Giving Back While Getting Outdoors

DENVER, May 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Outdoor volunteer vacations and learning vacations are becoming increasingly popular in Colorado.  From mountain bike trail building to archeological excavation classes, Colorado offers visitors the chance to give back while enjoying a healthy outdoor vacation experience. Some hotels even offer reduced rates in exchange for volunteer service.

Below are a few organizations that provide Colorado voluntourism opportunities and learning vacations; some are free and some offer professional instruction for a fee. For more information on additional travel deals and destinations in Colorado where your travel can make a difference, visit www.COLORADO.com.

• Give and Getaway at RockResorts:  RockResorts properties and participating hotels in Vail, Beaver Creek, Keystone, and Aspen are offering travelers the opportunity to positively impact the local environment and enjoy a vacation at the same time. A local team at each resort will arrange an environmental conservation project for visitors, such as light trail maintenance.  Volunteers will receive reduced rates at the participating hotels and complimentary gifts, such as hydration packs.  Projects are available from May 16 through October 10, 2010. For more information or to explore Give and Getaway opportunities, visit the RockResorts website at http://rockresorts.com/info/prm.giveandgetaways.asp.
• Pick Your Volunteer Experience:  Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) provides hands-on opportunities for participants to enhance, protect and sustain Colorado's natural resources. The organization offers more than 40 exciting opportunities from April through October 2010 to help renew and restore Colorado's most treasured natural places.  Visit the Project Calendar on www.voc.org where visitors can customize their project search by duration, level of difficulty, work type, and location.
• 'Dig' Archeology in Southwest Colorado: The 170-acre Crow Canyon Archaeological Center outside Cortez, Colorado is a great place to get your dig on. This unique school is dedicated to exploring the Ancestral Puebloan culture that is embedded in the Mesa Verde region of the state. This unique facility nestled in a canyon and shadowed by the massive 13,000-foot peaks of the La Plata Mountains allows visitors to learn about this ancient culture by letting them feel the excitement of uncovering a 1,000-year-old tool. 800-422-8975; www.crowcanyon.org
• Help build history with the Continental Divide Trail Alliance: The Colorado section of the Continental Divide Trail meanders some 800 miles through some of the state's most incredible yet rugged landscapes. The Continental Divide Trail Alliance provides a number of volunteer opportunities on the trail throughout the summer months with varying degrees of difficulty, giving volunteers the chance to help build history. Project locations include long-abandoned ghost towns; wilderness areas; 14,000-foot peaks; and National Parks. www.cdtrail.org

Contact: Roland Alonzi, 212-219-7560, ext. 6765 / [email protected]

SOURCE Colorado Tourism Office

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