Empowering the host : A qualitative case study of Workaway and WWOOF hosts’ experiences and motivations for becoming hosts in Gotland, Sweden

Abstract: One important aspect of sustainable tourism is that local communities are involved in the management of tourism, as this can potentially help avoid negative social, environmental and economic impacts on the destination and local residents. Workaway and WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) are work- and cultural exchange programs in which hosts receive help with their work in exchange for free food and accommodation for guests. Since the hosts are in charge of deciding if, when, and how to host guests, Workaway and WWOOF could be seen as a type of community-based tourism where locals initiate and manage tourism themselves. This study applied a qualitative case study approach using semi-structured interviews and participant observation to investigate Workaway and WWOOF hosts’ motivations for becoming hosts, as well as their experiences as hosts, on the island of Gotland, Sweden, which has not been explored so far in other research. It further aimed to discover how Workaway and WWOOF may or may not contribute to sustainable tourism besides empowering the host. The research results indicated that Gotland’s WWOOF and Workaway hosts were motivated to become hosts from a combination of needing help with work and wanting to meet new people. Their experiences as hosts have many benefits, such as receiving help with work, making lasting friendships, and traveling through their guests, but also some challenges, such as the effort of hosting guests, having difficult guests and a clash of expectations between guest and host. Similarly, while WWOOF and Workaway seem to contribute to sustainable tourism by making hosting and traveling accessible to many people or spreading awareness about sustainability, among other aspects, these programs could also deter from sustainable tourism by being available mostly to privileged guests and hosts or potentially displacing local workers, among other aspects. Though far from perfect, Workaway and WWOOF nevertheless enable local hosts to benefit from tourism, which is not always the case.