Solidary holidays thanks to the International Volunteer Card

Volunteer travellers around the world can make a difference, be it on a weekend trip or a month-long holiday. Different holiday associations and NGOs offer a vast variety of volunteer opportunities on solidary holidays, ones that transport you to other countries and immerse you in new cultures.

In attempts to support solidary tourism, the Volunteer Card was born. It’s an ID and travel insurance card tailored to travellers who are volunteering during their holidays with humanitarian aid efforts in countries in need around the globe.

The Volunteer Card team says,

“In a world ripe with needs, we believe in the power of volunteers – regular people dedicating their time, resources, and skills for a cause. And we are not alone. There are over a million annual volunteer travelers in the U.S., and the number is growing.

We want to reward you for your service. Volunteer travel should be as easy, safe, and inexpensive as possible so that more volunteers can do more good.”

Everyone working on the Volunteer Card team has worked on overseas humanitarian projects in 50+ countries combined! That’s a lot of experience so you can bet they know what other travellers need while travelling abroad in often unstable countries.

This travel insurance coverage isn’t like other insurance plans. You don’t pay a daily rate, rather a flat fee which covers you for an entire year on trips up to 180 days in length. Pretty cool isn’t it? The Multi-Trip travel insurance is one of the biggest benefits of the card, especially if you plan to volunteer on trips a few times a year. The program is backed by Travel Guard, the largest travel insurance company in the USA. Plan prices do not increase with the age of volunteers, everyone pays the same fee.

Calling the International Volunteer Card number, volunteers can access assistance 24/7 from at home and abroad.

What is covered?

• Pre-trip travel advice: weather, currency information, visas, inoculations, vaccine requirements, travel advisories… the works
• Lost or stolen baggage; replacement assistance
• Replacement of lost passport and travel documents assistance
• Emergency cash transfer assistance
• Up-to-date travel information including visa/passport requirements
• Language interpretation services
• Urgent message relay to family/friends/business associates
• Up-to-the-minute information on local medical advisories including epidemics and information on immunizations
• LiveTravel 24-hour hotline for flight and/or hotel rebooking
• Emergency return travel arrangements
• Roadside assistance when you rent a car
• Missed connection coordination en-route or returning home

The International Volunteer Card also offers local and international travel discounts with companies like National Geographic, Ramada, Hyatt, Hertz and Samsonite, among hundreds of others.

If you’re planning a solidary holiday, don’t worry. You can get the Volunteer Card up to 24 hours before departure. Here’s how you do it:

1. Buy the card here.
2. Provide evidence that you are a volunteer. You can send an email or your volunteer organization can send one on your behalf.
3. Create a username and password to access volunteercard.com for discounts.

Have you ever gone on a volunteer holiday? Are you planning to?

Img: volunteercard.com