Area: St Croix

I am a forest ecologist and owner of a small environmental consulting firm here in the Virgin Islands. My wife and I have spent the past several years restoring and renovating a run down house that is now a lovely (somewhat completed) home. We have roughly doubled the size of the house and have done most of the work ourselves. We have our hands full with a charming 1yr old baby and a dozen household projects. They range from light carpentry to caring for my fruit trees and outdoor collection of rare plant to general indoor fix-its. We have been in the Virgin Islands for over 12 years and can help you find the best local beaches and help you plan the next leg of your travels. For us, the ideal work-awayer will be a couple interested in staying for around 3 weeks.

Area: Europe

*** Now looking for helpers in March *** Bonjour! We are Dalila (french), Pete (english), Emilie (3 years old) and Sidney (born in august 2011). Our place is an old château set in 29 acres of meadow, in the Pyrénées mountains, 1h30 south of Toulouse. We've finished renovating the interior of the château in 2009, and with sustainability in mind, installed solar panels for hot water, photovoltaic panels for electricity, rain water collection, composting. We're using our own wood for cooking and heating in the winter; and using fruits and vegs from our garden in the summer months. We're now onto our next projects of renovating the outbuildings, landscaping the garden and generally maintaining the grounds of the property. We are looking for enthusiastic, energetic people who enjoy physical work, being outdoors, who show initiative and are fairly independant, as we both work from a home office and looking after our little ones keeps us busy! Experience of using chainsaw and power tools is necessary! The help we need includes: - chainsaw, cut and split wood for heating next winter - tidy the grounds (weeding, strimming etc) - cut and clear out dead trees across the property - render and joint newly built stone walls - prepare our veg patch for planting - ongoing building work to renovate the outbuilding (windows, put up beams for flooring, etc.) - spring clean the house (windows, chandeliers, etc)

Area: Indian Himalayas

We run a small, luxurious retreat for tourists in the Indian Himalayas. The Retreat is 80 Kms north of Shimla, the earstwhile summer capital of British India. Thanedhar is famous for apples, which were introduced by an American gentleman Mr. Samuel Evans Stokes way back in 1916. His family, like the rest of us, is still into apple cultivation. Thanedhar a charming little mountain village, with a small bazaar, which is 1 Km from the retreat . Thanedhar can be easily accessed from Shimla and Chandigarh by regular daily buses. The Retreat is situated in an apple orchard. We also grow cherries and other temperate fruits, but apple is our main crop. The property consists of six bedrooms, two suites, and two independent log cabins . Volunteers will essentially be on hand to interact with guests, who being mostly Indian families, love the opportunity to meet travellers from other countries. Activities include accompanying guests on orchard and forest walks, sitting around the nightly bonfire and sharing meal times. We are looking for volunteers who love the mountains and the outdoors. The volunteers will be entrusted with the duty of a co- host. We are specifically looking for helpers who feel comfortable engaging with guests, sitting for meals with them and showing them the beauty of the area while escorting them on walks. The volunteers will be provided independent accommodation in the family guest room and served meals in the dining room,along with other guests. IMPORTANT INFORMATION - # Please be advised that we are now booked for volunteers April, May, June, July 2012. # Two further openings exist in 2012: ( Aug 1st until Sept 15th) ;( Sept 16th until Oct 31st) . We would consider one volunteer for the entire Aug-Oct three month period. For Apr-Oct 2013: apply October 1st 2012 (and not before)..

Area: Andalucia

We are a Spanish family of three, with one daughter who is 4 years old, and one dog. We live on a beautiful beach called El Palmar, 5 km from the Natural Park of La Breña. On the Costa de la Luz It is a great place to do walks in the park,and you can enjoy many activities (horseriding, surfing,cycling...)

Area: 189,000 acres

We are a family operated business running brahman breeders in the Gulf of Carpentaria and a fattening operation including sheep near Longreach Central Queensland. We are a young friendly couple who have travelled overseas and know the value of staying with locals and learning the interesting ways of life. There is much to see and do in our part of QLD with beautiful wildlife & vast countryside.