Looking to have a mix of volunteering and adventure on your gap year? Whether you want to join a volunteer project for two weeks or two months we have plenty of volunteering projects for you to choose from. Make a difference on your gap year, choose from our page of leading gap year specialist and responsible operators.
These full and frank independent Volunteering holidays reviews are from travellers who have booked directly through responsibletravel.com. They are not edited by us or any of the companies we work with. Find the real story, from real travellers below.
10/10 thanks...i was impressed at the companies commitment to minimising the impact on the environment and to maximise the impact locally
(more)The concern and interest in me as a guest from a country many only can dream on to be able to visit. Poverty and wealth, being on my own and among people were the most memorable parts of the holiday
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Romania is a beautiful spectacular country, so from the moment I was travelling from Bucharest to Brasov I knew that I had come to a really excellent destination. I was very impressed by the people who run the sanctuary on a daily basis particularly Laci & Emi and Mateusz our driver! (more)
The best moments were the tree frogs, manu poison frog and the rainbow boa! I really enjoyed the construction of the bird hides and biogarden even though sometimes it was really hard work! Pancakes for breakfast were great!
(more)Meeting the people of Laos, especially the Monks and Novices, and seeing the Laotian countryside. It was the most formative experience I have ever had. I would urge any and all people to apply (more)I went to the Wildlife Rescue Centre in Thailand, this was a fantastic project helping animals who had been mostly kept as pets. It’s hard to say what was the most memorable part of this holiday as there was so much variety and different experiences, it’s difficult to decide what was the best part of it.
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An amazing experience. Value for money as well as contributing than the usual tourist to this wonderful archipelago. Who knows how much longer we'll be able to visit (they have to do something to control numbers of tourists soon to help preserve the islands). Go while you still can!
(more)It was so good to get the chance to meet so many local people and the most exciting part of the whole thing for me was helping to bring in an orphaned yellow baboon who was being sold on the street, and she was later named after me! (more)
It was an excellent experience. The children were incredible, they changed my perspective on life.
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I don't know where to begin to say what was the most memorable part... it was all so amazing! (more)
Excellent holiday, highly recommended. I will definitely be travelling with responsibletravel and I have already told everyone I know about your website. Keep up the good work.
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Being up close and hands on with the elephants was amazing. You dont realise how gentle and inquisitive they really are. Don’t be scared of them, embrace it, you’re never going to get a chance to be this close again...Absolutely amazing. Would definitely go and say hello if I’m visiting Thailand again. (more)
I enjoyed my experiences with everyone and learned more about what it is to be mindful of others. (more)
I feel I helped both the children on my project enjoy themselves, and also give the carers a break, having a knock-on effect on the children. Overall it was an amazing experience. I think everyone should do this at least once as it's a real eye-opener. (more)
Be prepared for it to cost more than you expect. Be prepared for the heat and exhaustion, and have fun! (more)
Meeting the bears and being able to really make a difference to their day-to-day lives with enrichment, feeding and cleaning; some of the things we were doing (such as enrichment to keep the bears active and happy) wouldn't get done unless we were there to help out! (more)
The holiday was the most amazing experience and I would definitely recommend it. I had an incredible time working with the elephants, the staff at the Park and the other volunteers. I also had the opportunity to do some fantastic trips and excursions in my free time culminating in a tandem skydive which was amazing!
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The best memory was the last day, probably, when I said goodbye to the children I've been teaching for almost 3 weeks. I could feel how much affection and trust had been given to me, and I really felt very emotional when I left. (more)
Overall this holiday was brilliant I had no idea what to expect before I went but I had so much fun, met lots of lovely people, learnt about a new culture and felt I was able to give something back to the community. (more)You can trust responsibletravel.com reviews because, unlike many other schemes, reviews can ONLY be written by people who we have verified have been on the holidays. In addition, we don't run these holidays ourselves - our only interest is giving you the best independent advice.
