Volunteer vacations: Spend less, give back, get more

When Robert Reid discovered that Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula needed volunteers at its 12-Mile Beach, he raised his hand and became one of the corps of souls who collected visitors’ fees and inspected the site, which he describes as paradise.

Reid, U.S. travel editor for Lonely Planet guides, thinks volunteering closer to home can be every bit as satisfying as going abroad. “So often we automatically consider volunteering as something to do outside the country,” he says.

As he learned, the national park system ( www.nps.gov/getinvolved/volunteer.htm) and other U.S. organizations are filled with such opportunities.

Match those chances to do good with the notion that giving back can be a vacation unto itself, and it’s a win-win. In fact, so-called voluntourism is gaining momentum, especially in the U.S. A recent UC San Diego survey found that 40% of Americans are willing to spend several weeks on vacations that involve volunteer service. Thirty-six percent of retirees 65 and older and baby boomers 45 to 64 surveyed said they would stay in North America for their volunteer vacations.

Volunteers can help restore American wilderness areas and assist archaeologists in exciting destinations such as New Mexico’s Gila National Forest and Maui. Or they can help build and maintain trails throughout the U.S. with the American Hiking Society (www.americanhiking.org).

Vernon Cook travels as often as he can to wilderness areas in the U.S. to construct new trails and rebuild old ones, remove invasive vegetation and old barbed-wire fences.

Why is this 54-year-old physician from Louisville, Ky., committed to volunteer travel?

“Because it’s fun,” he says. “I like to be outdoors, I like to camp, I’m able to do it, and it needs to be done.”

If you’re not willing to part with all your vacation time but still want to make a difference, Nicole Bouchard Boles suggests volunteering for just one day. “There are plenty of opportunities to spend one day of your summer vacation or winter trip on a volunteer assignment,” says the author of “How to Be an Everyday Philanthropist” (Workman, 2009).

Boles likes Rezhub.com, whose motto is “feel good about travel.” This website has many one-day opportunities and narrows them down to the town or city where you’ll be vacationing. “You can book your entire vacation at Rezhub.com, and when you book, 20% of the proceeds from every trip are donated to .org,” Boles says.

People who want to give back but can’t afford a volunteer vacation can apply for a Change Ambassadors Grant at Travelocity’s Travel for Good (https://tinyurl.com/d6ucuk). This program awards two $5,000 grants each quarter to travelers who want to take a volunteer vacation.

travel@latimes.com