Celebrate Mom with Fresh Air, Good Food, and Farm Hospitality
Celebrate Mom with Fresh Air, Good Food, and Farm Hospitality
Dig Deeper Blog
Farm Stay? B&B? WWOOFing? Questions answered.
Scottie Jones
2 min read
We talked to hundreds (thousands?) of people at the Mother Earth News Fair last weekend. They had lots of questions for us.
For one, "What's the difference between a farm stay and a B&B?"
For another, "What's the difference between a farm stay and WWOOFing?"
As an answer, the term 'farm stay' is pretty broad - it just means you're staying on a working farm for a short time. The 'farm stay' might be interactive, with the guests helping out with chores, or it might not be, depending on the needs and wants of the guests and the farmers. The 'stay' could be on a working farm B&B, or it could mean camping as a WWOOF volunteer.
The farm stays listed on this site are ones where guests pay for their lodging, like a farm B&B or cabin rental, and there's absolutely no work requirement. These farm stays are great for people who want to escape to a farm to relax for a weekend, while getting a closeup view of the source of their food. Many of these farm stays are especially suited for families with kids, though some are retreats specifically aimed towards adults.
There are some great resources out there for people interested in working farm stays, where there's usually a minimum work requirement and length of stay, and in return the volunteer gets free or very cheap lodging. For short-term working farm stays, look to WWOOF, or GrowFood.org.
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Where Hospitality Comes Naturally
Across the country, farms are welcoming guests in growing numbers, from short visits to longer stays, offering a close look at everyday farm life. It’s an invitation to see where food comes from and to experience farm life. Those who have chosen to do this have done so thoughtfully. There is no performance or theme, but instead a form of welcoming, a chance to share the land and introduce the families who care for it. From the outside, visiting a working farm can feel a little unexpected. The farmer has laden the breakfast table with jams they made and eggs fresh from the chicken coop. You step outside your door to pick fresh fruit from the orchard, or maybe you’re invited to try your hand at milking a dairy cow or holding a bottle of warm milk for a calf. The lights are on for your late arrival, and a friendly note on the table welcomes you to the farm. This is a visit to a family’s home in the countryside. At Farmstay, we work with farms and ranches across the country that welcome guests in many different ways. Some are just beginning their hospitality journey. Others have been opening their gates for decades, shaping hospitality through lived experience rather than any single formula. This is a small glimpse of the many farms that do this kind of hosting especially well (the first three farms on our list were early U.S. pioneers in farm hospitality, welcoming guests as far back as the 1950s).