Program Reviews

Sri Lanka was the first stop on my gap year and I spent 3 weeks doing the turtle project. I met some truely amazing people while volunteering with PMGY, both staff and other volunteers. The experience at the turtle hatchery was eye opening and very humbling. The accommodation was basic but functional and the PMGY team is fantastic! I would fully recommend the experience to anyone! I had such an amazing time in Sri Lanka!

I stayed in Ghana for 4 weeks on the orphanage programe of PMGY. I am very happy with PMGY, the staff was nothing but supportive and did everything as soon as you asked. They are very friendly and generally awesome people. The housing was absolutely fine as well and I did like the food, although it was starting to get repetetive in the end.
The only issue I had wasnt with PMGY but with the attitude of the locals. THey dont care about the children and their goal is basically to do as little work as possible, so they often wont let the kids play outside, because they might get dirty and things like that. But because of that the children appreciate you even more and you can really make them feel loved.
I would go abroud with PMGY again!

I spent two weeks in India and had the best time of my life. The whole experience from beginning to end was something I will never forget. It was VERY hot whilst I was there but although in the beginning it felt unbearable i quickly got used to it and missed it as soon as i got home.

The program is well organised and motivated by care and with great understanding.

I would highly recommend this program to anyone wishing to visit india and experience the culture.

Sarah x

I couldn’t recommend this programme enough! Before heading out to Thailand the UK team supported us so much with any questions we had about flights etc. When we arrived in Bangkok we were greeted by our Volunteer leader Sopida who is the most friendly and welcoming woman ever! We stayed at her family home for two weeks which I couldn’t fault one bit. Its not a 5* hotel so don’t have too high expections but it was clean, beds were comfy, we had a fan each and we were catered for - we couldn’t have asked for anything more.

The school we went to was very modern and up to date. We did only spend a couple of hours with the children a day but that was their routine which we had to fit into. It meant there wasn’t much pressure on us to plan lessons, which we didn’t want. We had loads of fun with the children, singing songs, and playing with them. We would teach them basic English like parts of the body and fruits. Seeing them progress was so rewarding.

In the last few days Sopida organised for us to go to a less privileged school which was very eye opening and I’m so glad we did it! Although playing football against 50 boys in 34 degree heat was tough but also worth seeing the smiles on their faces.

Before we went to Thailand we had thought about travelling to a few places in our spare time. We had the weekends off and wanted to make the most of our time in Thailand. Sopida and Darryl helped us so much with planning these trips. They told us which places to go. Ps. definitely go to the Thai elephant home- best day ever.

Overall I don’t have a bad word to say about this trip, I loved every minute of it and I couldn’t recommend it any more! If I could I would go back in no time. Thankyou to Sopida for making us feel so welcome 😘 xoxo

Check out their Facebook and Instagram page for pictures from the Thailand Childcare programme.

Deciding to travel to Vietnam to work on this program was probably one of the best decisions of my life. My only regret is that I didn't stay longer. I was a bit worried that I would feel homesick, but the volunteer house truly felt like home.
Before I left I received the handbook which outlined everything so I felt pretty confident as to what to expect when I arrived.
The in-country support is amazing. The CSDS office is in the house, so there was always people available to talk to, or they could easily be contacted via Facebook. They helped us plan trips, and always made us feel welcome.
The accommodation was much better than I expected. The food was varied, the rooms were fairly spacious, and there was never a queue for the showers.
I did the teaching project, and taught at a local community class for young University students. They were all so lovely, eager to learn, and more than willing to take you exploring on the weekend. In fact, one of the students invited me to a Pagoda for the weekend which was an amazing experience - definitely not something that would have happened had I just been on holiday.
My only advice is to stay longer than you think you'll want to - it truly is an amazing experience and one that I definitely did not want to end.

Before coming to Sri Lanka I felt that the support given from the Pmgy team was great, anytime I had any questions they were answered very quickly. I also found the live videos very helpful.

From the moment I arrived in Sri Lanka I felt the team provided excellent service, jäger was waiting at the airport to pick us up and take us to the first place in the real experience. The team provided great support throughout my entire stay.

The accommodation throughout my first two weeks of the experience was great, I enjoyed it and would do it again. I then arrived at river house, which has beautiful scenery and common space for all volunteers.

I loved my projects, my first project was monk teaching, every morning for two weeks! I loved it, planning lessons and presenting them was amazing as you can see how much they appreciate it. In the afternoon I also done the teaching project at one of the summer camps, this was slightly more challenging as my group of children were pre-school and didn’t understand any English. This was very challenging and also very rewarding. I loved it! For my last two weeks I took part in the elephant project! It was amazing walking, cleaning and feeding these beautiful creatures. Such lovely animals, I’d definitely do it again.

Advice for potential volunteers
- bring bedding
- Teaching - be prepared to do lots of planning for lessons, also be prepared to see how people live and what they have compared to us.
- Elephants - be prepared for the elephants in chains as it’s the law. Also, the mahout will hit the elephant with its stick, they are trained through punishment not reward.
- bring a GoPro(I didn’t and I really felt I missed out on capturing a lot of memories)
- MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR EXPERIENCE

I had no idea what to expect before I left, I hadn't done anything like this before and felt massively out of my comfort zone - but as soon as I arrived I felt relaxed and safe.
The accommodation was better than I expected - the food was good (obviously you get used to having the same sort of meals every day), I liked that you had the freedom to just go off and get a tuk tuk into Amba and have a wander and explore.
The induction day - I felt was really useful, the staff made me feel more comfortable and I knew from that day that they would help with anything (I ended up having to go to the doctors and they made sure that someone came with me, and they made sure I was okay after). It was really handy to be shown where to go and given a bit more of a background on Sri Lanka and the local area.
I did the orphanage project - and ended up also doing the Monk teaching in the morning too - something that I am so pleased I did! I expected to spend more time with the kids, but after joining the Monks too it was fine. You just have to make sure that you make the most of your free time! When I went to my first day of the projects I was terrified! I felt that the kids didn't listen and I wasn't going to get anywhere - but after a couple of days, you won't want to ever leave!
I would recommend getting day passes to some of the animal projects - I did the turtle one, and it was good to have a change and get to see what the other guys were doing!
I did the weekend trip to Kandy and climbed lions rock, I have heard that you could prob organise it yourself, but I felt a lot more safer going with the organised trip but I guess thats up to you!
I know I only did it for 2 weeks, and it was my first time, but I would recommend PMGY as they were so helpful before I left and during! The team over there were amazing and I am thinking of doing something next year with them too!
Thanks for the opportunity! :)

This Month was not a regular month at all to me, it started full of inthusiasm for the trip to India and become a bit harder when i had to face the loss of my beloved Grandmother on my 4th day of the program in India. and found no optio for support from the PMGY organization Unfortunately!
i staid for two weeks in the house with Vishy and his wonderful family, i volunteered in the medical program. as a 4th year medical student this experience was very enriching to me due to the fact that i was able to explore a totaly different medical system and therapy methods.
The experience in the slum clinics, dispensary, medical camp and differet clinics has tought me many meaningful lessons and will accompany me through all my years in the medical feild.
other than that, i had real good time spent with my fellow volunteers in the orphanages with the amazing kids staying there. and had enough time on the weekends to travel thanks to the help of Vishy, i cannot find the words to describe this person ! inlimited kindness and a huge heart whom is willing to help in everything needed, my visit would have been much harder without Vishys help.

I must say I love Sri Lanka as a country from the rich culture and the amazing people I stayed with. The whole experience is life changing and make you appreciate what we have as a family. I only stayed for 2 week but it was an action filled adventurous and mind changing experience. The co-ordinators were down to earth and co operative and were my family for the two weeks I stayed there. The accommodation wasn't the best but I did get a good sleep every night and felt safe in the hands of Ashika and the rest of the Sri Lanka team.

I have lived with the most welcoming, nicest people ever. Bali is one of the most beautiful places on the planet, and I think it's something that you have to do. It's also very touristy and commercial - something that... surprised me, although maybe it shouldn't have had. I think it's either about accepting it or finding the balance. The kids are incredibly, incredibly enthusiastic, and want to learn - sometimes you'll hear them repeating after you "can you read this out" but the more love and positivity you'll give them, the more you will get back. I taught a class of 7 years old which didn't understood a word, I had no translation. And yes it is possible! I'd say, brace yourself for the Brother's School. It is difficult, but it is difficult because the school is underfunded, because kids for the majority of time did not have teachers. I'd say go to the healer and... be respectful, just don't take it to heart. Because by his word I'm supposed to go mad. Someone was told to through her used underwear into the sea. Don't ask about stuff that is important to you. Gili islands are amazing. Amazing, I loved every second of it, it's a must go to.