Just pay for your plane ticket, and let your skills be your currency.
Have you heard of the new trend called "slow travel"? This is the term given to travelers who visit particular places for extended periods of time. A traveler who visits one place for a whole month or more instead of a few days before moving on to his/her next destination is called a slow traveler.
This is not a new concept, but it is something that continues to grow in popularity in part due to the growing volume of people who now work remotely.
But, if you don't have the luxury of getting paid while traveling, you may be interested in reducing the cost of your travel. One of the biggest travel expenses is having to pay for accommodations.
Well, I'm telling you that you can travel and stay for free! You can volunteer in exchange for accommodations. A win-win scenario of which many are taking advantage. Not only would this save you money, but you'd be interacting directly with locals and be fully immersed in their lives. Now that's traveling.
Volunteer opportunities include things like: Helping a sustainable farm in Brazil, teaching an art class at a hostel in Chile, helping take care of stray dogs in Peru's Sacred Valley and many more.
Here's how you look for the perfect volunteer opportunity for you.
The first thing you'll want to do is head to worldpackers.com They have a worldwide list of opportunities that are fully vetted for traveler safety. Here's a video of how it works.
When you first go to the site, you'll be asked to sign up and create a profile. You'll be able to share some of your skills and interest areas. Creating an account and viewing the different volunteer opportunities is completely free, but if you do decide to move forward with a travel/volunteer opportunity, you'll need to pay for a membership.
The cost is $49 a year for solo travelers, or $59 a year for people traveling in pairs. A great deal in my opinion.
Insider tip: Reach out to me directly on Instagram and I'll give you a code that will take $10 off that annual cost. ($39 for solo travelers and $49 for pairs)
When you're on World Packers platform you'll be able to:
Select the type of trip you're looking for
Select your travel interests
Select how you can help
The truth is that these volunteer opportunities are worldwide. If you have a skill or a passion, and would love to share it with the world in exchange for free stays while visiting new places, here's your chance!
As always, feel free to reach out to me directly on Instagram at @Catching.Planes