Equestrian Getaway/Horse Ranch

If you’re looking for a volunteer experience that blends adventure, nature, and authentic local culture, our ranch is the perfect choice. Nestled amidst wide open landscapes, jungle outbacks, tranquil creeks, and serene lakes, our location offers a true escape into nature with unforgettable views and activities all around you.

Here’s what makes volunteering with us special:

• Equestrian Paradise: Whether you’re a horse lover or curious to learn, we’re home to some of Sri Lanka’s tallest and best-kept horses. We believe in ethical riding and will introduce you to horseback experiences you’ll remember for a lifetime.

• Outdoor Adventures: From fishing and hiking to exploring local culture and cuisine, there’s always something exciting to do. Kalkuda and Pasikuda—two of Sri Lanka’s most beautiful beaches—are just a 20-minute tuktuk ride away, with exclusive arrangements for our volunteers to access pools and beachfront relaxation at nearby hotels for a reasonable rate.

• Healthy, Home-Cooked Meals: We serve delicious and wholesome dishes made with love, using organic ingredients wherever possible.

• Comfortable Stay: Our volunteer accommodations are clean, cozy, and thoughtfully designed for comfort, ensuring you feel at home throughout your stay.

• Relaxed & Rewarding Work: The tasks here are enjoyable and fulfilling—not too hard, but meaningful, giving you a sense of purpose while leaving plenty of time to explore and relax.

• Community & Connection: We’re passionate about what we do and love sharing this journey with like-minded travelers. With WiFi available at reasonable top-up rates, you can stay connected while living close to nature.

Volunteering here is more than just helping out—it’s about joining a community, learning new skills, and experiencing the beauty and warmth of Sri Lanka in an unforgettable way.

My name is Alfie, and I’m passionate about natural farming, tropical ranch-style horse keeping, and syntropic agroforestry. After completing my engineering studies at Saint Petersburg College, Florida, I spent many years in the U.S. corporate world as a senior manager and later as a Chief Technology Officer for a Fortune 100 company. Eventually, I traded the corporate boardroom for wide-open spaces—becoming the first Sri Lankan to own and train camels in the UAE before returning home to establish Sri Lanka’s only dude ranch. Today, our goal is to make this ranch a premium destination for equestrian getaways while staying true to our values of sustainability, ethical animal care, and community spirit. Our team is made up of dedicated, friendly professionals who genuinely care about creating a positive and supportive environment for our volunteers. Here’s what you can expect when you join us: • Respect & Appreciation: We see our volunteers as part of the family. Your skills, ideas, and contributions will always be valued and acknowledged. • Warm & Welcoming Atmosphere: Whether you’re here for a short stay or an extended period, you’ll feel at home from the moment you arrive. • Support & Guidance: You’ll receive clear instructions and the help you need so that your experience is enjoyable and stress-free. • Memorable Experiences: Beyond the work, you’ll make friends, share meals, explore nature, and leave with memories you’ll cherish for a lifetime. We believe volunteering should be rewarding, fun, and meaningful, and we do everything we can to make sure you depart refreshed, inspired, and glad you came.

Todas as oportunidades

Tropical Equestrian Adventure – Horses & Ranch Life in Sri Lanka

Administração Ajuda na Limpeza

Paper Town, Sri Lanka

Digital Media & Photography Volunteer – Web Promotion Experience

Escrever conteúdos Fotografia Produção de Vídeo Mídias Sociais

Paper Town, Sri Lanka

Avaliações

4.5
(15 avaliações)15

Anfitrião & Equipe

4.5

Horas & Atividades

4.5

Hostel

4.0

Aprendizado & Diversão

4.5

Alemanha

5

My experience at Vonfidel Ranch was amazing! The whole team is very nice and welcoming and really try their best to make you have a perfect experience. You get 3 meals which are just amazing, you get something different everyday so that you really learn about the local cuisine. The horses are also very sweet and in a perfect condition, they definitely are looked after which was a very important point to me and of course, the riding is just gorgeous! I would definitely recommend coming here if you love horses and don‘t mind to just chill out in the beautiful nature of sri lanka for a while

3 meses atrás

Suíça

5

Since the first moment i felt mostly welcomed there, even before the trip Alfie helped me with the logistics getting there!
I stayed there 2 weeks and it was a wonderful experience, you really have the chance to get in touch with nature, but there is no wifi if you need to work remotely
Food is simply incredible, and work is not that hard, you have a lot of free time and the place is far from the city so you have to occupy your time there.
Since the second day i had the chance to work with horses, all the staff is so kind and explained me everything.
highly recommended!!

9 meses atrás

Alfie respondeu

Hi Amélie,

It was our pleasure to have you with us. Thank you for being an exemplary guest and taking the time to leave us a positive review. We wish you all the best and look forward to welcoming you back anytime in the future!

Espanha

4

Vonfidel Ranch offers an unforgettable riding holiday experience where both riders and horses find joy and harmony. Nestled in a serene, tropical setting, the ranch provides a perfect blend of adventure, relaxation, and immersive nature experiences. With well-trained horses, experienced wranglers, and a focus on comfort and safety, Vonfidel Ranch creates a welcoming environment for riders of all levels. Whether you’re exploring lush trails or enjoying a peaceful sunset ride, Vonfidel Ranch ensures a unique and memorable equestrian getaway.

12 meses atrás

Alfie respondeu

Hi Victor,

Thank you for leaving a positive review about your engagement and stay with us. We’re pleased to hear you enjoyed your time here. However, we noticed your closing comment about natural horsemanship and wanted to address it.

Throughout your stay, we frequently asked if there was anything more you’d like to experience, and your response was always that everything was great. It’s important to note that our Worldpacker hosting is not intended as a substitute for a natural horsemanship training course. Our primary focus as a business is providing riding holidays. That said, I regret we didn’t have the chance to discuss natural horsemanship during our mealtime conversations—an opportunity that was always available.

Given that your visit occurred between riding holidays, our team was catching up on leave rotation and horse moves between our stables. I could have taken my leave as well, but I stayed to ensure you had the best possible experience. We’ve had occasional volunteers who left feeling under-engaged, and I wanted to give you my full attention and diligence.

I would kindly suggest that, in the future, direct communication with your host could help clarify such matters. You could have easily gained more exposure to natural horsemanship had we known your interest. Our focus was on ensuring you stayed safe in the saddle and created lasting memories. Remember, your visit was for the ‘Cleaning and Administration’ position, not horsemanship, yet we provided daily rides as well while you had the daily opportunity to witness horses of diverse levels lunged.

I do regret receiving a 4-star rating over an issue we could have easily resolved had it been communicated.

Warm regards,
Alfie

Reino Unido

3

Alfie is the best host when he is there however this opportunity was defiantly not what I was expecting. If reconnecting with nature and wanting to dissociate completely from the world then this is a great place to do so! As far as volunteering goes there isn't anything you are required to do except ride Copper. I did struggle with the length of the minimum stay and did leave a little early as felt very much isolated! Learnt a lot about health benefits on food saw more about how locals really live. Didn't see much natural horsemanship but grateful for the opportunity to see how it ran.

mais de 1 ano atrás

Alfie respondeu

Hi Rebekah,

Thank you for your review and for sharing your positive experiences and remarks. However, we regret receiving a 3-star rating, as we had no idea you were struggling during your two-week stay. At the time, we had a minimum two-week requirement, but after reading your feedback, we promptly lowered it.

I understand that being in a foreign country may have made it harder to express any discomfort during your stay, but I want to emphasize that we are always open to discussion. We are well-traveled, educated, and mature enough to sit down and address any concerns. For context, I have worked with Fortune 100 companies, where work-life balance and addressing grievances are high priorities—skills I apply here at the ranch as well.

We are also very careful to ensure that volunteers aren’t overworked, and we take extra steps to make sure tasks stay within agreed-upon hours. Our volunteer program is not, and never will be, a replacement for employees, and to suggest otherwise would be completely incorrect. Many volunteers have enjoyed the freedom and flexibility our program offers, making the most of their stay on Sri Lanka’s beautiful east coast. The key difference is that many of them rated us 5 stars, while you rated us lower for the same experience.

It’s unfortunate we didn’t have the chance to address your concerns in real-time, as you consistently mentioned everything was “all good” when I checked in with you. I regret we didn’t have the opportunity to resolve what seem to be simple matters.

Warm regards,
Alfie

Holanda

2

If you’re really into nature and love the quietness, this place is definitely for you! They also take great care for you, very Sri Lankan food, and Alfie will help you with questions. For me however, it was too quiet and really boring. There is nothing to do for you as a volunteer, and I really don’t know why they would call you one while staying there. I felt really lonely, because it’s in the middle of nowhere. It was not what I was expecting, because there was nothing to do. Before you book this ‘volunteering’ position, you should know that you will just be a guest, not a team member.

mais de 1 ano atrás

Alfie respondeu

Dear Lora,

As outlined in our profile, we are a signature riding holiday ranch. We carefully select suitable volunteers, and their tasks and experiences naturally vary based on the activities at hand, the nature of our guests, and their willingness to work or socialize, among other factors. You were with us during a period when we had just completed back-to-back riding holidays, so our horses were on break and some team members were on leave.

On April 10, 2024, you asked, "Are there any other volunteers present?" to which we replied, "We try to have a maximum of two students at a time. Over the past two years, we have seen a demand for more discerning students who want privacy, as most of them are digital nomads with equipment, space, and privacy preferences." Given this clear communication, it is puzzling that you described our ranch as being “in the middle of nowhere” and “too quiet and really boring.”

We chose this location out of a passion to escape urban madness and seek tranquility, a choice appreciated by many of our guests and volunteers. We understand that preferences vary, but it was clear from the start that our ranch is not a hostel and would have, at most, two volunteers at any given time.

You left earlier than your commitment required. We had staff on standby to host you, who could have been sent on leave, but instead, you chose to criticize us in a manner we believe is unfair and unfounded. We understand that you might be perturbed because there was no refund, as explained per our organization policy. Our profile contains nothing misleading or false, and if there had been, we believe you would have highlighted it at the time. We regret your insincerity and unsocial conduct in this regard.

Regarding your statement, "There is nothing to do for you as a volunteer," we want to clarify that we run an equestrian operation in a country with very few horses. Horse comfort and safety are of paramount importance to us. You had the option to ride twice a day on some days and once a day on others, based on your preference. If you had wanted more work, we would have gladly assigned you tasks that you could execute comfortably and safely. Staying in your accommodation all day and complaining more than a week after you left does not help us address any concerns. If you check your WhatsApp, you will see that Alfie responded to your messages within minutes, even while traveling or at work. We are, therefore, disappointed with your attitude.

Furthermore, your private comment about lowering the $15-a-day fee, which covers three meals, coffee, electricity, mineral drinking water, linen, water, and the prorated costs of staff who cooked your vegetarian food, served, cleaned, and kept you safe and attended to your needs, is insulting and demeaning. Where else would you receive all this and have the opportunity to ride a horse twice a day for such a cost?

Sri Lanka may have a lower GDP than your country, but we are richer in hospitality and service. We have to provide all of the above and still pay licensing fees, taxes, and upkeep. We left you good feedback, but your insincerity prevents us from remaining silent on this matter.

After your encounter, we have not only raised the fee we charge our WP volunteers but have also lowered the minimum stay requirement. This adjustment aims to attract those who genuinely wish to benefit from our program, similar to others who have given us positive feedback. At the same time, it naturally filters out those who may not be a good fit, helping us avoid future drama.

Sincerely,
Alfie

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Negócios

Contato com a natureza

Vegetariano / Vegano

Rural

Contato com animais

Selvagem