Profile information
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Host rating
80 %
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Last replied
12 Jun 2026
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Feedback
28
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Email verified
Country info
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Find your perfect host
Min stay requested: at least 1 month
Details
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Description
Hey beautiful person!
We offer the experience to be one of our WorkAwayers in our cultural centre, just outside of the beautiful city centre of Bologna. Here we host many different events, workshops, theater performances, dance classes, film screenings and many more.
Our cultural centre is located in an old (lighting fixtures) factory building, which was acquired and partially restructured by the City of Bologna. We have an agreement with the City of Bologna: in exchange of maintenance and upkeep of the building we get to host cultural events, workshops and gatherings. Our centre is a vibrant place that is always open and where everyone is welcome. We are a no profit organization and no help with paying guests or profitable activities will be required.
Over the years we transformed the old forgotten building into a place filled with love, energy and dedication from many people. The community keeps growing and you can be part of it.
It all started with our bike repair shop, but over the course of the years we have built many different spaces, a wood work shop, a tailor workshop, an industrial kitchen, a computer workshop, a screen print workshop, a theatre space and much more. The structure is 600 m² and has two levels.
For our Workawayers we have created several mixed dormitories. We have a hot shower, a kitchen, towels and sheets and of course wifi ready for you.
We are always looking for working hands all year round. It is even better if you already have a skill set or specific competencies to share with us. Through WorkAway we offer volunteer positions, this is NOT an ART RESIDENCY, you will be expected to help out with all kinds of art related things.
Come contribute to our community of arts, handicrafts, and intercultural relationships! -
Types of help and learning opportunities
Light gardening
Creative DIY projects
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
Light maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
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Interests
Events & social
Self development
Sustainability
Culture
Music
DIY & crafts
Books
Art & design
Cooking & food
Gardening
Photography
Writing
Performing arts
Drawing & painting
Carpentry
Yoga / Wellness
Nature
Mountain
Hiking -
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
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Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
One of the main benefits of a stay with us is the making of connections and the vast network that our community has.
Next to that there is the opportunity to explore new or improve existing skills. We have many workshops that you are welcome to use during your stay with us. -
Help
About us
We are a welcoming, motivated, enthusiastic and curious community who loves sharing our daily life, ideas, skills and experiences with Workawayers from all over the world. After years of developing and renovating our spaces, we have created a vibrant cultural centre where people meet, organise events, take part in creative activities and share everyday life together. For us, Workaway is primarily about cultural exchange, learning and becoming part of a community. We are interested in meeting people from different backgrounds, sharing our culture and discovering theirs. We want our Workawayers to feel involved in the life of the centre, not simply to complete a list of tasks. We enjoy spending time together, having meals, talking, exchanging ideas, discovering the city and participating in activities and events. We are also happy to share our knowledge about the centre, our projects and our local community, while learning from the experiences, cultures and skills that our visitors bring with them.
What you can get involved in
Our centre is constantly active, with events, workshops, creative activities and community projects taking place throughout the week.
Depending on your interests and abilities, you may get involved in:
Events and activities: helping with the general preparation and organisation of cultural events, workshops and community activities. This can include helping prepare spaces, welcoming people, organising materials and supporting the smooth running of activities.
Creative projects: we love people who bring their own ideas and creativity to the centre. If you have interests in art, design, photography, music, theatre, set design, decoration or other creative fields, there are many opportunities to share your ideas and develop projects together.
Community activities: taking part in activities with the other volunteers and members of our community, helping create a welcoming atmosphere and contributing ideas for new activities.
Organisation and sorting: our centre receives and collects many different kinds of items, books, clothing, furniture and materials. We sometimes need help organising, sorting and keeping shared spaces practical and accessible.
Cleaning and tidying: as we are a large and busy community space, keeping common areas clean and tidy is an important part of living together. These are shared everyday responsibilities among the people using the centre.
Cooking for the volunteer community: when needed, Workawayers may participate in preparing meals for themselves, other Workawayers and the team. We usually enjoy cooking, eating and cleaning up together. Cooking is a shared social activity rather than a service provided to event guests.
Sharing your skills: if you have a particular skill, hobby or area of knowledge that you would like to share with the community, we would love to hear about it. We are especially interested in learning from our Workawayers and discovering new perspectives and ways of doing things.
Community life
As volunteers work and live closely together, we are looking for people who genuinely want to be part of a community.
We appreciate people who take initiative, communicate openly and enjoy working together. We encourage Workawayers to suggest ideas, organise activities, share their culture and contribute to the atmosphere of the centre.
Our events and activities are also a great opportunity to meet local people and socialise with the wider community.
There is plenty of time to explore the city, meet people and enjoy your free time outside the activities at the centre.
Schedule
As we have a vibrant centre, the activities and responsibilities are spread throughout the week and are generally flexible during the day. We don't have a rigid fixed schedule, and flexibility is important. On Tuesday mornings at 10:00 we have our weekly meeting, where we discuss the activities and plans for the week. Every morning at 10:00 we also have a short get-together to coordinate the day, discuss what everyone is doing and organise the shared responsibilities.
Monday is usually a day off for Workawayers.
Weekends are often the busiest time because of our cultural events and activities, and Workawayers are expected to participate in the community when activities are taking place.
Who we are looking for
We are looking for people who are:
Punctual and reliable
Attentive and responsible
Open-minded and curious
Passionate about learning and sharing
Open to feedback
Proactive and willing to take initiative
Helpful and collaborative
Honest and respectful
Good communicators
Goal-oriented
Willing to learn and share their own knowledge
Interested in cultural exchange and community life
We particularly appreciate people who are comfortable living and working as part of a team and who are happy to actively participate in the community.
What we hope to learn from you
Every Workawayer brings something different, and this is one of the things we value most about hosting.
We hope to learn about your culture, language, experiences, ideas, interests and way of life. We enjoy discovering new perspectives and learning new creative approaches from the people who visit us.
At the same time, we hope to introduce you to our community, our city, our culture and the way our centre works.
We believe that the best Workaway experience is one where everyone learns something from everyone else.
Important
We are looking for people who genuinely want to participate in the life of the centre and experience community living.
Through Workaway, we do not accept couples, pets, art residents, or people who already have a job or other commitments that prevent them from being actively involved. If you are mainly looking for a free place to stay, this is probably not the right opportunity for you. We expect our Workawayers to be present, engaged and interested in contributing to and learning from the community. -
Languages spoken
German: Fluent
English: Fluent
French: Fluent
Italian: Fluent
Spanish: Intermediate
Portuguese: Intermediate -
Accommodation
Room: On the upper floor you will have a bed in one of our mixed dormitories which you will share with the other Workawayers. On average we have 5 Workawayers in our centre. We try to always have an international mix of interesting and motivated people.
Next to that we have a guest room that hosts 6 people so in addition to the Workawayers there are at times guests around as well, which are expected to help around the house. Our place is also an art residency project, where we often host groups of artists. In cases where we host bigger groups we will use some of the bunkbeds in the WorkAway rooms to accommodate the extra people.
Be aware that the place does not provide private single rooms and that there are always many people around in the centre, so it can get hectic at days.
Kitchen: We have 2 kitchens, one industrial one which we use for events and cooking courses and we have a shared kitchen, which is the heart of our community where many people come together and share meals and stories.
As a household we tend to cook meals together and try to be aware of everyone's dietary needs. Normally all meals we make are at least vegetarian.
This exchange partially include food, as for many events or cooking courses we cook food and you will be able to eat with them. Next to that many people in our community often bring some food they prepared at home to share with everyone.
We have a vegetable store around the corner where we can collect some goods at the end of the day. The rest of your food is collectively bought by all Workawayers + staff and guests are asked to leave a donation for the food they consume or bring something to the table. The household and staff often eat and cook together.
Bathrooms: There are also several shared bathrooms and 1 shared shower room with 3 showers, hot water included.
Laundry: We have a washing machine you may use and we provide sheets, blankets and towels.
We have a Free Shop, full of clothes and books, keep some free space in your luggage when you arrive as you will find many new items in our free shop to take with you.
Transport: We have a bike repair shop and we will have a bike for you to use. Bologna is a very bike-able city.
There is a bus stop 5 minutes walk from our front door and the closest train station is a 20 min walk. -
What else ...
We are in Bologna, Italy in the region of Emilia-Romagna.
Bologna is an animated city with a vibrant cultural life. There are many happenings all year long (festivals, film screenings, theater performances, concerts, etc.)
Next to that there are places to visit, like the Sanctuary of the Madonna of San Luca and many other old churches, chapels, monasteries and the cathedral.
The city also has many museums, that offer a vast variety of different topics, even a museum about the history of Bologna and the region.
There is also a clock tower that is open to the public and that you can climb up.
You will have loads of time to explore the city and its surroundings. We offer bikes to go on an adventure.
In spring it is really nice to go up the mountains and visit the river.
There is also a well know hiking path to Florence called Via Degli Dei.
During days off we encourage our volunteers to go on day trips. In our communal kitchen there is a board with an overview of where you can go.
Venice, Florence, Padua, Ravenna are all nearby and easily reachable by train or bus.
The Apennine Mountains are right around the corner and we are also relatively close to the Alps.
If you want to go to places that are further out we can discuss the days off to accomodate your need for exploration of Italy. -
A little more information
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Internet access
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Limited internet access
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We have pets
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We are smokers
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Can host families
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How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Chat with Workawayers who've visited this host
Feedback (14)
His cooking skills are great! And he was happy to help out in any field.
During his stay Maui did a lot of cleaning, cooking and tidying up during his stay but he never complained and was … read more
He brought a lot of joy to the place and was able to be a good member to the team. Zac is someone that was happy to help out with whatever task came his way.
I hope he will keep improving his sewing … read more
Photos
Chat with Workawayers who've visited this host
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:
(5.0)
His cooking skills are great! And he was happy to help out in any field.
During his stay Maui did a lot of cleaning, cooking and tidying up during his stay but he never complained and was … read more
He brought a lot of joy to the place and was able to be a good member to the team. Zac is someone that was happy to help out with whatever task came his way.
I hope he will keep improving his sewing … read more
Thank you for being a part of our community even though it was a short period. We … read more
Janine is passionate, thoughtful and has a great sense of humour! An absolute blast having you around and we hope you … read more
He is ready to help out with anything and always brings his joyful energy.
We hope he learned enough Italian while he was here and that he may find many more beautiful experiences in his life! And of course that he may draw … read more
The place is incredible and has a very positive energy.. If you like art, music and good company you should visit this place.
Lydia and Seran were very friendly, made us feel at home from the first moment and always have a smile on their face.
We also want to send a hug to Gegge and Beta of the bike with … read more
Diana.
Cheers!
We were very thankful for his presence, since we needed his help for projects and events. For instance, he helped us rearrange our big library in the entrance and sorted all the books according to their genre. He … read more
Malte and Johanna, another Workawayer, came because we needed competent people who knew how to construct a big structure … read more
Franceso really … read more
She helped us to clean, cook, and housekeep almost everyday and was really a big support.
Since we are a big community, every Workawayer has its tasks and functions. Johannas purpose was to construct a bunk bed with Malte and … read more
The tasks can be very different...beside the building project where I was able to work very independently … read more
What I can say this first experience in a single word, that it was PERFECT!
I am happy for find this place!!!
I say this for the people who I had the opportunity to know, volunteers from several different projects that have passed through the institution during the … read more
I worked by painting walls in the company of other nice volunteers from the United States and France, it was fun!
It 'was very interesting to learn about the multitude of activities and persons of the Association, an environment rich in ideas and artistic … read more
this was my first experience like a workawayer, for their too :)
I left this place with melancholia, I stayed here only a week but it was enough to live unexpected moments.
The comunity of this association is very varied and you feel quickly welcome, there are many people for not to be alone.
Work: vary and flexible.
Food: 3 … read more
