Journey of a lifetime? Giving back could be the ultimate trip this International Volunteer Day

Ever stopped to wonder where life’s journey is taking you? Perhaps you’ve thought of taking a mind-blowing trip, climbing Machu Picchu or meeting Mongolian goat herders, to reflect on correcting your course.

Today is International Volunteer Day and at Hotelbeds we’d like to ask all our travel industry colleagues to think about taking the ultimate trip: giving back.

Those of us lucky enough to work in this sector dedicate our whole lives to making sure that other people’s journeys go smoothly, from pre-booking to post-trip. But over the last few years many travel industry companies have begun to think about how they can help the wider community on their daily trek through the peaks and troughs of life.

That’s why recently at Hotelbeds we launched our very own Corporate Volunteer Program. We are encouraging all of the company's employees to participate actively in volunteer opportunities around the world, so as to contribute significantly to the communities where Hotelbeds employees work and live around the globe.

There are already more than 48 NGOs from all over the world that can benefit from the Hotelbeds Corporate Volunteer Program. The participating NGOs cover areas such as supporting children in need, the environment, fighting hunger, supporting people with disabilities, helping refugees and the elderly.

So far this volunteer program has also been launched in the offices of Hotelbeds in Orlando, Singapore, Bangkok, Cancun, Tel Aviv, Dubai, Palma, London, Shanghai and Beijing. It has reached a total of 3,000 of the 5,000 employees worldwide, with the participation of 1,051 employees so far.

In this program, there are many international NGOs such as Give Kids the World or United Against Poverty in Orlando; Waterways Watch Society in Singapore; the Thai Red Cross or the Lumphini Park in Bangkok, and Food for Life in Tel Aviv; AECC (Asociación Española contra el Cancer) or Cruz Roja.

We might just be starting on our journey as a volunteering organisation, but so far this year we have carried more than 150 activities around the world and we hope to have thousands ahead of us yet.

Give some thought to where giving back might help your organization to travel to this International Volunteer Day?