
The Lost World of Nigeria
Most E-Mailed Travel Story
USA Today (current)
Through the Roof: A Tour of the Country’s Priciest Hotel Suite
* The cost to stay in the Ty Warner Penthouse at the Four Seasons New York? $30,000 a night.
Most Viewed Travel Story
Telegraph UK (current)
Exploring the Great Barrier Reef
Most Read Weblog Post
World Hum (posted this week)
Voluntourism: ‘Overpriced Guilt Trips’ or a ‘Real Chance to Save the World’?
“Hot This Week” Destination
Yahoo! (this week)
Hawaii
Most Viewed Travel Post
BlogHer (current)
The W Hotel: Form over Function?
Voluntourism: ‘Overpriced Guilt Trips’ or a ‘Real Chance to Save the World’?
by Michael Yessis | 07.31.07 | 11:49 AM ET
That’s how Time frames its recent story on voluntourism, or, as its headline states, “Vacationing like Brangelina.” Catchy, but not truly representative of the well-reported piece on a growing travel niche.
New Addition to the Travel Lexicon: ‘Geotourism’
by Jim Benning | 07.19.07 | 11:29 AM ET
In our ongoing quest to chronicle the comings and goings in the travel lexicon we bring you “geotourism,” a term describing travel that, in the AP’s words, “focuses on a destination’s unique culture and history and aims to have visitors help enrich those qualities.” Coined several years ago by the National Geographic Society’s Jonathan B. Tourtellot, the term hasn’t yet caught on among most travelers. But according to the AP, “it’s on the lips of travel professionals who describe it as a step beyond the better-known environmentally friendly ecotourism. While geotourism encourages treading lightly on nature, it’s also about authenticity and making a place better by visiting and spending money.”
Voluntourism: Assisting The Flying Doctors in Mexico
by Jim Benning | 07.02.07 | 2:50 PM ET
An Island in Costa Rica
by Tara Swords | 06.04.07 | 8:25 AM ET
Photo by Misho Ceko. When she decided to spend her vacation volunteering at an orphanage, Tara Swords thought the kids would just need a little love to blossom. Then she met 5-year-old Catalina.
I Want to Volunteer Abroad. Are There Any Programs Without High Fees?
by Rolf Potts | 03.31.06 | 10:00 AM ET
Vagabonding traveler Rolf Potts answers your questions about travel
Tsunamis Bring Out the Best in Travelers
by Jim Benning | 01.30.05 | 7:03 PM ET
In much of Asia, Western tourists are best known for frittering away time on beaches and haggling over the price of $4 hotel rooms. But when the tsunamis struck, Jim Benning writes, many visitors proved worthy guests.
The Volunteer
by Will Kern | 12.12.02 | 10:02 PM ET
A Thai orphanage needed helpers to "play with the babies." Will Kern answered the call.
Pura Vida
by Cara O'Flynn | 07.31.01 | 12:59 AM ET
When life as a teacher at Escuela Otto Kopper takes yet another wild and embarrassing turn, Cara O'Flynn learns to deal with it Costa Rican-style
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