Are you looking for a more meaningful way to travel in 2025? Volunteer travel, also known as service travel or impact tourism and volunteerism is on the rise. It offers travelers the opportunity to give back while exploring the world. This includes engaging in environmental conservation, supporting youth initiatives and participating in community development projects. By participating in volunteer activities, travelers not only gain a deeper cultural insights, but also support sustainable development in host communities. In this episode, we share personal experiences with volunteer travel and provide tips on finding the best service travel opportunities. Plus, we're announcing a special travel opportunity for those ready to make a difference while seeing the world.
I'm Scott.
And I'm Melissa.
And we are the Sunshine Travelers. Our passion is travel and sharing our experiences with those who enjoy it as much as we do, or those who want to learn more about travel, or even those who just want to live vicariously through our travel stories. No matter where you follow along that journey, get ready to hear about our firsthand experiences as we visit some of the most interesting and amazing places on Earth.
We've had several conversations recently about trends that we're seeing in the travel industry. Everyone seems to be traveling these days, but we've talked to a few of our listeners about what they are looking for in 2025, and the topic of volunteerism came up. I'm going to be honest, this isn't something that made my list of things to do in 2025, but Melissa has an opportunity, and I think that's what had us talking about this topic.
Most of the time when we have been planning travel recently, I have to admit that we've been thinking a lot about content that we can bring on the podcast and then to our followers when we share videos and content that way. And just to help encourage traveling more and better and tips and stuff that we have had. And so we really haven't been thinking about this recently, but it's something that we've both done. And I don't know that we've told those stories either. So this would be a great opportunity. We just wanted to kind of share some of that and some opportunities if you have ever thought about doing that.
So let's talk a little bit about why this particular topic. Volunteer travel is one of the top travel trends in 2025. Travelers are seeking ethical, sustainable and immersive experiences when they go out there. Not just the off the beaten path things, right? But it's off the beaten path and then doing something that gives back to the communities they're visiting. And so there's a growing demand for travel that gives back to those local communities. And that's what we want to talk about today.
You experience it in a completely different way, right? Because you are giving back, but you have a touch point with people in the community in a very different way. Even, you know, even though we talk about take a tour, you know, meet a local, learn about this stuff. But this is even more immersive.
Well, we have a little bit of experience in this area. Melissa, you want to talk about your trip to Italy?
Yeah, so I actually went on a mission trip to Italy. Now, most people think of when they do like mission work, it is more remote countries, I guess I would say. That's typically the perception, right? You wouldn't think, oh, a mission trip to Italy. So when they have the opportunity to do that. And so basically, we did a couple of different things. We helped a local. church and local organization do kids sports camps, but then we also went out and did little of events. So like face painting and like balloon animals and different things like that in a couple of different locations while we were there. And we just had the opportunity to not only, you know, meet and be a part of the people who were leading that and be a part of their family for a week and, you know, be with their kids, be with their church. But in doing that, get an opportunity to have handmade food in people's homes or they would bring it to the church or go out with them and have what they order. But then there's also, so typically with these volunteer activities, there's also then an opportunity to do a little bit of sightseeing. I mean, most people would probably laugh at this, but we went to Cinque Terre for a day, you know, on our mission trip. We went to Torino or Turin, you know, for a day. So we did get to do some sightseeing things, try local food, but then also have most of our time being to where we were, you know, doing volunteering and just helping them and coming, you know, alongside and supporting the work that they were already doing there.
Yeah, I think it's important to remember and understand. that not all volunteerism, or in this case, she went on a mission trip, and there's many ways to do volunteerism, not just mission trip, but that you don't have to go to the deepest, darkest corners of the earth to do that. And so both Melissa and I went to well -established areas. My trip took me to the Philippines, where I was able to use the technology skills that I have and talents to help. some nonprofit organizations in and around Manila and Hong Kong. And while in these locations, we were able to visit different spots of cultural interest. You know, we ate with locals like Melissa was talking about. I remember one time they brought us in dinner and we had the soup and it was fish head soup. But that was quite an honor because the fish head is supposed to be the most flavorful. And so they gave us their most flavorful part of the fish. And so we did that. And then in Hong Kong, we ate with the locals. We did public transportation tour one night where we saw Hong Kong by trying out all the various forms of transportation. And that was a really neat way to, you know, see Hong Kong. And we did it all as a part of this trip.
And I do think that you have you have shared somewhere along the way a little bit about that. Like y 'all had the opportunity to take servers. And you did tell the story one time about you riding or him riding up, you know, the javelin that went with you. So and that was the same same with us. We took some sports equipment. We took some necessities and things like that. The family could use clothes and shoes and, you know, just to be able to bless them with that. And you did the same thing. So there's lots of opportunities, you know, when you when you do these types of trips.
Yeah. So we did ours through our local church, but there's many other ways to find opportunities to participate. And some of the types of volunteer travel experiences include things like community projects, teaching, construction, women's empowerment. I've got friends that go down to Central America once a year on different construction projects that they do. There's also environmental conservation. So some people might want to go out and work with wildlife rescue or do some type of marine conservation. I know living here at the beach, we see firsthand the issues of plastics. And then we really saw it when we were in Greece that time. Remember all the plastic on that beach, right? And so, you know, you might want to just go to somewhere and help them clean up the shoreline at a location. And there's lots of areas around the world to do that. We might go and do some kind of educational or medical work. So think of Doctors Without Borders. And then finally, we're seeing the results of what happened in North Carolina and in LA with the fires. Maybe you're interested in doing some kind of disaster relief or humanitarian aid, where you go in and help rebuild a community after a disaster. And that's a good point.
that's a good point. You don't have to travel internationally either, right? Because there's plenty of opportunities to do some of these projects in the US as well. So, you know, lots of opportunities to do that. While we don't necessarily want to point out organizations that we haven't had personal experiences or haven't used, we do want to share a couple of resources that can help you connect with a variety of programs. And these are also for people of all ages and not just, you know, volunteering on short -term assignments. So goabroad .com is one, and it connects travelers with volunteer programs, also internships, study abroad, teach abroad. cultural exchanges and around the world. So it basically is a comprehensive directory looking to help people have meaningful travel experiences and use their skills and interests. And so organizations can sign up and you can, like I mentioned, volunteer and it has a place where you can go and say, I want to do this for a week or a couple of weeks or a month or several months. You know, where do you want to go and kind of connects you with those organizations. Another one that we ran across is gooverseas .com. It's very, very similar. Volunteer work, study, teaching. Even I saw like high school opportunities for like high school abroad and stuff like that.
So I think one of the key things is like Melissa said, you know, we're really hesitant to recommend some organizations that we don't know. So when you're looking at an organization, you might want to look at like their long -term track record. And make sure that they operate in ethical ways while they're out there doing these projects. And part of what you might want to look at is things like, how transparent are they about the fees that they collect and the impact that they have on those communities? And so do a little bit of research on the organization that you're going to work with. But I think we have one. that most people listening to this podcast are going to be very familiar with, and that's Habitat for Humanity.
Yeah, so many of you might be familiar with Habitat for Humanity and the work that they do building homes in communities in the U .S., and you may have participated in local Habitat for Humanity builds through a community or church or through your work. Habitat for Humanity Global Village is their international volunteer program that allows you to travel and participate. and hands -on home building projects in the communities around the world. So this initiative is part of Habitat for Humanity, and it also helps provide affordable housing solution for families in need, again, in different communities around the world.
So speaking of Habitat for Humanity, this brings us to a special opportunity where you can actually join a volunteer trip.
So I wanted to introduce my sister, Stephanie. She is actually leading the Habitat for Humanity build in Paraguay that I am participating in in May. And so you may have heard her chat with us on the Alaska podcast episode and then also the Japan one. So Stephanie, just tell us a little bit about your involvement with Habitat for Humanity and then just leading this trip and what it's all about.
Sure. Thanks, Melissa. So I've been working with Habitat for Humanity International now just over seven years. I celebrated my seventh anniversary in October, and currently I'm in a role with our CEO's office. I'm the senior director of the office of our CEO, and it's a chief of staff type of position is the easiest way to describe it. I'm sort of his right hand person running his office and working with his leadership teams. And I did my first Global Village trip in 2018 to Bolivia. And after that trip, I wanted to become a team leader. But right after that, I had Leo and then COVID hit and the program went on hiatus. So this summer, I took the training to become a team leader. It was actually part of my development goals and my professional development goal for this year. So I did the team leader training and then put in a proposal to lead a trip to Paraguay in the fall and have been working on recruiting team members. for the last few months, and we still have four spots remaining and need to fill those spots in the next three weeks or so. So I'll give a little bit of an overview of the trip. So it's May 24th through the 31st, and we'll do four days of building. And the project that we're working on is called For the Future of Our Children, and we'll be building a two -bedroom house for a single mother. And some of the, you know, the building will take up most of the week. So some of the tasks we'll be working on might include mixing mortar and concrete, moving sand, bricks and mortar, laying bricks and preparing the floor. We will have a team. Our team will be hopefully around 12 people, 12 to 14 people. And we'll do team dinners at night, mostly in the hotel, sometimes in restaurants. And then some of the other highlights that are, you know, cultural. throughout the week include free time, our first day to explore the capital of Asuncion. It's not as well known as many cities in South America, but I've been reading that it's a little more off the beaten path, but kind of up and coming and trendy. So lots of good like restaurants and shops and history there to explore. The Tuesday of the trip, we'll be doing a social learning exchange activity. I'm really excited about this one. We'll be preparing traditional Paraguayan food together with the community members. So kind of like a cooking class, but less probably structured. And then we'll actually get to share the meal with the community.
That's one thing that I had mentioned earlier is that you, when you do these types of opportunities, you... Like more than just doing a tour. And like you said, more than just doing a cooking class, like you're there with, you know, community members or in some cases families and really have even more of an, you know, an immersive experience.
That's right. Doesn't get any more authentic than that. We'll also at the end of the week have a farewell ceremony at the build site when we finish our work for the week. And then we'll close out with dinner that Friday night at a. nonprofit harp school, which is very unique. It's called ARPA. And we'll have a barbecue tenor, dancing, and have the opportunity to learn harp if we would like to. And the funds for that go to the nonprofit. So that's neat as well. And then there is an opportunity. Some team members, if interested, will probably add on a few days of travel to Aguazu Falls on the Argentina and Brazil border. So that's an optional addition to the trip if people want to stay and, you know, play tourist at the end of the trip. Yeah.
And that's the neat thing about it too, is that sometimes that you can, well, like you mentioned, you know, seeing a city that you might not otherwise see, and then of course doing activities, but then also having that extension. I had mentioned earlier that when I went to Italy, you know, we went to Cinque Terre, which is definitely a tourist spot. These trips, trying to blend those things, right? Because knowing that you want to still be able to feel like you had a little bit of a, you know, played tourist a little bit while you also, you know, volunteered and dedicated your time.
That's right. Yeah. And I've heard great things about Iguazu Falls. So that sounds like it'll be a really cool excursion. And then a couple other things I wanted to mention is some corporations like Salesforce, for example. actually give their employees volunteer days to use. And some either even will pay like a portion of their donations for these type of service trips. So that's something worth looking into as well. So I think I hit all the highlights. Did I miss anything you wanted me to talk about?
No, I think that's good. And so if you're interested in registering, so like you said, a few weeks, but by February 24th is kind of what you need to know. But if you're listening to this after that and you're like, oh, dang, you know, I missed that. You did want to mention, like, in the future, some opportunities with Habitat then and how, you know, you might get connected with something like that.
Great. Yes. Thank you. So right now we're only doing closed trips. So those are, you know, kind of spread word of mouth, more friends and family. But pre -COVID and actually the Bolivia trip that I went on in 2018 that I mentioned. we did open trips and they would be publicized on our website. And anyone, you know, anyone could sort of apply to join those. And, you know, the group I went with, I think we were pretty much all strangers. I think maybe two of the girls knew each other on that trip. So hopefully we'll be bringing those back pretty soon. And you can check out the Habitat website to see those listings.
Yeah. So hopefully, you know, if you're listening to this in the distant future, then that will be an opportunity to do that. And then also we'll put a link. So there is an opportunity though. You can't go, you don't want to travel. You can support the team and we can put some links there to make donations. And like you mentioned, some companies match that. So with that link, it'll show you, you can kind of put in your company's name and you can look to see who on the team, you know, still needs some support financially to participate in this build.
Yes, that would be great. No, yeah, no amount is too small. Any donation is appreciated. And we can also make sure we report back on our trip. And I know after Bolivia, I did a little small like write up and bought small little gifts for everyone who donated to my trip. And everyone really enjoyed reading what happened on that trip. So yeah, that's awesome.
yeah, that's awesome. So yes, we can definitely, we can definitely follow up. And then the other thing too, you mentioned is working with the organization there. Right. It's not just habitat. We thought it was interesting. So a lot of times people maybe in the U .S. think Habitat for Humanity and you might be familiar with builds they do in local communities. But as you were starting with Habitat for Humanity, you and I were in Guatemala just on a trip. And the one of the people who owned the place we stayed, it was funny because he was like, oh, Habitat for Humanity, you have that in the U .S.? You know, so it's interesting that it is not, you know, these local countries and local communities like run their own offices, a lot of these in their own. So it kind of keeps it very local, too.
That's right. Yes, I remember. Yeah, it was like good timing because it was right before I started with Habitat in Guatemala and it was everywhere. And they're one of our bigger countries. And that's worth mentioning, too. You know, there's opportunities in. Latin America and Caribbean, which is where we're going, but we also have builds in Africa and some in Europe, mostly Eastern Europe, and then Asia as well. So we do work all over the globe. So there's a lot of different opportunities. Yeah.
And the reason I think that is important is because then I think that those countries and then those communities really know best how to meet the needs of the people, right? It's not just people far away. saying, oh, this is what they need, right? But you're working with a local organization who has a very specific project for a very specific family and that will meet their needs there. That's right. Yes. All our projects are,
you know, community development focused and led. So we're not imposing what we think is right on them. It's more like what their needs are and then just coming to volunteer and do what needs to be done and serve them.
Awesome. Well, thank you for sharing that. And we're looking forward to this trip. So again, if you want to join us or you want to donate to that, we'll put the links. But then you can also email us at info at sunshine travelers dot com and just say, hey, I'd like to join in on this and we'll get the information to you. Thanks so much for helping spread the word.
We hope you found today's episode to be inspiring as you think about your 2025 travel. Would you ever consider a volunteer trip or have you done one before? Email me at scott at sunshinetravelers .com and let me know or leave a comment on our latest social media post. Don't forget as you travel this year, tag us and use hashtag sunshine travelers 2025 to let us know where you are. We're always inspired by your travel stories. The world is full of sunshine and surprises. Make 2025 the year you explore beyond the familiar. We hope you enjoyed this episode and found some inspiration to help you with your travel journeys. If you could take a moment to leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform, it would be greatly appreciated. Your five -star reviews help us get discovered by others and possibly featured on your favorite platform. Don't forget to follow or subscribe to our podcast to get notified of new episodes as they are released. You can also find us on Instagram and Facebook. at Sunshine Travelers Podcast. Remember that as travelers with one L, most importantly, please share it with your friends to help them catch the travel bug. You never know, they may become your greatest travel companion.
