Volunteer & Stay for Free.
Thanksgiving Back is an opportunity to be part of Revelstoke's strong community by volunteering with local organizations on registered volunteer projects. As a thank-you, you can get the accommodation costs during the event dates reimbursed up to $400 when you book two or more nights!
2026 Projects
Support 1 of 15 projects and create deeper connections with our community.
Weekend One
Friday, Sept 25

Feed the People
The Neighbourhood Kitchen
Help us sort through items from our local fall food drive and prepare meals with items we have available to us. Additional baking for the food bank will also be done.
Weekend One
Saturday, Sept 26

Luna Fest
Arts Revelstoke
An unforgettable experience of art and community, LUNA Fest is a three-day festival presenting a lineup of musical talent, mesmerizing installation art, interactive performances, and family-friendly fun. LUNA Arts is a celebration that transforms the downtown Revelstoke core. The entire town comes out to play as the sun goes down.
Weekend One
Sunday, Sept 27

Railway Day
Revelstoke Railway Museum
Join the crew for Railway Days 2026 at the Revelstoke Railway Museum! Help bring a fun-filled community celebration to life with games, crafts, music, and family activities. Meet great people, support local heritage, and make memories along the way!
Weekend Two
Saturday, Oct 3

Community Garden Cleanup
Revelstoke Local Food Initiative
Help us close our community gardens for the winter - harvest for the food bank, pull plants, spread mulch, clean up the beds at the RVAC, Downtown, and Illy gardens. It's a fun day outdoors, building community & caring for our community growing spaces Your time and energy make a difference in supporting community food systems. Come meet good people and care for a space rooted in learning, sharing, and nourishment.

The Big Clay Clean-Up
Revelstoke Visual Arts Centre
The pottery studio needs some love! We're looking for volunteers to clean, organize, & tackle a few pottery projects. Support a creative community space that welcomes people from all walks of life, and come get a little dusty with us! We have snacks.

Trail Maintenance Dig Day
Revelstoke Cycling Association
Take part in a trail project and learn what it takes to build and maintain world-class mountain bike trails. Participants will be led by an experienced trail builder and will help fix up a section of trail on one of the RCA's four trail networks.

Firewood Party
Revelstoke Snowmobile Club
Keep our backcountry cabins warm! Join the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club’s Firewood Parties for Thanksgiving Back. Skiers, hikers, sledders ...everyone is welcome. Come split wood, experience an off-road adventure by taking a side by side up the mountain and enjoy a free volunteer BBQ!

Riparian Weed + Rainforest Hike
CSISS x Wildsight
Support restoration and conservation! Join a speed weed to remove invasive plants on the Greenbelt. After that we'll support local conservation by conducting a BioBlitz while testing out our new interpretative rainforest walk.
Weekend Two
Sunday, Oct 4

Firewood Party
Revelstoke Snowmobile Club
Keep our backcountry cabins warm! Join the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club’s Firewood Parties for Thanksgiving Back. Skiers, hikers, sledders ...everyone is welcome. Come split wood, experience an off-road adventure by taking a side by side up the mountain and enjoy a free volunteer BBQ!

Grounds Tidy
BC Interior Forestry Museum & Forest Discovery Centre
Tackle the Leaves. Tidy the Trees. Prep the Property. Join us for a hands-on volunteer day as we prepare the Forestry Museum grounds and The Riverside Forest Walk for winter!

School Lunch Program
Community Connections
Help the Neighbourhood Kitchen create nutritious and delicious menu options to be served in our elementary schools for all students and staff free of charge.

Fruit Pick-A-Thon
Revelstoke Bear Aware
Help pick surplus fruit, reduce bear attractants, and support local food security! Volunteers harvest fruit from local trees, keep a share for themselves (if desired), and help donate the rest to community food programs. A fun way to give back!

Hügelkultur
Revelstoke Food Commons
Join us in building a Hügelkultur garden at the Food Commons! We will pair this ancient garden technique that layers wood and compost into a moisture-retaining hill with with traditional gravity-fed irrigation channels to water the beds.

Seniors Centre Refresh
Revelstoke Senior Citizens' Association
Help the Revelstoke Seniors Association get organized and give its well-used folding tables a fresh start! Volunteers will inventory supplies, scrub tables, and add a new coat of paint where needed. Lunch will be provided, just wear comfortable clothes you don’t mind getting paint on.
Frequently Asked.
Can I book more than 2 days of accommodations?
How do I book accommodations?
Can I book an AirBnb?
My partner & I are both coming, do we both receive the $400 CAD?
How many shifts must I take part in?
I live in Revelstoke, can I take part in this?
What if a large group wants to rent an entire vacation home?
How do I receive my reimbursement?
How can i get involved in the future?
Accommodation reservations must take place on the same dates as the project you are registered for, and for a minimum of two nights. You're welcome to stay longer, but reservations will still only be eligible up to a maximum of $400 CAD.
Accommodations should be booked directly with the accommodations and not through a third-party platform such as Expedia or Booking.com. Use our Referral Engine for direct links to local businesses!
No, Airbnb is a third-party platform and not a direct booking. Please refer to our Referral Engine and our Vacation Rental companies for qualified stays. Check out the local vacation rental companies listed to inquire about full home rentals.
Double occupancy reservations are only eligible for one reimbursement.
You only need to sign up for one shift / one project to qualify for the reimbursement.
Because this is an incentive to encourage travel to Revelstoke, the reimbursement is not available to people with a Revelstoke permanent address, but you're welcome to encourage your family and friends to come out and visit!
If your group is volunteering and plans to share a whole-home vacation rental under one reservation, please contact us before booking to discuss reimbursement eligibility. Email [email protected] with the number of total volunteers and your accommodation plans.
Participants must attend their full volunteer shifts and complete the post-visit survey to be eligible for reimbursement (this will require you to submit a receipt from your hotel stay). Reimbursements may take up to 4 weeks after the event to process.
Sign up for our thanksgiving back notification email and follow our social media channels @Revelstoke. We release Thanksgiving Back project details and open registrations annually around July/August.
More Details.
History.
What are the volunteer projects?
Economic Impact.
Get Involved.
This program started in 2021 and has run every year since! We've brought in over 300 volunteers to our community to assist with 35 different volunteer projects.
We've supported 16 different Revelstoke non-profit organizations through this volunteer travel offer. Volunteers have taken part in an annual nocturnal art festival with our local arts organization, removed invasive species from our local trail networks, stocked firewood in backcountry cabins, reorganized museums and art galleries, assisted with trail maintenance, and much more!
We've asked volunteer participants to track their spending while on vacation during Thanksgiving Back. We've calculated that this program generated approximately $150k for local businesses in our community.
Sign up for our newsletter, follow our social media channels @Revelstoke. We will release Thanksgiving Back Project details annually in August.
Mandi, Railway Museum volunteer from Trail, BC
"ThanksgivingBack has given us one of the most special and memorable weekends ever. I can wholeheartedly say that while we certainly worked hard, our time at the museum was truly a special and memorable one, complete with a private behind-the-scenes tour after. We left our day deeply fulfilled and floating on a cloud.
We've found some wonderful new friends here thanks to this incentive. We'd like to thank @Revelstoke for giving us an educational, community-oriented, fun experience that we'll never forget. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you, Revelstoke. We'll be back."

Thanksgiving Back RVAC - Credit James Buckle @jamesdanielbuckle




I believe anyone who comes into a community with the intention of contributing is a local.

