Farm and garden
- Helping in the greenhouse
- Planting, watering, and harvesting
- Caring for chickens
- Composting and soil preparation
- Light farm work
- Clearing and maintaining paths
- General outdoor projects
A practical work exchange in rural Colombia
Volunteer at Camino al Sol
Contribute to the daily life of a land-based retreat project in the mountains of Antioquia. Volunteers help with farming, hospitality, maintenance, kitchen work, and changing practical needs while staying at a reduced accommodation rate.
From USD 150 per monthAround 15 hours per weekFood handled independentlyEl Retiro, AntioquiaOne-month stays preferred
Contribution
USD 7/night or USD 150/30 days
Work
Around 15 hours/week
Food
Not included
Preferred stay
One month or longer
Location
El Retiro, Antioquia
Retreat option
USD 300 after two weeks, screening required
Know what you are joining
A volunteer residency, not a free retreat
Camino al Sol is a traditional Colombian yagé retreat center and evolving land-based project in El Retiro, Antioquia.
Volunteering here offers a way to spend meaningful time on the land while helping with the ordinary work that keeps the project functioning. Depending on the season, that may mean caring for plants and chickens, cleaning shared spaces, preparing rooms, supporting the kitchen, painting, maintaining paths, or helping with a project that has become the priority that week.
There is space for nature, shared work, conversation, and a slower rural rhythm. There is also mud, cleaning, dishes, changing plans, and practical responsibility.
We want applicants to understand both sides before deciding to come.
The practical agreement
How the exchange works
General volunteers contribute an average of around 15 hours per week, usually spread across approximately five days.
The schedule is flexible rather than rigid. Some periods are active, particularly around retreats, maintenance projects, planting, or harvesting. Other periods are quieter and allow more personal time. Flexibility works in both directions, and volunteers are not expected to remain permanently on call.
The accommodation contribution helps cover accommodation, electricity, water, internet, gas, and maintenance of the shared spaces.
Food is not included. Volunteers buy and prepare their own food using the shared kitchen. Communal meals may sometimes happen naturally, but they are not a guaranteed part of the exchange.
We generally prefer volunteers who can stay for at least one month. Shorter stays may be considered when there is a specific need or when an applicant brings a relevant professional skill.
Fewer than 30 days
USD 7
per night
30-day stay
USD 150
per 30-day period
This is an accommodation contribution, not rent. Food and personal expenses are handled independently.
Shared responsibility
What volunteers help with
The exact mix depends on current priorities, physical ability, experience, weather, and the length of the stay.
Retreat preparation and hospitality
- Preparing bedrooms and shared spaces
- Laundry and bed preparation
- Cleaning before and after retreats
- Organizing supplies
- Kitchen preparation
- Washing dishes
- Keeping shared spaces calm and orderly
Maintenance and practical projects
- Painting
- Basic repairs
- Organizing tools and materials
- Cabin and shared-space maintenance
- Carpentry or construction support
- Other practical projects around the property
Rural life
What daily life is like
Camino al Sol is still developing. Our retreat work, gardens, animals, buildings, and shared spaces continue to evolve, which means no two volunteer periods are exactly the same.
A typical day may include a few hours of shared practical work followed by personal time. Volunteers are often expected to work independently once a task has been explained, but much of the work is also done together.
The program tends to suit people who can:
- Take responsibility for agreed tasks
- Adapt when plans change
- Live respectfully in shared spaces
- Communicate directly
- Help without needing constant supervision
- Handle simple rural conditions
- Contribute to ordinary work without expecting every task to feel meaningful or spiritual
People who stay longer often come to appreciate the experience as an opportunity to understand rural life in Colombia, practical community living, regenerative growing, retreat operations, and Camino al Sol's particular cultural context.
Bringing a professional skill
Some applicants bring professional abilities that match a current Camino al Sol need.
Applicants offering a professional skill may be considered for a different exchange arrangement. This is agreed individually before arrival and depends on whether the skill matches a real current need. Any alternative exchange must include a clear scope, deliverable, or work commitment.
A professional title alone does not automatically qualify someone for free accommodation.
Carpentry or construction
Plumbing or electrical work
Agriculture or permaculture
Professional cooking
Photography or videography
Editing and design
Website development or SEO
Social media production
Translation
Administration or fundraising
A separate arrangement
Volunteering during a retreat
Reduced-price retreat participation is conditional and remains a volunteer experience.
Volunteers who have already contributed for at least two weeks may be considered for participation in a scheduled Camino al Sol retreat at a reduced contribution of USD 300. The standard retreat price is USD 750.
This arrangement allows volunteers to participate in the ceremonies and most parts of the retreat while continuing to provide moderate practical support. During retreat days, volunteers are generally expected to help for approximately two to three hours per day, depending on the retreat schedule and what is needed.
We aim to organize responsibilities so volunteers can participate meaningfully in the ceremonies and wider retreat process. However, volunteer retreat participation is not identical to attending as a full-price participant. Some activities or rest periods may overlap with practical responsibilities.
Participation remains subject to available retreat capacity, completion of the standard health and medication screening, final approval by Camino al Sol, and the volunteer remaining in good standing.
Acceptance into the volunteer program does not guarantee approval to participate in yagé ceremonies.
- Helping prepare food
- Washing dishes and cleaning the kitchen
- Preparing rooms and shared spaces
- Keeping common areas organized
- Assisting with simple retreat logistics
- Helping with setup, cleaning, and reset tasks
Standard volunteer stay
- Practical contribution
- Reduced accommodation
- Food independent
- No guaranteed ceremonies
Volunteer retreat
- USD 300 contribution
- Screening and approval
- Practical support continues
- Experience differs from full price
Practical support only
Clear role boundaries
Volunteering does not constitute facilitator training, ceremonial apprenticeship, therapy, or professional retreat training. Unless specifically selected, trained, and authorized for another role, volunteers do not:
- Serve yagé
- Lead or hold ceremonial space
- Supervise participants
- Provide medical or psychological guidance
- Access confidential screening information
- Present themselves as healers or facilitators
The volunteer role supports the land, accommodation, food service, shared spaces, and behind-the-scenes functioning of the project.
Plan your stay
What is included, and what is not
Volunteers should arrive with enough money for food, transport, healthcare, personal needs, and unexpected expenses.
Included
- Simple accommodation
- Access to a shared kitchen
- Electricity and water
- Internet, subject to rural service conditions
- An agreed area of contribution
- Time to experience the land and surrounding nature
- Participation in ordinary community life
Not normally included
- Food
- Flights
- Airport transfers
- Personal transport
- Visa or immigration costs
- Travel or health insurance
- Medical expenses
- Personal products
- Guaranteed retreat participation
- Ceremonial training
- Continuous workshops or personal guidance
Who this program suits
- Want to contribute to a real working project
- Are comfortable with practical and sometimes repetitive tasks
- Can live simply and share space respectfully
- Are adaptable and reasonably self-directed
- Communicate concerns before they become conflicts
- Respect Colombian culture and traditional yagé work
- Have enough personal funds to support yourself
- Understand that the daily rhythm may change
Who should not apply
This program is unlikely to be a good fit if your main goal is:
- Receiving inexpensive or guaranteed ceremonies
- Becoming a facilitator or medicine server
- Finding a substitute for therapy or medical care
- Treating the stay as a holiday
- Avoiding clear responsibilities
- Receiving continuous personal guidance
- Creating social media content without prior consent
- Arriving without enough money for food and personal expenses
Living together
Community expectations
A clear understanding before arrival is better than an exchange that becomes frustrating for either side. Additional house rules and arrival logistics are included in the written confirmation.
- Complete agreed tasks
- Communicate when plans or availability change
- Keep accommodation and shared spaces clean
- Respect quiet hours and personal boundaries
- Protect the privacy of retreat participants and other residents
- Ask permission before photographing or recording people
- Follow property and safety instructions
- Treat the team, guests, traditions, animals, and land with respect
- Raise problems directly and respectfully
- Accept practical feedback
Repeated failure to contribute, unsafe conduct, harassment, dishonesty, serious boundary violations, or disrespect toward the community may result in the stay ending early.
Three clear steps
How to apply
Do not book travel until your volunteer stay has been confirmed in writing.
Submit your application
Tell us your proposed dates, background, languages, skills, relevant experience, needs, motivation, and whether you are interested in retreat participation. Include a portfolio when proposing creative or technical work.
Introductory call
Selected applicants may be invited to discuss current needs, likely work, accommodation, food, expectations, and any professional exchange proposal.
Written confirmation
Before booking travel, accepted volunteers receive written confirmation of dates, contribution, responsibilities, approximate hours, food arrangements, house expectations, arrival information, and any agreed deliverables.
Volunteer Program FAQ
Straight answers about contribution, work, food, retreats, and role boundaries.
Come prepared to contribute
Everyday work makes the wider project possible
A volunteer stay at Camino al Sol can offer time in nature, practical experience, connection, and a closer understanding of what it takes to maintain a retreat center and land-based project.
What makes the exchange worthwhile is not proximity to ceremonies. It is participating responsibly in the everyday work that allows the wider project to exist.
If that is what you are looking for, apply and tell us when you would like to come, how long you can stay, and what you can genuinely contribute.
Tell us your dates, how long you can stay, and what you can genuinely contribute.
Learn more about the land and the retreat context before applying.