WWoofing stands for

"willing workers on organic farms"

A wwoofer lives as part of the family and works in exchange for food and board working on organic farms and gardens. Usually four hours a day, its a way of learning about organics, meeting local people, and seeing some wonderful out of the way places.

WWOOF NZ is part of a world wide community that promotes awareness of ecological farming practices by providing volunteers with the opportunity to live and learnon organic properties.  WWOOF is an enjoyable, educational and safe way to explore and get to know the people and in the country.

Immigration and Visa Issues

From Wwoof NZ

The immigration dept. has recently said that Working Holiday Visas (WHVs) are ideally suited to Wwoofers. This was in many ways good news as it showed they were acknowledging and accepting Wwoofers. Shortly after saying this NZ lifted the lid on the number of WHVs they granted to countries such as Germany as well as making WHVs available to countries that previously had none. One positive benefit is that Wwoofers will be able to stay in NZ for up to 12 months. For those travellers on a visitor's visa we have been told it is still possible to Wwoof as long as they meet the conditions of their visa. These are mainly having the required funds in their account and that they are participating in a wide range of tourist activities, not just coming to NZ to go Wwoofing. We have been told this verbally, but we are still trying to pin the immigration dept down and get them to give it to us in writing.

This is a similar network, offering board in exchange for work, but it is not restricted to organic farms.

HelpX is an online listing of host organic farms, non organic farms, farmstays, homestays, ranches, lodges, B&Bs, backpackers hostels, and even sailing boats who invite volunteer helpers to stay with them short term in exchange for food and accommodation