Custom-Designed Volunteer Vacations are this Travel Advisor's Specialty

For travel advisor Jennifer Holmes creating customized travel itineraries for her clients has taken on a new and exciting dimension as she puts her skills to work designing vacations where her clients can spend part of their vacation volunteering and making a difference in the communities they visit, a vacation experience known as voluntourism.

"I've always loved travelling and I also love helping people," says Jennifer whose travel business is called Joyous Journeys. "When I realized that I could combine my two passions everything just clicked into place. More and more of my clients are socially conscious travelers who want to incorporate volunteering as part of their vacation. I'm able to find out-of-the-ordinary opportunities that are memorable and provide the experiences they are looking for that make a difference in the communities they visit."

Jennifer works closely with her clients to design custom itineraries keyed to their personal interests, including volunteering, educational and cultural immersion. Along with individuals and adventure travelers, Jennifer uses her expertise to plan trips for school groups, church groups and nonprofits who are eager to immerse themselves in a different culture and volunteer their time to effect change throughout the world.

"Whether you want a week-long volunteer experience or want to spend a morning doing beach cleanup, I can make it happen," she says.
The enthusiastic travel advisor walks the talk. She volunteers with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary in her home state of Florida, the National Kidney Foundation (she is a kidney donor), Donate Life, and various marine non-profit organizations.
Jennifer partners with local, environmentally responsible tour providers and donates 20 percent of her base planning fees to a different charity each month.
There are as many ways to volunteer as there are people, Jennifer says. Whatever your dream, she will put her creativity and skills to work to make it happen. Examples include:
• Trail upkeep in a National Park
• Four weeks in Alaska on a working sled dog ranch to assist with care of the dogs (Bonus: dog cuddles!)
• A week in Chicago in a program that connects the traveler with nature and they learn how to create a nature space in their own community
• Going behind the scenes in a South African wildlife rehabilitation center to learn more about conservation efforts in the area
• Spending four hours building oyster reef balls in Florida
Jennifer has booked her own volunteer experience - an upcoming personal vacation in the Maldives where she will be able to conduct whale research for two weeks, as well as a trip to Africa which includes volunteer time.
As a travel advisor, Jennifer "highly values giving back, either by donating money or giving time and energy to a cause. "Through my business, I want to appeal to socially conscious clients, those interested in voluntourism."

Jennifer's long-term goal is to be able to hire staff for the day-to-day operations so that she can concentrate on developing the volunteer experiences that her clientele will value.

Significant research indicates that volunteering is good for a person's mental and physical health, Jennifer notes. "But these vacations are not all volunteering. You're not giving up your whole time away. But you do get to go behind the scenes, with access to things most people don't get to see or do. There's a real thrill to that."

Jennifer is affiliated with Travel Resources Group, a boutique travel company. She is a certified Alaska Expert and a South Africa Specialist,
is certified with Celestyal Cruises and is working toward her Celebrity Cruise Line certification. Jennifer offers free vacation consultations and can be reached at www.joyous-journeys.com or www.travelresourcesgroup.com.

11917 Myrtle Rock Dr, Riverview, FL 33578
+1-813-384-8367
jennifer@joyous-journeys.com
www.joyous-journeys.com

Joyous Journeys is a full-service travel agency specializing in voluntourism, cultural immersion, and sustainable travel. The company's mission is Connecting hands and hearts with love globally through travel.

This release was published on openPR.