Gap year expedition in Costa Rica

country:	Costa Rica
departures:	2008: 3 Sep
price:	From £1786 (6 weeks) - £2421 (10 weeks) excluding flights. We can help arrange flights from the UK

Gap holidays

Costa Rica holidays

the amazing things you'll be doing

This small country has it all – wonderful beaches, both Caribbean and Pacific, rainforests that spread right down to the edge of the ocean, enchanting people, exotic wildlife and some of the richest bio-diversity in the world. Join a team based at the wonderful community at El Silencio on the central Pacific coast in the Quepos province of Puntarenas. Here you will help run their eco-lodge whilst assisting on conservation projects at the Wildlife Conservation Centre and community projects in the village itself.

Jobs include rehabilitating injured animals such as ocelots, monkeys and exotic birds, teaching English, dance and handicraft skills to the local primary school children. And to top it all there are not many places in the world where you can relax on a beach whilst being watched by inquisitive sloths and howler monkeys peering out from their jungle canopy hideout! It is easy to explore Central America or travel further into South America.

Placement Outline - If you want an intimate exposure to “real” Costa Rica this varied and diverse mix of projects is the way forward as it reveals the many different faces of this fascinating country. It provides diverse challenges in contrasting environments giving a unique experience.

a day in the life of a volunteer

Eco-Lodge - Tasks will vary from day to day depending on the host’s needs. Looking after guests, including operation of tours, customer service, helping out in the kitchens and housekeeping. Helping teach English to the lodge staff. Maintenance of the lodge including rebuilding bungalow decks and changing roofs of the houses and bungalows. Helping to maintain the gardens including tending the Medicinal Plants Garden, collecting seeds for a re-forestation project and planting specific seeds in special areas. Activities close by include: football or volleyball everyday with members of the community, guided walks to the villages, oil palm plantations, waterfalls and natural pools, plus white water rafting.

Community - Work at the Elementary School of El Silencio Cooperative by:
Teaching English, dance and handicraft skills to the local primary school children, entertain the kindergarten kids. Assist with the organisation of the Environmental Education Centre. Painting the community centres – school, church etc. Playing volleyball and soccer with community children. Working at the local dairy and agro centre.

Conservation - Work at the Wildlife Conservation Centre at the Savegre River by:
Looking after the rescued ocelots, monkeys and exotic birds. Building feeding platforms, nest boxes and fences. Reintroducing the animals back into the wild. Reconstruction of bridges and trails, cleaning cages and maintaining the animal shelter. Typical animals at the rescue centre include: ocelots, monkeys, agoutis and anteaters, plus an array of exotic birds like parrots. Monitoring animals’ health and diet. Preparing diets and feeding animals.

Adventure - Volunteers will get weekends off to travel and explore independently.
Walks to the waterfalls and natural pools. White water rafting on the Savegre River. Football and volleyball with the local communities. The coast – sailing, fishing, snorkelling, horse riding

volunteer travel - what's it all about?

Are you are looking for an adventurous trip with a purpose, or on a gap year or career break? If you want to make a difference in some of the world’s most important conservation areas - and in community projects - then volunteer trips are for you! Volunteers tend to have a sense of adventure, and come from a range of different backgrounds and from all over the world.
Edward Abbey said 'sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul'.

how this holiday makes a difference

Environmental policy: Volunteers are based at El Silencio. The projects are in walking distance of the accommodation. Project work includes a mix of rewarding community and conservation projects – painting classrooms, teaching, helping maintain an eco-lodge, working with rescued animals and wildlife etc. There is also an education programme teaching the community about disposing of litter. Hands on projects working alongside committed communities are a powerful way to educate the next generation of travelers. In addition we have well briefed and professional project leaders working alongside village elders who ensure the message is got across. Our teams are normally no bigger than 10 -12 per departure.

All foodstuffs are bought locally and resources such as heating in camps where possible is done in an environmentally friendly fashion e.g. solar panels. In addition rain water is collected for drinking water. Clothes washing is done where possible with bio-degradable soap.

Social responsibility: We ensure that all its programmes work with the full agreement of local elders and that volunteer’s work side by side amongst the community. Volunteers live in the community. We pay the communities for looking after volunteers and every volunteer has a donation to the community included in the cost – currently £80 per person. This is used to buy materials to build classrooms, pay for education fees and so on. We also work alongside local charities as often as we can supporting their aims. All volunteers and Project Leaders are fully briefed on the destination, host community, local culture, religions, customs and particularly ways of behaving.

Economic sustainability: We ensure that approximately 60% of the cost of each volunteers scheme is paid to the project leader in-country to cover all their in-country costs. This includes paying local communities for food and accommodation. In Costa Rica volunteers live with a family who are paid for all meals and every night’s accommodation. In addition we pay communities a donation as described above and source all food, drink, equipment, fuel locally thereby enhancing the local economy.

Through the income we pay the communities we do as much as we can to provide local people with jobs, cutting down on unemployment and providing families with an income. Sometimes this income supports numerous relations. We also recognize that volunteers spend their own money on drinks, transport, souvenirs, services (taxis), medical care, park fees, activities e.g. rafting, diving, climbing etc which are major contributors to local suppliers incomes and the overall economy.

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