Program Reviews

My experience with PMGY in Cape Town was fantastic. Cape Town is an amazing city with so much to do, and the volunteering project was such an incredible experience. Everyone in the volunteer house was so lovely and the facilities were good. I would definitely recommend the 3-day Garden Route trip, it was a big highlight of the trip.

Cape Town has everything from hiking, beaches, wine tasting, quadbiking and more so you will never get bored. I did 4 weeks and my only regret is that I didn’t stay longer as you will leave with more things you want to do than when you arrived. The staff at the project were so welcoming and we were so involved in the daily activities at the nursery. Couldn’t recommend Cape Town more.

I recently signed up with two friends to volunteer in the day-care sector of PMGY Tanzania. The experience start to finish was amazing. Upon arrival at the airport the pick-up service removed the stress of when you first arrive in a new place. The volunteer house was simple but had a nice family feel. The coordinators did an excellent job at looking after you and making sure you settled in okay, I would definitely say you don't need to worry about feeling lost if you're going solo!
The volunteering was rewarding and everyone I interacted with in Arusha was very kind and helpful. I felt safe walking to and from placement every day. The volunteering itself consisted of working in a day care which had around one hundred children aged from one to six. Each day care and school was different but the one I was placed in had very little resources so I would advise thinking of some activities or bringing some tools that you can use to teach and entertain the children. I bought my speaker to day care everyday and the children loved it! The volunteering itself was my favourite part of the trip and I think its a great experience to do.
There are so many activities you can do after placement and on the weekends. I stayed for three weeks and went on a safari one weekend and to Zanzibar the next! PMGY organise the safari so all you have to do is pay and they can also help to organise any other trips you may want to do. All in all I would recommend to anyone.

PMGY have been absolutely fantastic at making my first time travelling beyond safe and enjoyable. As a 17 year old, fresh out of high school, PMGY were the ideal company to go through as the support leading up to arriving in India for the medical project, as well as constantly throughout. The house in Faridabad is absolutely incredible and has the loveliest homely feel to it. Vishy takes care of you ridiculously well and him and the team never leave you feeling like you need anything - there is so much support and you are looked after so well! The medical project involved leaving the house with a local doctor and travelling to the location of that days project. This may include hospitals, old-age homes, nursing homes, slums or housing complexes. The work you would participate in on project included basic health checks (blood pressure, blood sugar, weigh-in etc.) and a brief consultation with patients to find out what problems they are having. You would complete this as part of the team, along with the oversight of the doctor, who would also decide what medications the patient needed and could be given at the time. You generally spent 3-4 hours on the project - usually seeing around 20-30 patients - before returning to the house for lunch, all of which is prepared for you by local ladies in the house. I spent 4 weeks in India, which I felt was the perfect amount of time to become acquainted with the local area, the team and go on a number of weekend trips (all of which Vishy will organise for you!) I cannot recommend PMGY enough!

I chose to do this programme solo at the age of 19. There were many times were I questioned even going as I was scared to go solo but going was the best decision I ever made.
The coordinators in the PMGY house are so welcoming and will truly give you the best experience.
The opportunity to do activities are endless and you really get out of the experience what you put in.
The coordinators will also support you within your volunteer placements and will assist you with any problems. The volunteer placements are only until 12pm so you also have the rest of the day to explore Arusha. Would highly recommend To anyone and would love to go again myself🤗.

I had the best time on my trip, and was very quickly immersed in a completely new culture and trying things I never thought I would. There was 24/7 access to support within the volunteer house which provided much comfort of safety.

There are so many volunteers and so it is very easy to meet your sort of people very quickly. My friends and I had the best time and would do it all over again.

The weekend trips are very well planned. They provide you with a packed weekend filled with must-see activities. It was also another chance to meet more of the pmgy volunteers and socialise.
I recommend doing the weekend trips that have plan my gap year staff attending, and aren’t with a private company. Due to the fact that this means you don’t have the support for that weekend. For example, the Maldives weekend is run by a private company and so no plan my gap year staff attend and you need to be extra careful.

Meeting lots of friends from across the world and seeing a whole new culture and side to life was a highlight.

One thing that I think could be improved, is that the volunteer programmes only run for a couple of hours each day and so I believe more of a difference could be made if this was lengthened.

There was a good private tuktuk service provided by plan my gap year which meant it was very easy to get around safely.

I absolutely loved everything about volunteering with pmgy!! I did childcare volunteering for 5 weeks! I extended my time as I was living it so much! It’s like a big family, they help you with everything and truly care! the rooms are comfortable and the food is really nice although a bit repetitive. We extended our visas and the process was easy with pmgy. The volunteering was so much fun and the kids are the best, so eager to learn making it feel so rewarding. Thank you for the best time plan my gap year Bali!!❤️

Amazing experience!
The staff at PMGY were so helpful and organised so much for us. Everyday there was something going on, whether that be a culture night with traditional dancing, henna and sari night or an opportunity to try Tuktuk driving lessons, there was something for everyone!
The volunteering was very well structured, a great opportunity to help the local community and make an impact. I spent the first two weeks of my trip taking part in the childcare project, where I played with the children as well as taught them some basic English, such as colours and the alphabet. The final two weeks I spent on the dog project – I really enjoyed looking after the puppies, daily tasks included walking and bathing the dogs as well as giving them medicine. One day we even had the chance to take the dogs to the beach and help them swim, this was so much fun! Overall, I really enjoyed the mornings volunteering and found the experience very rewarding!
As well as the volunteering during the week, the weekends were also very enjoyable. I took part in two of the PMGY weekend trips – the Maldives chill out weekend and the Cultural Triangle Trip. Maldives was so beautiful and a great chance to take part in activities such as paddle boarding and snorkelling as well as relax in between the busy weekdays. The Cultural Triangle Trip was also amazing, and I think the day where we went on the elephant safari was my favourite day of the 4 weeks!
Overall, I had the best month volunteering with Plan My Gap Year and highly recommend visiting Sri Lanka!

I Volunteered with PMGY Sri Lanka for a month. I chose to do the English teaching project. It was probably one of the craziest 4 weeks of my life, but I loved every single moment of it.

I taught on an afternoon at a temple. There were about 10 children, ranging from the ages of 4-17. (though the attendance did range depending on the weather)
The lessons were a combination of both teaching and many many games. Break time was one of my favourite times, the utter joy a simple game a duck duck goose brought the children was infectious.
I also chose to teach English to monks one of my weeks in the morning. Which was an unforgettable experience in itself. One of my favourite parts of teaching was the things the children taught me.
If you are even considering volunteering at all with Plan My Gap Year, DO IT. You will not regret it. This experience was one of my first times travelling and I was a little nervous but it's a lovely environment, you settle in very quickly and all the coordinators are so supportive, kind and funny.
It was probably one of the craziest 4 weeks of my life, but I loved every single moment of it.
If you are thinking about doing English teaching do not worry about experience and do not worry if English is not your first language. As long as you can speak it confidently enough to teach others. There is also masses of support available both from Plan My Gap Year coordinators and a Sri Lankan teacher (who teaches English) if you require it.
When I started teaching I was given a curriculum to follow, then I pretty much designed the lessons myself. Choosing how to teach each topic.
Everyday it was a joy to teach. All the games brought the children so much joy and their laughter and cheekiness was infectious.
On weekends you could go on organised trips, which were incredibly fun and a brilliant time to explore more of the beautiful country. The weekend trips were some of my favourite memories. There was also organised evening activities, games, henna, performances and more.
There was not a moment when something interesting and fun was not happening.

I went to Sri Lanka on the real experience, it was amazing! Recommend for anyone thinking about it. The staff were all really nice and made the experience, shout out to Ishan!!! Everyday was something new, I got to travel around Sri Lanka and meet great people. The real experience was great we were so busy for the first two weeks visiting temples, going on safaris, boat trips and seeing Sri Lankas incredible landmarks. My favourite day was climbing up Sigiriya Rock, the views were incredible, and the tour was really interesting. The real experience was well organised, and I felt safe the entire time. The food we ate on the first two weeks of travelling was mostly a buffet. There were loads of options and Sri Lankan food is very tasty.

Then I volunteered on the turtle sanctuary for my final two weeks which was so much fun. We got to feed, release the turtles to the sea, clean their tanks and give them medicine. The volunteer house was fun to be at with plenty of activities each evening and also the option to travel to Hikkaduwa where there were lots of things to do and places to go. I recommend going to citrus for karoke!!! They also had options to do canoeing, boat trips and a waterfall day trip. The staff were also great with helping us plan weekend trips. PMGY was such a great experience, and I can’t wait to sign up for my next trip! Thanks for all the hard work the staff put in to make my experience so amazing!!!

On September the 29th, my two closest friends and I made a trip of a lifetime.

We joined the childcare program, volunteering in preschools in Arusha, Tanzania for 4 weeks. We made connections with people we'll most likely never meet again, but their impact will be remembered.

We booked the trip with PMGY, with a strong will to help and experience as much as we could. We created a fundraiser months in advance so that we could donate to the schools - we ended up doing a lot more than we realised we could.

Booking with PMGY was very simple, and we were provided with a very large handbook with lots of useful information. The taxi from the airport to the house was arranged by PMGY - a 1.5 hour drive with a gorgeous view of Mount Kilimanjaro.

The PMGY house itself is quite big, with 3 stories, and multiple bedrooms and bathrooms. I realise now that we arrived in one of the busiest times, ending up with very limited space. We were cramped in the top floor - a joined bedroom, 18 people to 1 bathroom.
Getting breakfast and dinner seemed like a fight for survival; first come, first serve. Being late wasn't an option. There is a set menu, repeated each week, but you have the option of ordering delivery if you no longer want the provided options.

There are constant power outings in Tanzania, but fortunately the house has a generator. When the generator is on, it basically shakes the entire house from how loud it is, but it keeps the power on. A downside, when generator is on - there is no hot water.
So, timing your shower is crucial.
The pressure varies depending if anyone else is using the water, and it is either boiling hot or freezing cold, and don't take too long because several other people are waiting to shower.

When you arrive, you are added to the house group chat, where everyone in the house can communicate easily for various reasons, including the ordering of tuktuks from place to place.

Sim cards are organised by the coordinators. These were provided to us on the second day of arriving, as there were other volunteers arriving, so you should let your family know you might not be able to contact them immediately.
The sim card is a reasonable price, and can be topped easily. Please also keep in mind the free wifi advertised does not exist.

Before placement, you will be given an orientation with the rest of the new group. On orientation, you will be shown the most trustworthy ATM, where you can take out money - my regular debit card worked completely fine. You will be taken to the Maasai markets, where you will be taught to bargain, as you will 100% purchase something incredibly overpriced if you are not careful.

On the first day of placement, the PMGY coordinators organised the volunteers into separate groups to be sent to each school. We were allowed to change our schools with a good reason. We were also allowed to change to the medical program for a reasonable fee. We walked to our placements everyday, having breakfast at 8am, and setting off by 8:45am, finishing at around 12:30pm.

The 4 weeks of placement flew by, we were incredibly sad to go, every child and every teacher we met were so beautiful and welcoming of us - but 4 weeks was the perfect amount of time for me.

Weekends are free, so you have time to do lots of funs trips; eg. safari weekend, Maasai village, hot springs, waterfalls, Maasai markets etc.
It gets a little tricky to find things to do after placement, and may get a little repetitive. Spending money is necessary to get the full experience, but chilling at the house can also be fun.
It's very communal at the PMGY house, perfect for socialising, and getting to know people. Only breakfast and dinner are provided, so you need to eat out for lunch - a perfect time to explore with friends.

I spent on average 150,000 shillings ($90 AUD or $60 USD) a week, not including weekend trips or shopping for souvenirs.
We got around via tuktuks, small motor vehicles with 3 wheels (fit up to 4 people, 5 is pushing it), which are organised and ordered by the coordinators to ensure they are safe and best price.

We went to Zanzibar at the end of the trip, which is a 1 hour flight from the Arusha airport. If you are planning to go, I would 100% recommend staying in Nungwi (up north) so you are near all the activities. If you are going during your program time, you are only allowed to miss 3 days of placement, but 3-5 days is plenty of time for Zanzibar.
If you are asking my opinion, I wouldn't recommend Zanzibar. It was very overpriced, and I was very underwhelmed with my experience.

Overall, my experience with PMGY was incredible. It has changed my views of travelling immensely. Volunteering allows you to have a much bigger insight to the culture and country you travel to. I would love to travel with PMGY again, and 100% recommend to anyone who is planning on travelling for volunteering.