Workaway/HelpX/WWOOF Anyone tried volunteering through these

Used helpx in Jordan and it was an awesome way to travel and live with locals. I had a free place to stay and free food for 2 weeks. Some hosts mention they will pay but these sites are typically exchange only. Look at references and don't work too hard in exchange for shit. Some hosts take advantage.

>>1064812

He's (>>1064821 ) right, I worked in a hostel once for a couple years and got shit in exchange; Bed & breakfast for 20h/week, I turned out to be a shitty breakfast of bread and butter and a bed with bed bugs for 3 nightshifts of 9 hours and one normal shift of 8 or 6.. can't remember now
however the experience was really nice, I'd recommend you

anyone else have ever tried ?

stayed in france for 3 months at a place i found with workaway.

it was wonderful, was provided food and shelter the whole time as well as luxuries such as tobacco or alcohol. (of course these things will vary).

my workload was animalcare and general upkeep of a farm. most hosts are happy to teach what you need to do, but if you have niche/labor skills, youll be a hot commodity and find places much easier. (carpentry, masonry, husbandry, agriculture etc).
this can be a bummer at first if you dont have these skills but at every place you gain some skills and knowledge (and therefore value to more hosts). i didnt know very much going in. i learned how to build a standalone outhouse.

being good with languages is another huge boon

>>1065185
oh forgot to add, while i was there i did not make any money. i didnt actively pursue it though, i probably could have had i been more adamant. the host had friends with projects that would have been a one or two day task that needed doing and probably would have paid under the table.

however i dont speak french and so it would have been stressed. this is why i say language is a boon. if you are comfortable with the language in the area you're visiting, sidejobs are obviously easier to acquire.

Used wwoof.co.nz in New Zealand (or some URL like that. Costs about 50$)
Worked out fine.

>>1064812

I've worked 3 months in Japan through WWOOFing, first 1 month as a lumberjack and then 2 month on a far, - which lead to a job renovating a hotel for another 3 months where I got paid.
I've also worked for 2 months in Mongolia through this.

Sites like these are absolutely amazing if you want to stay longer in a place, get down with the locals and learn the culture. Just don't be that asshole who doesn't realize that you're actually there to work and agrees on a verbal contract. Since I stay for months at a time I see all kinds of people coming through and sadly a lot of them treat it like it's a damn hostel (talking of course about jobs not in a hostel or similar places) or something and a way to live free for two weeks. I've heard people talk about host "taking advantage", some might do yes, but mostly people just don't seem to understad what they are agreeing to, most time the hosts actually specifies that it's hard work and yet the people bitch and moan every step of the way like it's the host fault you accepted the terms.

May it be possible in America ?

I'm a unskilled man (I mean I never had this kind of job before) who would like to travel for my spoken english.
I'm not worried about hard work, I'm a sporty man and able to learn new things. My only fear is that I never worked before (I'm still a student) and it may be and big handicape for me.

Can someone tell me if they have ever try this without the necessary skills ?

>>1066571
Yes, the websites have many North American placements. Coast to Coast.

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I'm thinking to do workaway this summer in Portugal at a hostel (pic related). I'd like to earn money on the side though, anyone ever done this?

also, how far in advance did you guys contract your hosts? I was thinking to contact them this week to volunteer in June/July. Is that way too early?

can I use this if I have never work in a farm befor ? Are they agree to teach someone ?

>>1067458
Where is this? Is this in Alentejo?
I'm Portuguese soo, if you want to know anything, just ask me.

>>1067557
it's in Sintra. What's it like there? I really want to go to Lisbon, it looks amazing but this workaway opportunity in Sintra was too good to pass up. How easy is it to get to Lisbon from Sintra?

>>1067558
If you'll be here in summer expect hot weather (around 27°C to 37°C) and I recommend you going to this: Palácio Nacional da Pena.
If you want to go to Lisbon you'll be there in probably 30 minutes on a bus.

Are the hosts sometimes flaky?
I'd like to try but what if i get there and for whatever reason the host tells me to fuck off and i end up stuck in the middle of nowhere in a foreign country

is it a bad idea to just circumvent these middlemen websites and e-mail the hosts directly? you really have to pay $20 to sign up to this shit? what do they offer?

>>1067580
I don't know, but you can try

>>1067580
the contact info
all contact is hidden until payment

you can get real internet sleuth and try to find it elsewhere but i dont think that is very reliable

>>1067697
reverse image search showed a hostel's website with contact info