The New Voluntourists: Boomers Join the Ranks of Giving Travelers

By Doris Gallan –

Volunteer vacations are increasingly popular as Baby Boomers seek to get more out of their down time than lying on a sandy beach. People want to do some good while enjoying a foreign environment. They know that they can learn new skills or improve on existing ones through this type of holiday including taking on a new language, managing a project or cooking a new cuisine.

Marketing and social-trend spotting firms have carried out numerous surveys showing that our attitudes towards community work still reflect our social activism of the ‘60s and ‘70s. A study by Yankelovich, Inc., a marketing and social research firm, found that people greatly agreed with the following statements:

* I am very passionate about the causes I care about: 94.8%

* The actions of a single individual can make a big difference in life: 94.8%

* People have a responsibility to leave the world a better place than they found it: 94.2%

* I keep an eye out for new things to try or to learn: 87.3%

Three-quarters of respondents also said they were more comfortable with change rather than resistant to change, and 71 percent described themselves as idealistic over cynical.

All of this bodes well as we begin to look for new types of vacations. Voluntourism (volunteering and tourism combined) is a growing industry that offers all types of learning experiences combined with travel.

Usually, volunteers pay for their own transportation to and from the chosen location as well as a fee to help support the non-profit organization they will be working with. The group provides you with room and board, training, sometimes language classes and advice on how to pack, what to bring, what not to bring, etc.

A number of national and international organizations link potential volunteers with organizations that need help. Some involve providing health care and teaching while others may bring groups together to build homes, dig wells, grow food or create new economic opportunities. Human and animal assistance, the environment and organic farming, journalism and sports coaching postings are also available: the list of opportunities is practically inexhaustible.

Before you sign up with anyone, do your due diligence by checking on the organization’s history, affiliations and any other information you can get. For U.S. registered charities, you can check the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) list of charitable organizations but no such organization exists globally.

Doris Gallan writes the weekly Baby Boomers Traveling blog and provides daily travel tips. She is also the author of The Boomers’ Guide to Going Abroad to Travel | Live | Give | Learn available through BookLocker, Amazon.com, and Barnes & Noble.com.

Copyright Doris Gallan 2011