Do you fancy a Work & Travel Adventure of a special kind? Then Colombia is the right place for you. The country has been at the top of backpackers' lists for a few years now and is still a real insider tip. You have the choice between the colonial Caribbean city of Cartagenathe dream beaches Santa Martas and the hidden Minca. In the Caribbean you will find beautiful beaches and idyllic little towns where you can experience both tourist diversity and the real Colombia.
Hostels in Colombia are hip, cool and in many ways very special. As the country has experienced an upswing in tourism in recent years and is still a real insider tip, most hostels have only opened in the last few years. As the number of backpackers increases from year to year, new hostels are constantly being added. Some hostels follow a completely new concept: boutique hostels, which means a little more luxury, but you are still in the cool and social environment of a hostel.
In all our locations in Colombia, the hostels are very centrally located. Whether in the big city of Medellín or in the cities of Cartagena and Santa Marta: you will find restaurants, bars, stores and supermarkets everywhere. No matter where you are, all the cities we have selected offer the perfect starting point for bar hopping, various excursions and pool parties or other events in the hostel.
In Cartagena and Santa Marta in particular, the Caribbean heat is much easier to bear with a short cool-down in between. That's why many hostels there have a beautiful colonial-style courtyard with a pool and hammocks.
In the small village of Minca, you can fully immerse yourself in tropical nature and cool off from the hot cities. The village in the mountains is very popular among backpackers and there are beautiful rustic hostels in the countryside.
In Colombia, all our partner hostels have a kitchen and cozy communal areas. In Colombia's popular vacation destinations, you can enjoy all kinds of activities and mingle with the locals. Relaxed bars with loud music, delicious cocktails and salsa dancing can be found all over the country.
As diverse as the locations are, so are the tasks of the volunteers. In the hostels, you will work between 30 and 35 hours per week, depending on the area. As a volunteer, you can be assigned to reception, breakfast service, the bar or even social media posts and events.
The work at reception ranges from translating guests' needs and wishes from English into Spanish, checking rooms, check-ins and check-outs to accompanying guests to their rooms.
Your area of work as a volunteer can be at the bar. So you should like being around people, love music and enjoy mixing cocktails.
In event management, you usually work in the afternoon and evening. You promote the activities to the guests and take part in them yourself. For example, there are salsa evenings, karaoke and pub crawls.
Or you can also help with the breakfast service in the morning. You will help the kitchen staff to prepare and serve orders such as muesli, fruit salad, omelettes etc. for the guests. Of course, this also includes washing up afterwards.
It is also your responsibility to look after the guests and actively contribute to their well-being. It is therefore very important that you are empathetic, approachable and communicative. Due to variable working hours, you should also have a certain degree of flexibility.
Your hostel is located in the middle of the old town, so you can spend most of your free time here, strolling through the alleyways and watching the hustle and bustle. On your days off, you can take a boat trip to the surrounding beaches or explore the islands. Our partner hostels in Cartagena are furnished with great attention to detail and most of them have a pool and a nice bar.
You can find more information about Cartagena here.
Our hostels are located either in the city of Santa Marta itself or on the nearby beaches.
The city of Santa Marta is located on the Caribbean coast and has 500,000 inhabitants. What's special here are the great excursion options in the surrounding area. Within an hour you can reach idyllic places in the rainforest with waterfalls and coffee farms, dream beaches, the best diving spots in Colombia, cool beach resorts where backpackers flock and the most beautiful national park in Colombia, Tayrona National Park.
Santa Marta is the perfect mix of city, beach and great surroundings.
You can find more information about Santa Marta here.
Santa Marta is the perfect starting point for a 40-minute drive into the mountains to Minca. Minca is a small village, but an absolute must-see for backpackers on any trip to Colombia. There you can immerse yourself in endless green forests and swim in fresh rivers and waterfalls. The average annual temperature is a pleasant 22 degrees, a nice cool down from the hot cities of Cartagena and Santa Marta and only 1 hour away from the beaches of the Caribbean. This fascinating little town is becoming increasingly popular with tourists and is constantly developing, so new hostels and restaurants are being added all the time. The hostel is located a few minutes' walk from the village in the middle of green nature next to a river. The rooms are very open and designed with lots of love and natural elements. There is a pool with a great view of the mountains and a delicious restaurant in the hostel.
To get a better picture of you, your motivation and experience, we need a short video for the application process, which should be approx. 5 minutes takes from you. You don't need any special qualifications or experience to work at the hostel. It is just important that you have a desire to learn and that you are open to a new culture, people from all over the world and a new way of life. You should be motivated, work well in a team and be willing to share your living space with other people for a period of time. In return, you can expect a unique community, a life in breathtaking nature and, above all, a lot of fun at work. It is also important that you are not too bad for the tasks in the hostel. Everyone pitches in and when things get particularly busy, it can take a little longer.
The national language in Colombia is Spanish. You do not need any knowledge of Spanish to take part in the program. The only requirement is that you can speak English or Spanish in order to communicate with the other volunteers from all over the world and the hostel staff. A Spanish course is included at the beginning of the program. However, your language skills will also improve on site.
You will live in a shared room with other volunteers from all over the world. The room is located in the hostel where you also work.
You will usually share your room with your colleagues, but in smaller hostels you may also be sharing with guests.
The room size also varies depending on the hostel, there are usually between 4 and 10 beds in your room.
You will have access to a well-equipped kitchen where you can cook together with the other volunteers. Some hostels provide one or even two meals a day for the volunteers, but we cannot guarantee this.
Jan is German and has been living in Colombia for six years now. After a long journey through Latin America, he stayed in Cartagena. He has traveled all over the country, but Cartagena and the entire Caribbean coast are his jewel. He can't wait to welcome you there and show you the Colombian culture. His girlfriend is Colombian and originally from Bogotá. Jan has German roots, so he understands both cultures very well and speaks both languages fluently. Jan has been running the Café de la Mañana in Cartagena's old town for 2 years. Take a look, it's worth it! Jan also works in tourism and is therefore our local expert to show you the city, its history and all the highlights. He will be happy to answer your questions about the country and traveling in Colombia.
Jan will look after you during the introductory event in Cartagena. If you have any questions during your stay in Latin America, a German-speaking contact person will be available to you via WhatsApp in the same time zone.
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