Canada
Favourited 861 times
*️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️*️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️ Attention workawayers!! Please read our listing carefully & thoroughly and contact us only if you are a serious inquirer, and you feel that you are a good fit for our property, and our property a good fit for yourself. *️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️*️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️
Welcome to our rustic in-nature retreat and resort on the Sunshine Coast, British Columbia.
You'll find us nestled between beautiful mountains and lakes. Our place includes a lagoon, a private dock, forest trails, and a wildlife sanctuary - some of our residents include hundreds of birds, as well as beavers, turtles, deer, and otters, to name a few.
We run a small seasonal family business, which includes our accommodations (12 x safari style tents & 11 x cottages, and 5 x tiny wood cabins), our Trattoria Italiana restaurant, as well as boat and paddle-board rentals. We work and play hard, too! and make the most of our short but sweet busy summer season! We need help from Spring through Fall, and are open to cultural exchange with folks from all nationalities and backgrounds!
Our family immigrated from Italy 25 years ago, and we have international staff - so we can communicate in English, Italian, French, Spanish, and even Susu! We live in a natural paradise, and are passionate about sharing our pleasures in, and love for, nature, food, and birds, with travellers, tourists, family, staff, and volunteers alike! We try to live in touch with the wilderness and our natural surroundings - we also like to grow gardens with veggies, flowers, and herbs, as well as keep birds, including chickens, turkeys, peacocks, pheasants, quail, pigeons, doves, and much more! We also have two resident dogs & two resident cats.
Gardening
Building
Elderly Companion
General Maintenance
Cooking / shopping
Other
Help with Eco project
Help in the house
Animal care
Art project
Help with Computers / internet
An exchange with us can be beneficial in many ways - besides of course great memories, the opportunity to explore this beautiful natural paradise which surrounds us, and new friendships!! You may also pick up some new skills along the way... depending what we're up to on the "help" front during your stay (as there is so much variety from season to season), you may learn some organic gardening techniques, landscaping skills, a bit of carpentry, some bartending or housekeeping skills, about keeping birds, or about a special variety of fancy chicken! Since our staff is international (from Italian to West African to Canadian) and we usually have several workaways at a time, there is also plenty of space for cultural exchange... perhaps you will find yourself picking up a new language or a way of cooking. At the right time of year, you may also learn about local wild foods and their harvest - such as wild-berries, mushrooms, or seafood! Everyone is unique, as is their visit, so we cannot predict what will be your greatest lessons, or ours from you! but there's sure to be some surprises and things to be learned from one another! We look forwards to it :)
This host offers accommodation and payment.
We tend to need help with a large variety of tasks around here, and we have both volunteer/work exchange positions, as well as some paid positions for successful applicants (see more info below).
For volunteers... :
From outdoor jobs such as gardening, weeding, landscaping, maintenance, power washing, cutting firewood, etc, or carpentry jobs, to tasks with the birds including feeding and aviary maintenance, to customer-service and hotel orientated tasks - from reception, computer work, boat rentals, house-keeping, to bussing! If you need to let those creative juices flow, there is also artistic spaces for sign painting, chalkboarding, gardening, interior/exterior painting, wood staining, etc!
The possibilities are endless...!
If you have special skills or experience, we would love to put your skills to work!
If you have a special skill set - please let us know what it is!!
If you are only interested in a particular type of work, or are unable to do other types of work, please also bring this to our awareness in your initial email!! (and note that it is likely to lessen your chance of joining us)
Please note that, tasks are varied, and it is crucial that our workawayers are flexible and adaptable!! You may find yourself doing different chores from day to day, or you may find yourself adopting a routine and doing the same tasks daily, according to the needs of the current times.
In the spring & fall we tend to need a lot of help with yard work, landscaping, deep cleaning, repairs & maintenance (ie painting), and days can be varied. In the summer months we tend to get more into routines, and need help mostly with boat rentals, customer service, in our restaurant (both FOH & BOH), routine gardening (weeding & watering!!), etc. In the autumn things get much quieter, but tasks can be varied and many - from reception assistance, dishwashing, bussing or special events, to cleaning mushrooms, chopping wood, and getting the place winterized.
It is our hope that volunteers will be motivated and energetic hard-workers, eager to learn, and flexible multi-taskers, with a great positive attitude! Customer service is our industry, so cheerfulness and friendliness are essential! We like to work hard and have fun while we are doing it :)
We usually take in workawayers for a minimum of 2, up to a maximum of 4, weeks at a time, as we like to give opportunity to many different travellers, and we like to have the chance to meet and share with a wide variety of diverse people during our short season.
However, there have also been cases where we have fallen in love with our volunteers, and our volunteers have fallen in love with our place, and where we have mutually arranged longer stays after that given trial period - space and visas permitting.
For those holding valid work visas, we do also have some openings for paid seasonal positions at our resort. If this is something that you are interested in, and you feel that you are qualified for, please specify so in your initial email, and send along as much info as you feel to include - such as your cv, resume, social media profile links, or otherwise. For paid positions we can offer accommodations and meals at staff rates, plus regular pay at industry rates. We may require in-person interviews, or a trial period based on regular workaway exchange agreements, prior to actual hiring.
For the 2019 season we are currently have the following paid position openings :
*️️️️️️️️️️️️️️️ Line Cook / Prep Cook / Lunch Cook / Kitchen Helper > lots of opportunities here! we need folks who have some experience, but are willing to learn new skills and styles, can take orders, and can also take the lead where needed; either working as a prep cook / line cook / assistant cook during evening shifts, or for a very strong candidate who is able to replicate our chef's plates plus has creativity and initiative to add in their own special items, a daily lunch cook; good humor, humility, and a strong work ethic are key - someone committed to working many days and hours through the peak of our busy season and adaptable to less work days / hours during the shoulder months / weeks is appreciated; pay = more than minimum (based on experience and performance); commitment : ASAP through mid September
We look forwards to hearing from you!!
English, Italian, Spanish, French, Susu
Accommodations can be varied, depending on our occupancy, the length of your stay, and the time of year.
The most common situation would be that you have a private room or shared dorm, in a shared 4-bedroom volunteer / staff trailer. Both staff and volunteers in the trailer share a communal yard space, full kitchen, washroom, and living room. Accommodations are simple & basic, but comfortable.
There may also be the possibility of having your own private tiny cabin or safari tent, depending on the time of year, and availability.
We also ask that volunteers are responsible and tidy, and work together to maintain a clean and organized living space at all times, respecting one another, all communal spaces, and treating the space as if it were your own. Cleaning duties are assigned on a rotational basis, and we expect them to be honoured, by both volunteers and paid staff, outside of your working hours.
Volunteers are provided with three meals a day - breakfast goods are provided for self-catering in the house, while lunches and dinners will usually be prepared for you by Chef Aldo for a family style sit down meal, or in some cases may also be prepared by another workaway or wwoofer.
Paid staff are responsible for their own meals, although they do have access to staff discounts in our restaurant. Some paid staff may also be asked to contribute a monthly stipend towards hydro, internet, accommodations, etc.
Please note that while we respect all dietary practices, if you area picky eater or have numerous or strict restrictions, we may have a difficult time accommodating all of your requests, as we have so many mouths to feed and appreciate flexibility. As mentioned, you do have full access to a kitchen, so if you prefer to shop for and prepare your own foods, by all means - just let us know that this will be the case.
There's lots to explore, so you will never get bored during your time off!!
We are surrounded by a network of great hiking and cycling trails, including the Suncoaster Trail and world-famous Skookumchuck Narrows, as well as many many others. Chill out on one of our docks, read a book, take in some sun, swim in the lake, or borrow one of our canoes and head out to explore her channels, islands, and rope swings! Head into one of the small surrounding towns, or check out the local marine or forest parks. Occasionally we host Special Events, such as culinary events, live music, weddings, or small festivals - so you may even find you have some entertainment at your doorstep!
We are located 15 minutes drive away from any town centers, and public transportation is extremely limited, so please come prepared to be away from shops for several days at a time. Although we are happy to bring you into town with us when we go, we often run a tight schedule, and certainly don't make it in every day!
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
More than two
5 hours a day, 5 days a week for volunteers; paid positions vary accordingly
Accuracy of profile:
(5.0)
Cultural exchange:
(4.8)
Communication:
(4.8)
