Work Vacations
Working in Hawaii
It’s a *working* vacation, don’t you know.
Off the Beaten Path: How to Build A Better Vacation
Article by David Bohl
Vacations, it is often said, cause nearly as much (if not more) stress as they’re supposed to alleviate. Add to that fears of global climate change, growing awareness of environmental issues associated with travel, and the aggravation and crowds that tend to converge in popular spots, and the would-be vacationer could be forgiven for wondering if it wouldn’t just be better to stay home.
And yet, there’s something vitally important about getting away from it all, about checking out from our daily life and experiencing new vistas that gives us a thrill of excitement every time we cross off another day on the countdown calendar. But how do we counterbalance that need with the environmental damage and stress of the traditional vacation? By going non-traditional, of course. And the good news is, taking the road less traveled often means that there’s no need to chuck out the rest and rejuvenation baby with the “evils of travel” bathwater – if you do it right.
Philanthropic Tourism
Travel to foreign countries, meet strange and interesting people – and help them? Absolutely. Organizations such as the Intrepid Travel Foundation and Vocation Vacations can help you choose a vacation that not only gets you out of your daily grind, but puts all that energy to work doing good in the world. Instead of chasing down tourist traps one map square at a time, you’ll spend your days digging wells, building hospitals, touring wildlife preserves and meeting the beneficiaries of innovative new projects. And when you get home, you’ll have real life-changing stories to share instead of the same old hackneyed photos of Uncle Bill holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Eco-Tours
Not looking to work so hard, but still want to go green? Consider an eco-tour. These trips are designed to let regions take advantage of tourist dollars in positive ways, usually with the goal of creating an economy based on sustaining, rather than exploiting, the environment. Whether it’s a nature preserve, an animal rehabilitation sanctuary or a historic site, you’ll enjoy all the comforts and activity options of an exotic vacation while helping the locals make a sustainable living. For more information about ecotravel and how you can make your vacations more about having fun and doing good, check out the Center on Ecotourism and Sustainable Development.
Agritourism
How do you keep them down on the farm? Simple – you turn the farm into a sustainable vacation experience and let foreign travelers cover the bills. Agrotourism is one of the hottest vacation options going. Choices range from working vacations on an organic farm to learning opportunities featuring exotic livestock to luxury B&B retreats in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains where you can hike all day amid gorgeous scenery and come back to a gourmet meal grown right on the premises. If this sounds like fun to you, Agritoursim World is a great place to start looking for ideas.
Slow Travel
Concerned about the environmental impact of your travel, but still aching to hit the road? Hate the fuss and rush of rat-race tourism, but need to get away? Consider slow travel, where the journey is as much a part of the vacation as the destination (if not more so). Going slow means taking bikes, hikes, boats, rails and other low-impact options and extending the trip instead of opting for the faster and more resource-intensive, “get it over and done with as soon as possible” automobile or air travel. Slow travel is not as popular as some of the previous options, yet – the current generation of Red-Bull-wired desk jockeys still find it hard to be away from the center of things for the extended periods of time that slow travel demands. But it’s likely to become a growth industry in the near future as jobs become more portable, fuel more expensive and time spent enjoying ourselves more sacred. SlowTrav offers a site full of resources for the slow traveler.
Carbon Offsets
Even non-traditional travel has an impact. But you can offset some of the damage your globetrotting does, literally, by purchasing carbon offsets. Unfortunately, the jury’s still out on this activity, in terms of actual environmental effects, and there are no perfect choices. But you can make sure your dollar does the most good by carefully researching options and deciding what works best for you.
For more information and resources, check out the Wikipedia page for carbon offsets.
Work Your Way Around the World
Work Vacations – click on the image below for more information.
Work Vacations
Authoritative advice on how to find work around the world, with detailed listings of temporary opportunities and hundreds of first-hand accounts.
Work Your Way Around the World
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Fantasy Follies Provides Life-Long Learning and Fulfills Dreams for Entertainers over 55 Years Young
Work Vacations
Free Spirit Vacations and Events present Fantasy Follies, an event intended to inspire, encourage, educate, and provide opportunities for entertainers over the age of 55 years young to achieve dreams and goals, gain strength and confidence, and pursue health in mind, body and spirit. Participants will spend three days in a learning environment and conclude with a performance on a legendary Las …
Work Vacations question by vicentev22: How many ppl here are still in vacations from work for the holidays?
Work Vacations best answer:
Answer by Oops!IAskedItAgain
vacation from school
hehe. you look relaxed thou. that’s good.
70 of 72 people found the following review helpful:
Better than excellent, April 28, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Work Your Way Around the World (8th ed) (Paperback)
This book changed my life. It showed me one doesn’t have to follow the route of college, then graduation, then job for life. I bought this book, then worked for three years in London, Spain, and Cairo in the late 1980s and early 1990s. I supported myself and even managed to save money. While personally enriching, my experiences have impressed — bar none — every employer with whom I have interviewed over the past seven years. Had I not taken time off, I’d be like many other adults who regret not taking advantage of their youth and lack of committments to explore the world and themselves.If you have any desire to explore, do yourself a favor — buy the book, then buy your plane ticket.
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54 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
Best all-around guide and fun to read, January 1, 2003
By Tim Leffel “author, The World’s Cheapest Dest… (Nashville, TN United States) –
This review is from: Work Your Way Around the World, 10th ed (Paperback)
While this book is written from a British perspective, it is an excellent guide for anyone who wants to travel around the world on limited funds. The author relies on “been there done that” travelers to supply information and anecdotes from the road and I can vouch from experience that those nuggets show up in revised editions. I bought this book before my first trip around the world and it led to my first English teaching job–in Istanbul, Turkey. (Griffith’s Teaching English Abroad title is a good guide for the teaching path specifically). This is also a good book to read when deciding what you’re NOT willing to do. Comparing some of these jobs to working another few months at home instead to save more money puts things in perspective.Understand that this is a guide to short-term work opportunities, so it does focus on ways to make enough to get to the next destination. It’s not an international career guide, but rather an inside scoop on where to get paid while you travel. It’s an entertaining read and a good investment for shoestring travelers.Tim Leffelauthor, The World’s Cheapest Destinations
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72 of 79 people found the following review helpful:
Focuses on EU citizens; unrealistic/useless for most others, December 19, 2007
By KC (USA/Europe) –
This review is from: Work Your Way Around the World (13th Edition) (Paperback)
Well, I’m one of those Americans who has been there, done that and still doing it…and it wasn’t because of this book. More than years ago when I first went to Europe with the intention of finding work, short-term or long-term, my brother’s girlfriend gave me this book as a gift because she found it useful. Let me say right off that I had no clue about traveling abroad or what was possible, even in a pre-9/11 world. But it seemed to me that the book concentrated heavily on Brits and Europeans and gave mostly common sense advice I could glean from my head (or a friend or successful expat, if I was clueless) and come up with the same or better info if I searched the Internet; plus, the author is an EU citizen, so what first hand experience does she really have in regards to non-EU citizens? The updated version hasn’t changed much, and I’m puzzled by the fact it’s in its 13th edition, when most people can find better and more current information online without spending a dime. I’d also like to add that my brother’s girlfriend (now ex) who loved this book, never found work abroad in her 5 years and told me I would never make it either. I told her I wasn’t her, left the book behind and never saw it again. I first found a series of short-term jobs that I can only describe as experiences I can laugh about now. Then I built a life from literally nothing that has led to living and working in Europe for more than 10 years (and counting). It is true that Americans have a more difficult time finding work in Europe simply because of EU citizenship requirements AND the world has changed significantly in that there are an abundance of Eastern European workers willing to work for cheaper than Americans/Canadians/Australians would and they’re legal EU citizens. Still, showing up at the right time (and there ARE right times) and looking a certain way will more likely get you a summer job than sending a CV/resume, making calls or wasting time on placing ads or trolling forums. I don’t know any employer who has hired anyone on paper or over the phone, even if you’re already here in the country. My best friend was placed in Poland, well-paid and provided housing for 2 years teaching English without any experience, certification or previous interview. He had a great time. The next year, he took a stint in Turkey during his vacation under the same circumstances. There are also plenty of opportunities, different and sometimes better, in very beautiful places outside of Europe. Another friend landed in South America with no intentions of staying and worked there happily for 3 years, learned to speak Spanish, gained experience that gave him an advantage in his flourishing career now located in Washington DC. Aside from Europe, there are very strict requirements in place in Asia and Africa as well. Even those seeking to skirt permit and work authorization for those continents via dual citizenship may find the requirements quite difficult. In short, you cannot simply work your way around the world even illegally, never mind legally, because of upped security measures and economic recession. Buying and reading this book, however helpful it is in small ways, is not enough. Sometimes, an adventurous attitude, thirst for experience and willingness isn’t enough…sometimes it’s just lady luck smiling on you. In some countries, it’s strictly about connections. I’m sorry I can’t be more positive because I know it’s tough to write a book and there are people out there searching for some assistance. But I think it’s equally important to be honest.
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