A social eco-hostel tucked in Koh Tao’s hillside jungle paradise with a giant coronary heart and a good greater mission? Sure please 💚
We sat down with one in every of founders of Wonderland Jungle Hostel, Valeri Johnstone, who shared how they constructed an area the place travellers and the area people might join, study, and develop collectively.
Situated on a hill however additional away from the hustle and bustle of the centre of the island, Wonderland Jungle Hostel has gorgeous views over the luxurious jungle. A rooftop bar, aircon and every day social actions – you couldn’t have a greater base to dive into the pure wonders of Koh Tao.
And wait, it will get even higher 🏝️
Two humanitarians and a Buddhist open a hostel
Valeri, her husband and an in depth good friend – two humanitarians and a Buddhist – shared a dream about creating an area that functioned each as a hostel and a neighborhood centre.
“We had no concept if it could work,” Valeri tells us. “It was throughout the uncertainty of COVID-19, however we knew we needed to strive.” So, they took out a mortgage and poured every little thing into constructing Wonderland Jungle Hostel.
❗Spoiler alert: it labored out. Wonderland Jungle Hostel simply received the Community Superhero Award in this year’s HOSCARs as a result of past being a hostel, they’re an training hub and charitable organisation that has outfitted over 300 college students with important abilities.
A spot the place training modifications lives
From day one, Wonderland Jungle Hostel wasn’t nearly comfortable beds and jungle views. It was designed as a base for training, cultural trade, and neighborhood empowerment.
“We’re equally a hostel and an initiative for constructive change,” Valeri says. The hostel’s communal house doubles as a classroom, the place volunteers maintain free English, pc, and humanities courses for native kids 💻
Some of the impactful initiatives is the devoted dormitory for Indigenous college students. Cherry Koe was a baby when her household fled Myanmar and she or he began attending the hostel’s free English courses. Then there’s Vanisa, from Malaysia, who arrived by no means having seen a laptop computer earlier than. Each women come from rural areas the place formal training was both extraordinarily restricted or non-existent.
Quick ahead two years and these two younger girls are standing in entrance of a room stuffed with travellers, giving a presentation in flawless English. Cherry Koe spoke concerning the warfare in Myanmar and the way training turned her mild within the darkness, whereas Vanisa shared how she grew up in a village and not using a college and the way assembly Valeri on a humanitarian mission ignited her love for studying.
“It was a deeply emotional second seeing these two younger girls, who had began from zero,” Valeri recollects. “Seeing them encourage others jogged my memory of why we constructed Wonderland within the first place. We wished to create a spot the place even the smallest alternative can spark a metamorphosis.” 🌟
A ripple impact of kindness
The hostel has turn out to be a hub of studying the place each the area people and travellers profit from the talents and data shared 🌱
Valeri and her husband Pascal co-founded the Horizon Asia Educational Association (HAEA), a volunteer-driven initiative that now supplies life-changing instructional alternatives to underserved youth throughout Thailand, Malaysia, and Myanmar.
It’s also the one property within the area that has a good wage system: all workers from cleaners to basic supervisor get the identical wage. “Simply because it was the suitable factor to do,” Valeri says.
Upon studying concerning the influence, travellers are keen to leap in and assist. Some provide to show courses, others assist with the tutorial affiliation, and plenty of simply carry their distinctive abilities and abilities to share with everybody 🤹
“We throw out concepts, and folks naturally take them on,” Valeri tells. There are a number of workshops per week, the hostel is stuffed with artwork and folks proceed volunteering even after leaving Wonderland, comparable to a Canadian medical scholar who’s educating an area child dreaming of turning into a physician.
There’s now a community of 30 volunteers who work on-site or remotely, some educating in individual and others mentoring college students nearly.
Situated on a distant island, Wonderland Jungle Hostel additionally takes their environmental footprint severely 🌄 They use solar-powered lighting outdoors, acquire rainwater and run an natural backyard. There’s no single use plastic in sight and company can commerce in plastic bottle caps collected from the island’s seashores for a free drink.
Each nook looks like a narrative ready to occur
Valeri tells us that rising up, the ebook Alice in Wonderland turned her escape, an imaginary place the place creativity and curiosity sparked limitless adventures. At Wonderland Jungle Hostel, she wished to carry that very same sense of magic to life 🪄
Each nook is designed to move company right into a whimsical storybook world, the place creativity thrives and the surprising turns into actuality. Similar to the ebook that impressed it, Wonderland Jungle Hostel is a reminder that nothing is unattainable.
Valeri’s secret spots in Koh Tao
You’ve in all probability heard about Koh Tao’s world class diving spots, however Valeri’s acquired some hidden gems up her sleeve…
🚶♀️➡️ Hike to the deserted resort at Laem Thien Seaside…
Take a scenic trek although the jungle to a secluded bay to seek out the hauntingly stunning stays of an deserted resort. It’s the right spot for journey seekers who love exploring forgotten locations and snorkelling in untouched waters.
🛖 …or to the deserted hut close to Sai Thong Seaside
This lesser-known hike to the deserted hut close to Sai Thong seashore rewards you with breathtaking ocean views and a way of peaceable isolation. Convey a ebook, soak within the surroundings, and really feel such as you’ve stumbled upon a secret paradise.
🐶Volunteer on the native canine shelter
For many who need to give again whereas travelling, strive volunteering at Koh Koh Pups, an area canine shelter. Stroll rescue puppies, play with them, and provides them much-needed love.
