Profile information
Host rating
100 %
Last replied
18 Apr 2024
Reply rate
100.0 %
Usually responds within 4 days
Feedback
39
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Badges (3)
Details
Description
Hallo! We are a bee farm in sunny South Africa that produce honey, do pollination and have a educational farm shop. We would like to host volunteers to give us a hand through our daily tasks on the farm. Come visit us and experience part of our farm routines and see a beautiful diverse landscape of South Africa!
Thank you for the opportunity and continue reading a bit more, we are looking forward to meet you :)
Types of help and learning opportunities
Art Projects
Help with Eco Projects
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
Hospitality/Tourism
General Maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
In general the person coming here will become part of our daily routine on the farm and may see places around us while helping on mostly remote natural places where bees are kept.(all within a 2 hour drive from us)
We do have an Indemnity form / volunteer agreement we ask the volunteers to read and sign. (beneficial for both parties, orderliness = much more fun)
Volunteers can use their off time to either relax on the farm, cycle to our stunning beach, or go away to amazing places all within 1-3 hours drive. You may also double up, meaning you work six days in a row Monday - Saturday and then you have 8 days off, to really go to some deeper remote places. (see amenities further below)
We allow volunteers to stay a maximum of 4-5 weeks as we have limited space and also want to give others this truly authentic South African bee farm experience! We give preference to volunteers traveling together.
Please note that we are not a sausage factory where we aim to push as many volunteers through as possible without even getting to know them. We therefore only take one volunteer or two if they travel together at a time. Be expected to get to know us pretty well :)
Hosting someone will mean for us learning from them and also they learning from us. Character, personality, backgrounds, work ethics, skills, personal beliefs etc. are all valuable things to us that we can all share to better our self and the world. If you have limited understanding of English or can hardly speak it, don't worry we will make you feel welcome and teach you a little more :)
Help
We are a working bee farm and help on some tasks will be greatly appreciated. Working with the bees would be the highlight of your visit, although depending on the season and some rare cases this may not be possible as every season/month has got it's (main things) to attend to.
You will see everything and help(with some) of the things we do on our farm, like; working with bees, honey and educational activities. Our main focus are bees but help will also be needed with our large selection of crops/vegetables, preparing fields, animal care, chickens, building projects, maintenance projects and too many other interesting things to mention. Big or small, there is always something to do / learn :)
Volunteers start from Monday - Wednesday (25 hours) and the rest of the week is off time.
The person/s need to have good work ethics, be respectful in every way and won't mind getting the hands a little dirty/sticky some days and have no serious bee sting allergies.
Languages
Languages spoken
Afrikaans: Fluent
English: FluentThis host offers a language exchange
Spanish
Accommodation
Accommodation: Cute Cottage. Providing a room, 2 beds, wardrobe and bathroom with a curious shower. The rustic shared kitchen is fitted with all the basics.
Food: All normal food are supplied by us, nothing fancy, we eat very basic South African food. We are not vegan and don't mind a vegetarian meal occasionally :)
What else ...
We stay: About 20km west of Port Elizabeth which lies on the border of the popular Garden Route.
Transport: Is very affordable using Uber taxi from Port Elizabeth that will drop you right in front of our farm shop.
Diverse biome areas to visit: Addo, Wildcoast, Tsitsikamma, Garden Route, Karoo, Little Karoo, Mountainous regions and local areas.
Amenities/Activities: Addo Elephant Park Safari, hiking, surfing, bungee jumping, kayaking, snorkeling, diving, sky diving, beach horse riding, sand boarding, swimming with seals, boat cruises, culture tours, penguin rehab centre, coastal walks and the list goes on and on...
We do have excellent travel expertise to guide volunteers to the best places as we have been to most of them many times. We also offer in-house tours/shuttle services(if possible) and our guests always have first option.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Hours expected
25h per week from Monday-Wednesday, then 4 days off
Feedback (14)
All the best with your future… read more
Regarding her help she did her very best and more. Her communication was excellent and she loved to help out with our baby boy!. We could not have asked for a better volunteer.
We… read more
From the very first day I was included in the work around the farm and felt so welcome and comfortable around Janice and Xander. I learned something new every day, whether it was in the vegetable garden, with the bees… read more
Photos
Feedback
These are extra optional ratings when members leave feedback. The average rating left for each option is displayed.
Accuracy of profile:
(4.9)
Cultural exchange:
(5.0)
Communication:
(4.9)
All the best with your future… read more
Regarding her help she did her very best and more. Her communication was excellent and she loved to help out with our baby boy!. We could not have asked for a better volunteer.
We… read more
From the very first day I was included in the work around the farm and felt so welcome and comfortable around Janice and Xander. I learned something new every day, whether it was in the vegetable garden, with the bees… read more
We had some good times with him and shared many views with each other. He is also very energetic and dont mind to sweat some days.
I've done a lot of different types of work, basically learned something new everyday. I really enjoyed learning more about honey and the process of making it. I love how… read more
She helped us in so many different tasks and did everything better than expected! We hope to see her again!!! : ) Evelien was also super helpful with our baby boy, you will be missed by us all!
He helped us in so many ways and we were glad that we could also share so many different tasks/skills with him.
His hands will be… read more
Overall she were diligent in whatever we gave her and communicated very well. She love being outside and was the first one to try our new outdoor volunteer shower and help improve it. She loved every tasks we gave her even the boring ones(that… read more
They really tried their absolute best to be with us on the Monday arrival time, even only having 3hours sleep the night before when they had travel problems and had to make a alternative plan. This extreme effort stood out to us and set the tone for the rest of their stay!
They work/help in such a way… read more
Respect, Diligence, communication, lots of laughter, help after hours with the normal cooking/house tasks duties are some things that stood out to us! They were extremely respectful to us and our home. We… read more
We loved the time we spent in the lovely bee farm! Everything was amazing!
First of all we wanna thank you two, Xander and Janice, for the really nice, friendly and helpful people who you are!
About the work, we have been involved in all kind of jobs : honey… read more
She also loves to talk about anything and is an open minded person...would LOVE to have her again...please :)
I worked mon-wed usually 07:45 to 16:30, but also sometimes longer. I helped harvesting and sorting veggies, extracted honey, labeled… read more
On the one hand, I try to help with my experience, on the other hand I learned a lot new things about south African bees. I think it was a… read more
She likes card games etc, and gets extremely excited when she is winning!!! She is a hard worker and dont mind the boring jobs too much. We loved her being around and wont mind her visit again. She also have made the best volunteer fire so far, only… read more
Her pancakes are SUPER (himmlisch) highly recommended and also her favorite...go ahead ask her to make you some!
Nice person to have around, easy to work with and don't mind the odd jobs that needs to be done! Likes to bee busy and up for a challenge! Loves to… read more
I… read more
The jobs are differents, you can work in the garden, grow seeds, help to building, and xander and Janice make sure you see all the honey process. You can ask them for everything, they are a very good hosts… read more
Thank you both so much for this unforgettable time!
You both have so much heart in your work and I like your farm and the shop so much! It was an absolute pleasure to support you both.
Janice makes great food!
I was totally well received and felt at home right from the… read more
What a gem :)!
Could really recommend this couple! Easy people and really don't mind to get some dirt on the hands :) and paint :)
Keep well and come visit soon again!! xander, janice and the rest of the team
I can commend you to anyone that needs a hand, you are a delight to have around and we hope to see you again!!
Xander and Janice :)
