Beyond the Smile: The Infrapolitics of the Host in Volunteer Tourism

Central to the volunteer tourism experience is the encounter with the host community. Much of the existing literature privileges the voices of volunteers and organizations, with the perspectives of the local communities poorly represented. This study on the host–guest relationships of orphanage volunteer tourism in Nepal challenges the understanding of the stable and hierarchical configuration of power. It reflects on the multiplicity and particularity of political action and how this action is not only found in the grand narratives of historical social change, but often unfolds in the small, fragile, and repetitive actions of touristic daily lives. By focusing on the acts of performing volunteer tourism, this paper questions the victimization of those who are at the edges of traditional power structures.