But an unregulated hodgepodge of for-profit and nonprofit enterprises offering volunteer travel has cropped up—making it tough to know which ones are worthy and raising questions about for-profit tour operators getting into the business of charity. Responsibletravel.com, a for-profit travel company, saw a twenty-nine percent increase in its volunteer tour business last year. North American business at I-to-I, Britain's largest for-profit volunteer tour operator, has grown forty percent over the past two years. Some volunteers, however, have complained that the company gives too little to local communities. I-to-I stresses that it is not a charity; fees go toward researching projects and paying support teams, accommodations, meals, and training. "The politics is really frustrating, because at the end of the day our company wants to match people who wish to have learning experiences with community projects and useful services," says Bruce Haxton, I-to-I's director of operations. "We are about a lot more than volunteering. This is about meaningful travel."

Should travelers be wary of for-profit companies doing volunteer travel? Not necessarily, according to experts in responsible travel. "I don't care what a company's motivation is, as long as the program has merit," says Christina Heyniger, a voluntourism consultant. "If the company sees a marketing opportunity, God bless them."

Voluntourism has even hit the luxury market. A number of high-end travel agents will arrange volunteer experiences. Ritz-Carlton Hotels has launched Give Back Getaways, offering volunteer experiences in many communities where it has properties, from planting trees outside Santiago to building playgrounds for orphans near Moscow. "Our guests want pampered experiences, but they also want the chance to do something in the community," says Sue Stephenson, who runs the company's philanthropy programs.

So given the confusion, how to do voluntourism the right way? The answer: Ask a lot of questions. "It's all about due diligence," says Clemmons. What's important is how much money goes back to the community. "Whether you're giving money or talent, it has to fit the community's needs," says Martha Honey of the Center on Ecotourism and Sustainable Development, which is holding a philanthropy tourism conference in Tanzania in December.

The bottom line is that you should be realistic about what you are achieving. If you're spending a day or two working, don't expect to save the world. "If it's packaged like tourism and looks like tourism, it's tourism," says Kate Simpson, who founded the British Web site ethicalvolunteering.org. "Giving money is great, but these companies sell us the idea that we can take time out from our holiday and change peoples lives. If development were that simple, it would have been sorted out long ago."

Voluntourism is in part about feeling good. It is about giving, but it's also about learning. After spending a week building a stove in Peru, I realized that the questions I had been asking were all wrong. Yes, the tour operator should have asked if I spoke Spanish. No, I wasn't saving these farmers from poverty. But the family got a new stove. And I, in the bargain, learned about people who can thrive with very little. My trip was as much about how it changed me as about what it did for them. And maybe that's okay.