Ishtar Darlington
Volunteering
Of all my budget travelling tips I think I’ve saved the best for last. Volunteering is a truly amazing opportunity to see the world, meet interesting and unusual people and keep costs to an absolute minimum. The volunteering website I use is called workaway and I can’t recommend it highly enough. It’s only €29 a year to sign up and the site is extremely user friendly. You can apply to work with hosts all over the globe in homestays, farms, hostels, ashrams, NGOs and more who cover your accommodation and meals in exchange for a few hours work a day.
As with couchsurfing, when looking for a host, send out lots of requests as, again, you’ll only get about a 40%-50% response rate and before you go, be clear on what exactly your jobs will be and how many hours you’ll be expected to work.
Through this site I’ve volunteered with a Buddhist charity in England (me pictured above working in their World Peace Cafe), a UK yoga retreat centre, a hostel in Romania and an Ananda Marga ashram in Denmark. I’ve had the most incredible experiences and had the joy of getting to know some of the warmest and friendliest people I’ve ever met. It’s an opportunity to meet other travelers and hear their stories and a chance to get involved in something you can feel really passionate about.
