Home Hospitality
Whether opening your home overnight or reserving a chair at your dinner table, home hospitality through the VCWA is your opportunity to engage with a few of the hundreds of international visitors the VCWA welcomes each year.
Homestays
The VCWA arranges professional programming during weekdays, while you share your home with the visitors in the evening and on the weekend. Hosting responsibilities include providing breakfast, dinner, and some lunches on the weekends. Aside from meals, hosts are required to offer their guest(s) a safe, clean environment to call home.
Adult Visitors
Interested in introducing an international visitor to life in Vermont?
Professionals from around the world visit Vermont for one week and stay with local host families.
The VCWA arranges front door pick up and drop off, while you share your home with the visitors in the evening and on the weekend. Please consider signing up as a host today to engage in this critical cultural opportunity!
Learn about our custom exchanges here.
Youth Visitors
Would you like to make a difference in the lives of a high school student from another country?
Consider hosting a participant in one of our high school leadership programs! These 10-14 day programs introduce participants to civic engagement and volunteerism and help develop their leadership skills.
Hosts drop off and pick up their youth visitors Monday-Friday at 9:00am and 5:00pm.
Learn about our youth programs here.
Host a Meal
The VCWA is always looking for members of the community interested in connecting with our work and visitors.
Hosting a meal for our visitors is easy! All you have to do is prepare a meal (or order in!) and the VCWA will do the rest. Our international visitors are eager to learn more about day-to-day life in the United States.
Take this unique opportunity to show the great culture of Vermont to our visitors and learn more about a new culture over something everyone loves: food.
FAQs
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While every international visitor program is different, we typically ask hosts to be responsible for breakfast, dinner, and some lunches on the weekends. Aside from meals, hosts are required to offer their guest(s) a safe, clean environment to call home. Hosts are not responsible for meals when their guest is with the VCWA.
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Most of our hosts are within a 30 minute drive of Burlington, Vermont. If you live farther away, please contact the VCWA as we would love to hear from you and discuss transportation options.
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The Vermont Council on World Affairs will inform you of any dietary restrictions and/or allergies your guest might have prior to their arrival.
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The VCWA’s international visitors are from a variety of countries and backgrounds. We will discuss your hosting preferences and share a detailed bio of your guest prior to their arrival.
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Youth participants may share a bedroom as long as they each have their own bed. Participants can share bathrooms with each other and/or their host family.
Adult participants must have their own room.
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Some program participants are not required to speak English, but many of them know at least some English. Hosts will be provided with the English level of their visitors ahead of time.
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Our international visitors typically spend Monday-Friday (9am-5pm) participating in professional programming. Your guest will spend the evenings and weekends with you. We encourage you to include them in your daily activities and show them the beauty of our state.
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Some guests can speak and understand basic English while some cannot. Many hosts have used phrase books and online translators for basic needs such as to greet their guests, explain things about the house, call them to dinner, etc.
“I've hosted many times and it has always been a great experience for me... a way to gain some of the perspectives that comes from seeing the world, but without leaving home.”
-VCWA Member