They told me I was their guinea pig

This is going to be a long story, so bear with me! I've never been in this situation in my over a decade of work exchange experience (1st year WWOOF, but many on other platforms) and I don't know how to cope!

Short version: The husband told me in front of the wife on our video call meeting that the stay was totally opened ended and I would be fine to stay until winter and they didn't have anything coming up, they were just glad for the help. 1 week of volunteering, I'm told I have to be gone by next week, no honest or plainspoken explanation. I have to assume it's because the wife got upset because she felt excluded from dinner conversation the night before. To the point where she got up, stormed out of the room with the baby and slammed the bedroom door. Now the husband went away for the weekend while I figure out where to go next (he wanted me to go with him so he could drop me off somewhere, so I guess they were trying to get me gone even sooner). I'm cleaning and making arrangements and the wife (who didn't even want to host) is telling me i need to do a full days work today...but she is literally making up jobs while she texts me. She doesn't have anything that needs done, she doesn't want me here and I don't know how to say no to her because she has literally scolded me like a child before and when i tried to speak up for myself, she doubled down and continued to lecture at me, while her husband stood and watched silently (another story).

The work she needs done: "Maybe sorting out the pumpkin seeds and maybe going on some car errands?"

I didn't reply immediately, and 3 minutes later she texts "I'm gonna go out for a minute, but the pumpkin bowl is the big stainless steel bowl in the fridge, you could sort out the pumpkin seeds and put the rest in the compost and toast up the pumpkin seeds"

I've never been asked to do tasks like this, since they lead me to believe they have a farm (they have nine 1 ft tall fruit trees and 1 small hugelkultur bed they are letting go fallow for the fall/winter) and I'm confused. They did say at one point that they didn't have too much going on and I might need to help with some light housework, but they do not have a working "farm". Actually, they argued about this in front of me on day 3 and I realized the husband wants a farm, and the wife just wants to work full time in her doctors practice and come home to a nice cooked meal.

I don't know what to say to the wife because I feel quite triggered from our encounter the other night where she scolded me. I can post the rest of the story, if anyone wants to know the context. At the moment I'm trying to clean and figure out next steps and figure out what to say to her about this random task (that's somehow supposed to last 5 hours??! I guess she'll be finding more work).

The problem is, they want to set me up with a friend of theirs who has a real farm and a stunning fruit orchard, but they are not on the platform yet, so they have to get setup. I would love to go there and I've met this friend and they seem legit and so down-to-earth and kind, so I'm really looking forward to it. But the caveat is, they don't have accommodation, so my current hosts agreed to let me borrow their camper (which I've been staying in on their land) and bring it over to the friends orchard (as a favor to try to make it right!). So I feel like I will to continue to be beholden to them even after this "agreement" is over. I am so out of my depths here.

:(

I’ve done WWOOFing in France, UK and South Korea so far and really enjoyed it. I know each host is different but, in general, which country offers the best WWOOF experience?

Here is my insight so far:
South Korea : brilliant for delicious food, interesting hosts and varied work
France : inside view into rural France and traditional techniques
UK ; mainly smallholders looking for free labour to assist with their Airbnbs

Any insights from other WWOOFers? I’m planning next year’s adventures and would like to know what country to look at next :)

I'm looking into becoming a WWOOF host (ten acre small holding in Wales) but I'm interested in what is considered reasonable work to expect WWOOF'ers to assist with? to give some examples...

1. Constructing/maintaining vegetable beds

2. Clearing bracken by hand (pulling it up)

3. Rebuilding/repairing drystone walls

4. Maintaining machinery (basic mechanics)

As a WOOF'er are these things you'd be willing to do/learn about?

I'm thinking of wwoofing in Taiwan during Nov-Dec this year and was wondering if anyone had any experiences to share as I found it quite hard to find information online. Any recommendations of hosts/farms to visit would be appreciated too :)

Hello there, right now I am WWOOFing in New Zealand (South Island) and I'm really unsure where to spend the Holidays since as I know it's for family but since so many people work and travel here I'm wondering where I could spend the holidays?

I haven't been here for a long time, still trying to settle in and would also love to spend the time with other volunteers or people who are not spending the time with their families. Maybe I could also find someone to travel with for the next few months?

If anyone has recommendations or would share their experiences I'd really appreciate it!

A little update to my repost: after reading replies and hearing about different experiences, I’ve decided to take the leap and try WWOOF!

I’m now hoping to find a farm where I could stay for around a month in November , preferably somewhere in Europe. Ideally, I’d love a peaceful place surrounded by nature, animals, mountains, forests, or beautiful countryside, where I can slow down, learn new things, help out, and experience a different way of life.

I’m not necessarily looking for a busy farm or a highly social experience. I’d be happy with a welcoming host, meaningful work, a comfortable place to stay, and a simple daily routine. Somewhere I can enjoy the quiet, get outdoors, learn to care for animals or grow food, and hopefully meet some good people along the way.

I’m in my late twenties, originally from Asia, and this will be my first experience doing something like this. I’m excited but naturally a little nervous, so finding a trustworthy host and a place with a good atmosphere is important to me.

So I was doing research and I was wondering if WWOOF was legal? Some countries are strict about volunteering when on a tourist visa instead of a working holiday visa

Like Thailand for example

So I've always wanted to travel the world but I dont exactly have alot of money to spend. Has anyone stayed in touch with their hosts?/seen them again?

Hi everyone! I'm a WWOOFer searching for options that are strongly focused on providing food for the community (through food banks or other means) or are striving for very environmentally conscious farming. I'm based in the US but am willing to go elsewhere if you have suggestions! I'd love to hear if there are farms like this and how you have found them. If you have links to their WWOOF profiles as well that would be incredibly helpful.

I had so much planning and structure in my life, I went to uni, had a prosperous career in pharma and had a long term partner - I should have been happy. But to be honest, I was miserable.

Now I want the opposite. I have an overwhelming urge to just go live and work in the woods, on a farm, or in the arctic - anywhere slow, real and with natural beauty. If anyone needs a basic helper, preferably not in the U.K., give me a shout (I’m very aware how much of a long shot this is and how crazy it sounds).

I looked into wwoofing a year or so ago and had seen there was a bunch of locations in Ireland. Now a year later im revisiting the search and i noticed on the wwoofing website Ireland now has no wwoofing sites. Im confused and surprised.

because i was surprised i decided to type in online, "wwoof ireland" and this website came up https://wwoof.ie/ first . i can't tell if it's connected to the main wwoofing website, just kinda of confusing change. if anyone knows what's up feel free to comment!

Hiii everyone, hope y'all doing well 😁😁

I'm a 21 year old french-canadian student wanting to volunteer 4-6 months in a farm in Taiwan in exchange for housing/food (WWOOF/workaway format) after November 2026. I speak fluent English, Spanish and French.

I don't know much about rural Taiwan but want to learn as much as possible. I'm so very extremely eager to work and contribute as much as possible and learn from this beautiful country💜.

I'd love to know more about specific places/farms or opportunities that y'all could recommend! I would greatly appreciate some tips or info if y'all have already performed/know about these sort of places. Any help is greatly appreciated 😊.

Thanks!

I'm turning 18 in November and my home life is really complicated but would any wwoofers be willing to take in a hard working 18yo? I have experience in working with animals and feeding them/cleaning their areas and I have a really nice established 10 gallon fish tank I take care of also. It has been awhile since I've been on a farm or interacted with chickens or roosters or ducks but I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty and I'm more than willing to work my butt off to finally live somewhere peaceful...

Hey guys, I am a 21 year old Bangladeshi male looking to get some hands on work on farms and spend some time away from the modern busy life for a few weeks..

I'm mostly concerned if the Bangladeshi passport is compatible with any of the countries to work on organic farms etc..

If you know a bangladeshi who volunteered in specific countries or are a host who have had bangladeshi volunteers from abroad before, kindly share the story with me 😊

I really appreciate you taking the time to read this!

Essentially my question is the title. I went in to do a little check and noticed that multiple farms haf notices asking them to stop sending requests for the rest of the year and others having full confirmed calenders.

Is this common? How far ahead do you have to plan there?

This feels crazy to me after wwoofing in Brasil where I could have asked to pop by next week...

Hey people! 🙌🏽

I am currently traveling in Colombia and looking for a volunteering!

Does anyone have a recommendation for one that you really liked or have heard good of?

Could be Agriculture, Social or also a Hostel

Thanks a lot for your help!

Simon🌞

I’m thinking about signing up for WWOOF.FR.

Here’s my situation:
I just want to stay at each place for 5 days to 2 weeks in Feb-Mar.
If possible, I’d like to WWOOF at two different places.

I have a couple of questions:
・Are there any other options for staying in France for free?
・Do WWOOF hosts usually accept people who can only stay for a short time, like me?

I’d really appreciate any advice based on your experience! :)