Profile information
Host rating
100 %
Reply rate
97.2 %
Usually responds within 4 days
Feedback
50
Facebook verified
Email verified
Badges (3)



Details
Description
Hello from beautiful Central Arkansas!
We have immediate openings for volunteers at this unique hostel and museum in Little Rock, AR.
We are a registered charity 501c3 non profit
We are looking for guest volunteers to join us for two weeks to three months at Arkansas' only International Hostel & Firefighting Museum. As a non profit organization we have undertaken saving, renovating, and bringing back to life Fire Station 2 within Little Rock's oldest park (MacArthur Park named after the famous WWII General Douglas MacArthur) and turning it into a hostel and fire Station museum. The museum is free to the public to visit and our gift back to the community. Our neighbors within the City Park are the Arkansas Arts Center and MacArthur Military Museum.
We are looking for enthusiastic, outgoing individuals who are interested in the ins and outs of operating a unique and special place for travelers. Our ratings and reviews are high, and we are well-regarded in the hosteling community and an affiliate hostel with Hostelling International. We are looking to maintain this standard. In exchange for a bed (breakfast, coffee/tea, WiFi access, laundry and kitchen facilities are also included), volunteers are required to help about 20 hours per week. The main hours of focus are 3pm - 10pm for check-in with some focus on 7am to put out breakfast items. The Check-in shift allows for plenty of personal time between answering of phones and checking guest in. We want you to have ample time to interact with the local community (through tours of our museum and community events) and travelers who are staying at the hostel. Cross-cultural understanding is extremely important to us. Little Rock is a low-cost MegaBus ride away from Dallas, Memphis, St. Louis & Chicago. We also get daily train service via AMTRAK's Texas Eagle (serving San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth, St. Louis to Chicago and points between). Dallas, St. Louis & Chicago all have very low-cost flights to many points in the States!
If you love small cities with lots to offer in the way of food, entertainment, outdoor activities, and nature then Little Rock will be a pleasant surprise! We provide bicycles, for volunteers and guest, to explore town or go shopping. The hostel is within walking distance from groceries, food, bars, museums, and most other things the city has to offer. There is a bus stop in front of the hostel and rental scooters in close proximity.
Volunteer opportunities include:
General Housekeeping
Front Desk/Reception
Helping with Guests
Language practice
Help with social media
Community Events
Enjoying Little Rock, its culture and history.Types of help and learning opportunities
Language practice
Gardening
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
UN sustainablity goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Travelers will get to interact with both locals (through tours of our museum, community events and visiting international organizations- Heifer International and Clinton Presidential Center) as well as other travelers who are staying at the hostel. Cross-cultural understanding is extremely important to us. We have been open for several years.
Help
We are looking for guest volunteers (hours are extremely flexible) to assist us in greeting visitors, providing tours of our fire fighting museum, checking guests in/out, housekeeping and interacting with guests to provide them a wonderful experience while in our city! Please note minimum two week commitment.
We are a registered charity 501c3 non profitLanguages spoken
English: Fluent
Accommodation
We will provide a twin-size bed in one of our rooms as well as Wi-Fi, breakfast, coffee/tea, access to our computers, laundry, and kitchen facilities. Bikes are also available for exploring town or shopping.
What else ...
Volunteers are able to take time off and are not required to stay every night at the hostel. We are located in the heart of downtown Little Rock within walking distance of major attractions. There are plenty of food options and nightlife in our nearby River Market District, SoMa (South Main) District or Argenta District in North Little Rock. Nearby attractions include the Clinton Presidential Center, Central High School, the Arkansas River Trail, Bid Dam Bridge, festivals, farmers markets and baseball games at Dickey-Stephens Park!
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
We have plenty of common area for work space. There are two large dining tables near the front desk, a lounge area with three recliners in the center of the common area, and two other areas with more privacy. Please check out our website (firehousehostel.org) for photos.
Space for parking camper vans
The hostel has designated off-road parking.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
max 20 hours per week (breakfast included)
Feedback (30)
Feedback
These are extra optional ratings when members leave feedback. The average rating left for each option is displayed.
Accuracy of profile:
(5.0)
Cultural exchange:
(4.9)
Communication:
(4.9)
James is a fantastic person: always… read more
James
General… read more
The hostel is located within walking distance of many restaurants,… read more
Recommended
James M
General Manager
James M
General Manager
I volunteered from March 11 to December 14th at this Hostel and Museum. I learned so many things and grew as a person so much.
The Hostel itself is a Museum and Hostel. The hours and responsibilities were exactly as described. The Manager, James was always a phone call away if I needed help… read more
I arrived at the hostel and museum with little to no idea of what to expect from it all. What was to come would be one of the best times of my life!
Within the first couple of hours I knew I had been blessed with being able to volunteer here. With amazing co-volunteers, an all-star board of directors, a… read more
The work was quite reasonable and I had ample free time to explore the city and relax. Guests were wonderful and often joined volunteers in… read more
Since this is a small hostel, I got to do a little bit of everything, which was a great learning experience.
Everything is both new and old here. The actual fire museum is down the stairs from the recently… read more
There are plenty of free activities in walking distance and a small brewery… read more
Joe and Scott are both very knowledgeable about Little Rock and the surrounding area and willing to give travel tips/rides to the bus station.
Work expectations were definitely reasonable - the other volunteers and I had lots of leeway to plan our schedules as long as we meet the total #of hours. I had… read more