Program Reviews

I was so excited to go to the Dominican Republic, I had been counting down the days for almost a whole year! I went on Mountain Air and Village service and the experience was life changing. My group was the third group to work on the aquaducts in the community and we finished the project and got to see the running water! It was such a great moment to see the running water and see how happy the locals were. The ranch we stayed at was so nice although I wish we had time to spend more time there. In the middle of the trip we went to the beach for a night and I had a great time! The ride there was certainly really long but worth it! I only had wished we had more time to spend at the beach and had left the base house earlier. For anyone looking into the trip I HIGHLY recommend going. I already cant wait for my trip next year with some of the same friends from this year!

I went on the Heart of the Jungle trip in early June. I can honestly say it was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. The activities we did were so fun and exciting. I learned so much through working with some of the locals and the people we met were the nicest people and the country was so beautiful. I met some of the most incredible people through Rustic. I would highly recommend this trip and Rustic Pathways to anyone.

When the time came for me to go on California Rush, I did not realize how much of a focus there would be on the environment. That absolutely was not a bad thing- I was just pleasantly surprised! I found that the trip was a place for me to put everything I had learned in APES to practical tests. Whether it was volunteering with Keep Tahoe Blue or Friends of the Inyo, decreasing my waste so that it would neither interrupt wildlife nor reenter the biosphere; overall my environmental consciousness increased. I would like to say the same about my peers, but I'm not so sure. At times I felt like the only student who cared about where my plastic goes. Eventually though, our team got to a level of environment consciousness. However, it lacked social consciousness. They were unaware of the privileges they carry. White, cis, straight, able-bodied, wealthy privilege. I struggled to bond with other campers, specifically male campers. We all came from places of privilege, but these kids... Man, they were the most privileged people I have EVER met. And it absolutely went unaddressed. I spoke with and confronted the other students about their racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, rape "jokes." And for most of the two weeks, I felt like I was the only one out of the group (including staff) who noticed. The guides did not become aware of the situation until one night, when half of the group was talking about me and my concrete beliefs behind my back. More specifically, outside of my tent. After bringing notifying the program leaders, they began to address the situation with individuals. By that time though, the trip was almost through.
It was a once in a lifetime experience, definitely. I traveled completely by myself, and I discovered how my experiences differ from others living in the US. I absolutely fell in love with California. With the Inyo National Forest, with Santa Cruz... I know now that that is what I want to do with my life. I am certain that I want to take a gap year so that I can go and do right now, just go and be with nature. I want to see more of the US, and to then travel with world. For that, I am grateful to Rustic. For those who are like me, and don't conform to heternormativity, to the gender binary; for those who care more about the biosphere than the Kardashians, this may not be the trip for you. All I know is that I spent my own time and money on this trip. I had been looking forward to traveling with Rustic for nearly 4 years. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. I do not regret it. I would not take it back. I would not travel with Rustic again.
It is so important for kids, teens, people to push out of their comfort zone and discover how they want to make an impact. I am not telling you whether or not you should go on a Rustic Pathways trip. What I will tell you is this: if you decide to travel with Rustic or any other company, do not compromise your values and beliefs. Be strong. Be amazed. Stay present. And please, come back here and tell the world about your trip.

This program genuinely changed my life. The counselors were amazing and helpful. I made many great friends from around the country that I still talk to and visit. The activities that we did were top of the line and very fun. As for the service, I feel like it was unorganized and not helpful towards the community. We did do work that the real workers didn’t have to do but I feel like we barely did anything. The whole experience was amazing. I will remember it forever and I can’t wait to do another one. I know I will be doing rustic for every year possible. 10/10

I was so excited to go on my trip for into to community service. That was until I got to the airport. I realized that maybe I made a mistake. Half of the time I felt very left out at base camp because of my social status. There lacked minorities and people of lower economic standing. The kids were privelaged, made awful jokes, and didn’t care if the things they said were hurtful. A lot of kids came in groups or partners too. It was hard to meet people when they all came together. The service however was wonderful. I enjoyed supporting the community I was at. The activities were unbelievable. Zip lining was amazing, and I’m afraid of heights. White water rafting was personally my favorite thing. The staff were so great. They were kind and they listened and they genuinely cared about each and every one of us.

This program was amazing!!! I learned so much about Peruvian culture and history and so much about myself throughout the week. The food was amazing, the staff was amazing. The homestay was quite a humbling experience and my host mom was the sweetest and made the best pancakes every morning :) Rustic pathways did an amazing job leading us through Peru and the Leadercorps portion was extremely informative and empowering. 10/10 collab.

My first summer with rustic was definitely one for the books. Thailand itself was fantastic and the elephants there were amazing but the true memories were made with the people I met through the organization. I owe rustic everything and I am so thankfully that they exposed me to an experience that allowed me to see the world and discover other people and how they live. It was truly and amazing experience and I have already booked my rustic trip to Australia for next summer!

This was my first trip with Rustic and the overall experience was amazing. The people ofThailand are some of the most genuine people I have ever met. They always have smiles on their faces! The friends that I made on this trip are amazing and we still keep in touch. We are planning to do another trip next summer and are excited to explore another country and culture together. My experience in Thailand is one that I will remember for a long time. From building homes, to teaching children English, to walking on the beaches of Phuket. This program has a wide variety of activities and is a great way to do community service.

We did a lot of fun activities all around Costa Rica. We learned about how the Costa Ricans lived, the food they ate and their slang. We also spent an amazing 6 days with the Costa Rican kids which were definitely not long enough. We really connected with the kids even though we hardly spoke their language. I am still in touch with some of them today. The food was also amazing. Every single meal was so good and they were very accommodating about food restrictions.

I had an amazing time! I could tell safety was a top priority which I appreciated. At no point did I ever feel unsafe and if that was the case our leaders always checked in on us and made sure we were feeling our bus. Whether it be something a simple as a headache or the stomach bug, rustic staff was very aware and caring to all my needs. The service was hard but very rewarding. It was so much fun and all the girls on my trip were awesome and made the service so much more fun. The elephants and the thai school kids were so adorable.