• If you're a single person looking to enjoy a vacation without the expense of paying a single supplement, a volunteer vacation may be worth checking out. Aside from the likelihood of a cost advantage, a volunteer vacation affords a chance to meet other like-minded people while doing something for the benefit of others. If you want to make a difference while you have fun, try a volunteer vacation.
  
  

Global Volunteers

• Global Volunteers, a St. Paul, Minnesota-based organization, offers single volunteers the opportunity to work in a team volunteer effort. According to the organization, its team structure finds favor with its volunteers; about 30 percent choose to return and repeat the experience. The organization offers volunteering opportunities around the world. One program provides English language assistance in locations such as Poland, China and Mexico. Another program involves painting and repairing buildings, in places like Costa Rica. Global Volunteers provides on-site orientation and team-building activities that help team members become comfortable with one another and the local community.
  
  Global Volunteers
  
  375 East Little Canada Road
  
  St. Paul, MN 55117
  
  800-487-1074
  
  globalvolunteers.org
  
  

American Hiking Society

• If you're looking for volunteer opportunities in the United States, the American Hiking Society may appeal to you. Their volunteer vacations give you the opportunity to work on trail building and maintenance activities in national parks and public lands across the country. A typical American Hiking Society volunteer opportunity at Francis Marion National Forest in South Carolina involved the construction of boardwalk. Another project at California's Golden Gate Recreational Area involved trail maintenance and repair activities along trails in Marin, San Francisco. For single volunteers, this opportunity also provides a chance to work with a crew of 6 to 15 volunteers and meet interesting people who are also likely to share an interest in similar activities.
  
  American Hiking Society
  
  1422 Fenwick Lane
  
  Silver Spring, MD 20910
  
  800-972-8608
  
  americanhiking.org
  
  

Hands Up Holidays

• Hands Up Holidays, a UK-based organization that offers volunteer vacation experiences, has "voluntourism" activities geared toward singles. One such vacation that the organization says is suitable for solo travelers involves assisting at a medical clinic in Mexico, while also enjoying a vacation close to Cancun. According to a volunteer quoted on the organization's website, after a Hands Up Holidays experience in Cambodia: "My volunteering was meaningful and I must say I got at least as much out of it as the children did."
  
  Hands Up Holidays
  
  61 Parkstead Road
  
  London SW15 5AN
  
  England
  
  201-984-5372
  
  handsupholidays.com